Agricultural education
Ramin Taheri; Reza Movahedi; Saeid Karimi; Mehrdad Poya
Abstract
The present applied research has been carried out in order to identify the indicators of effective teaching, using a survey method and a questionnaire. The questionnaire included a total of 105 questions, 7 of which are related to personal characteristics and the rest of the questions are related to ...
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The present applied research has been carried out in order to identify the indicators of effective teaching, using a survey method and a questionnaire. The questionnaire included a total of 105 questions, 7 of which are related to personal characteristics and the rest of the questions are related to three sections: professional skills (26 questions), general teaching skills (36 questions) and technical skills (25 questions). The statistical population of the research includes agricultural faculty members of Bu Ali Sina (N=80) and Razi (N=72) universities. To determine the sample size, Morgan's table was used, and a total of 129 faculty members from Bu Ali Sina (66) and Razi (63) universities were selected as research samples. Data analysis was done in two sections of descriptive and analytical statistics using SPSS22 and smartPLS3 software. The results showed that the most important indicators of effective teaching on teaching technical skills include: having a lesson plan and program for teaching and commitment to it, considering discipline and consistency in presenting lessons, linking the lesson content with the needs of the agricultural community. About general teaching skills, the most important were: openness of the professor, flexibility towards students' conditions, establishing close communication with students; and the most important indicators of effective teaching on the teaching profession include: determining the time, conditions and position of the class by the teacher, clarifying transparent instructions during teaching, the teacher's expertise on the course subjects. In the structural model of the research, the components of professional skills, technical skills and general skills had a positive and significant relationship with the "effective teaching" component with the impact coefficient of 0.70, 0.27, and 0.19, respectively.
Saeid Karimi; Sepideh Alizamani Sardarabadi; Reza Movahedi
Abstract
Both cognitive and non-cognitive skills are crucial to improve entrepreneurial intentions and readiness, but little research has been done. The main purpose of this descriptive-correlational study was to investigate the level of cognitive and non-cognitive skills and their role in shaping students' entrepreneurial ...
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Both cognitive and non-cognitive skills are crucial to improve entrepreneurial intentions and readiness, but little research has been done. The main purpose of this descriptive-correlational study was to investigate the level of cognitive and non-cognitive skills and their role in shaping students' entrepreneurial intentions of agricultural vocational schools in Kermanshah province. The study population consisted of second and third grade students of agricultural vocational schools in Kermanshah province in the 2020-2021 academic year (N=300). Based on Krejcie and Morgan sampling table, 167 students were selected as a sample using stratified random sampling method. Data were collected through a standardized questionnaire. The face validity of the questionnaire was verified by a panel of experts and its reliability was confirmed using composite reliability coefficient (CR>0.70). In addition, convergent validity was evaluated using average variance extracted (AVE) which was found to be adequate. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling and partial least squares method with the help of SmartPLS 3.0 software. The results showed that students' cognitive and non-cognitive skills are not at the desired level. Furthermore, the results indicated that attitudes toward entrepreneurship and cognitive skills had a positive and significant relationship with students' entrepreneurial intentions. However, among non-cognitive skills, only proactivity was directly and significantly related to entrepreneurial intentions. The results also showed that attitudes toward entrepreneurship mediated the relationship between cognitive skills, proactivity, and risk-taking with entrepreneurial intentions. Based on the results, suggestions were made to develop and deliver appropriate entrepreneurship education and improve students' cognitive and non-cognitive skills.
saeed Karimi; FAtemeh Sepahvand; Ahmad Salman Makreet
Abstract
In order to understand better entrepreneurial intentions and behaviors, we need to consider environmental factors, however, less attention has been paid to the effect of these factors on the individual behavior in the literature. Based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), this study aimed to examine ...
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In order to understand better entrepreneurial intentions and behaviors, we need to consider environmental factors, however, less attention has been paid to the effect of these factors on the individual behavior in the literature. Based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), this study aimed to examine the relationship between perceived university support and students’ entrepreneurial intentions in tow Persian-speaking countries namely Iran and Afghanistan. The study's population included 1250 undergraduate agriculture students at Bu-Ali Sina University (N=650) and Samangan University in Afghanistan (N=600) in 2019 academic year, which 452 of them were selected using Bartlet’s table and proportional stratified random sampling. Study data were collected through a standardized questionnaire. Validity of the questionnaire was approved based on the opinions of faculty members at Bu-Ali Sina University. The reliability of the research instrument was determined using Cronbach's alpha coefficients (in the range of 0.81 to 0.92). Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling and the partial least square (PLS) method. The results indicate that along with positive attitude and perceived behavioral control that are directly related to entrepreneurial intentions, university support also has an indirect but significant impact on shaping of entrepreneurial intention among students. The relative importance of the motivational factors (attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control) and its antecedent (university support) appears to be broadly similar in the two countries and add support to the applicability of the TPB model in predicting entrepreneurial intentions in non-western countries.
Saeid Karimi
Abstract
This descriptive correlational study was conducted to investigate the relationship between employability skills and career adaptability among agricultural students. The study population was 1300 senior bachelor agricultural students of Bu-Ali Sina University and Arak University in the academic year 1396-1397. ...
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This descriptive correlational study was conducted to investigate the relationship between employability skills and career adaptability among agricultural students. The study population was 1300 senior bachelor agricultural students of Bu-Ali Sina University and Arak University in the academic year 1396-1397. According to the table of Krejcie and Morgan, 341 of them were selected through proportional stratified sampling. A questionnaire was used to collect data. Validity of the questionnaire was approved based on the opinions of faculty members at Bu-Ali Sina University. A pilot study was conducted to determine the reliability of the instrument, which the Cronbach's alpha values for the main scales of the questionnaire, was at the appropriate level (in the range of 0.80 to 0.93). The collected data was analyzed using Canonical Correlation Analysis and Structural Equation Modeling technique by the help of SPSS and AMOS software. The results showed that there is a significant positive relationship between employability skills and career adaptability. Notably, problem solving skills were significantly related to the four sub-scales of career adaptability (career concern, career control, career confidence and career curiosity). The results of the study reveal the importance of developing students' employability skills in order to strengthen their career adaptability. The findings have implications for the development of employability skills and career adaptability.
Behnoosh Sotoodeh
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between basic psychological needs satisfaction (autonomy, competence and relatedness), academic self-efficacy and academic engagement among agricultural students in the West Iran Universities. Moreover, the mediating role of academic self-efficacy ...
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The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between basic psychological needs satisfaction (autonomy, competence and relatedness), academic self-efficacy and academic engagement among agricultural students in the West Iran Universities. Moreover, the mediating role of academic self-efficacy in the relationship between basic psychological needs satisfaction and academic engagement was examined. The statistical population of this research consisted of 6598 undergraduate agricultural students at five public universities in the west of Iran (N=6598). According to Bartlett’s table, a sample of 365 students was chosen through random stratified sampling method. Data were collected using standardized questionnaires. Data were then analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modelling by the help of SmartPLS 3 software. Results indicated that academic self-efficacy and the three kinds of needs satisfaction were positively and significantly related to academic engagement. Furthermore, the results showed that academic self-efficacy mediated the relationship between the three kinds of needs satisfaction and academic engagement. These results show the importance of basic psychological needs satisfaction and suggest targeting student self-efficacy is not sufficient when attempting to improve academic engagement; rather, students must also feel autonomous, competent, and experience a genuine connection with their college, lecturers and fellow students.
saeed karimi
Abstract
Entrepreneurship education is a fast growing area and a hot topic in colleges and universities all around the world, and its supposed benefits have been much praised by researchers and educators; nevertheless, the outcomes and effectiveness of entrepreneurship education programs have remained largely ...
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Entrepreneurship education is a fast growing area and a hot topic in colleges and universities all around the world, and its supposed benefits have been much praised by researchers and educators; nevertheless, the outcomes and effectiveness of entrepreneurship education programs have remained largely untested. Building on the theory of planned behavior, an ex-ante and ex-post survey was used to assess the impact of entrepreneurship education programs on students’ entrepreneurial intentions and also to explore the benefits of these programs. Data were collected by a questionnaire from a sample of 109 participants in entrepreneurship courses at four universities (Bu-Ali Sina, Kordestan, Shahrekord, Ilam). Entrepreneurship education had significant positive impacts on motivational factors (i.e., subjective norms, attitudes and perceived behavioral control) and students’ entrepreneurial intentions. Moreover, from the three entrepreneurship education-related benefits (i.e., learning, inspiration and resources) learning proved to be associated with the increase in perceived behavioral control, entrepreneurial attitudes intentions. In total, this study shows the theory of planned behavior can provide a useful framework to assess the effectiveness of entrepreneurship education.
Abstract
Literature shows that personality is one of the key factors that affect well-being of different professional groups. However, little research has been undertaken related with university students. Thus, drawing on the Five Factor Personality Model, current study investigates relations between personality ...
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Literature shows that personality is one of the key factors that affect well-being of different professional groups. However, little research has been undertaken related with university students. Thus, drawing on the Five Factor Personality Model, current study investigates relations between personality traits and three different kinds of well-being – engagement, boredom, and burnout- among agricultural students. The study adopted a cause-correlational method. The statistical population of this research consisted of 1780 agricultural students at Bu-Ali Sina University. According to Bartlett’s table, a sample of 260 students was chosen through random sampling method. Data was collected using four standardized self-administered scales including 15-item Big Five Inventory, Utrecht Work Engagement Scale- Student Survey, Utrecht Boredom Scale and Maslach Burnout Inventory- Student Survey. Spearman correlation formula and ordinal regression analysis was run to analyze the data. SPSSwin20 was used to do statistical analysis. The results indicate that conscientiousness and neuroticism were significantly related to each well-being dimension. In addition, agreeableness was only significantly related to burnout and openness to experience being only significantly related to boredom. In total, results indicate that personality traits can explain 5 to 16 percent of the variance in students’ well-being.
Abstract
Studying determinants of entrepreneurial intention and behavior represents a central topic in entrepreneurship literature. Although creativity is often seen as a core part of entrepreneurship process, its role has not been explored by using a valid theoretical framework until now. Drawing on the theory ...
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Studying determinants of entrepreneurial intention and behavior represents a central topic in entrepreneurship literature. Although creativity is often seen as a core part of entrepreneurship process, its role has not been explored by using a valid theoretical framework until now. Drawing on the theory of planned behavior, this study investigates the role of creativity in shaping and developing entrepreneurial intention and its antecedents. The statistical population of this research consisted of 1450 senior agricultural students at four public universities in the west of Iran (N=1450). According to Daniel’s formula, a sample of 300 students was chosen through random stratified sampling method. Data were collected using a questionnaire survey. Content validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by a panel of experts. Also, reliability of the research instrument was determined using ordinal Theta coefficient (θ =0.81-0.87). The results of structural equation modeling indicated that perceived behavioral control and attitudes toward entrepreneurship were significantly related to entrepreneurial intention, while the relationship between subjective norms and entrepreneurial intentions was not statistically significant. The results also showed that creativity was significantly related to attitudes toward entrepreneurship and perceived behavioral control. Moreover, structural equation modeling showed that creativity indirectly related to entrepreneurial intentions via perceived behavioral control and attitudes toward entrepreneurship. Findings highlight the role of creativity in developing entrepreneurial intention and contribute to the Theory of Planned Behavior and have some implications for entrepreneurship education.
Abstract
Early research which focused on the direct effects of personality traits on entrepreneurial intentions and behaviours have been criticized for their low predictive capacity. Recently researchers suggest that personality characteristics may affect entrepreneurial intentions and behaviours via entrepreneurial ...
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Early research which focused on the direct effects of personality traits on entrepreneurial intentions and behaviours have been criticized for their low predictive capacity. Recently researchers suggest that personality characteristics may affect entrepreneurial intentions and behaviours via entrepreneurial perceptions and motivational factors. The primary purpose of this study was to incorporate an important personality trait (namely, proactive personality) into the theory of planned behavior to examine the extent to which motivational factors (namely, attitudes toward entrepreneurship and perceived behavioral control) mediate the effects of students’ proactive personality on entrepreneurial intentions. Data was collected using a questionnaire survey from a sample of 300 senior agricultural students at four public universities in the west of Iran. The content validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by a panel of experts. The reliability of the research instrument was determined using Ordinal Theta coefficient (θ =0.75-0.82). Structural equation modeling and bootstrap procedure were used to analyze the data. Results indicated that attitudes toward entrepreneurship and perceived behavioral control fully mediate the relationship of student subjective norms, proactivity and entrepreneurial intentions. The findings have implications for explaining attitudes toward entrepreneurship and perceived behavioral control and direct attention on proactivity as an essential competence in the entrepreneurial process. Theoretical and practical implications for entrepreneurial intentions and education are discussed
