Innovating for Skills Enhancement The centrality of field attachment programs in Agricultural Sciences in Africa
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Date
2016
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
International Journal of Community Research and Engagement
Abstract
Debate on the centrality of field attachments/work experience to education has gained traction in the recent past, with consensus emerging on the necessity for such experience in order to progress along one’s chosen career path (Essential Skills Ontario 2014; Hillage & Pollard 1998; Kristof-Brown, Zimmerman & Johnson 2005). Thus, work-based learning and apprenticeship–dual training systems now play an important role in facilitating employment and increasing economic competitiveness (Cornford & Gunn 1998; Simmons 2009). Traditionally, African universities, in particular departments of agriculture, embedded within their courses field attachment–apprenticeship programs, but these were generally orientated towards fulfilling the curriculum mandate of undergraduate training (Mugisha & Nkwasibwe 2014), while graduate training in most African universities rarely included such apprenticeships. Yet, research dissertations on graduate training programs continued to pile up on university shelves (Goolam 2014; Sawyerr 2004).
The lack of connection between graduate training and research with communities meant that farmers from whom the information was generated lost on three grounds. First, they became simply providers of information to support attainment of higher degrees. Second, their production systems barely improved as there was hardly a functional relationship between farmers, graduate fellows and their knowledge, or between farmer activity and related curricular programs. Third, farmers were denied the valuable partnerships that should come through farm-level research. Despite universities trying to reach farmers, they continued operating within their silos and ivory towers. The university academics were becoming ‘a cyclic burden’, often seeking information from the communities without providing feedback.
Description
Keywords
Innovating, Skills Enhancement, Agricultural Sciences, Africa
Citation
Egeru, A, Nampala, P, Makuma-Massa, H, Osiru, M & Ekwamu, A 2016, ‘Innovating for skills enhancement in agricultural sciences in Africa: The centrality of field attachment programs’, Gateways: International Journal of Community Research and Engagement, vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 159–171. doi: 10.5130/ijcre.v9i1.4868