An Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Moderated Peer-to-peer Learning for Extension Outreach to Landowners
Abstract
Traditional wildlife and range extension programs offered to landowners and land managers provide information, knowledge, and tools for land stewardship. However, effectively educating today’s landowners may require new methods. This project investigated the effectiveness of the Peers and Pros 360° teaching method, which is a moderated peer-to-peer learning approach. The objective of this teaching method is to create an interactive learning exercise that builds from the group’s base level of knowledge. I designed, conducted, and evaluated 3 workshops for landowners in the Edwards Plateau ecoregion about prescribed fire to investigate the effectiveness of the Peers and Pros 360° method. In a Peers and Pros 360° workshop, participants exchange ideas within a framework prepared by professionals. This framework consists of a designated topic, themes, and statements. My program consisted of 8 themes, each with 3 associated statements. During the program, participants were asked to react to these statements. Landowners with more prescribed fire experience often led the discussions, while those who were not as familiar with the topic could ask questions and learn from their peers. Following the discussion, experts contributed additional information based on a list of predetermined talking points. The workshop was favored by participants; 93% of participants preferred the Peers and Pros 360° over traditional teaching methods and the average net promoter score was 90. The workshop was also effective; participants at all 3 workshops experienced an increase in knowledge and indicated high intent to adopt practices, with an average of 5 practices intended to adopt. However, response rates to the follow-up survey were low, so we could not draw conclusions about actual adoption rate. The Peers and Pros 360° teaching method will be useful to outreach and extension professionals for designing and conducting relevant, engaging programs and can be modified and used for a variety of educational groups.
Citation
Restivo, Kaitlyn Nicole (2022). An Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Moderated Peer-to-peer Learning for Extension Outreach to Landowners. Master's thesis, Texas A&M University. Available electronically from https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /197765.