‘l l.’o""‘."fl"’°r 09H: u‘u. .‘l." nWmnism. .- O ‘Mmfi‘w.m.~0mm- ‘v :;A-‘ v w M .44 7 — .7 h _.A v v v ‘V' fi‘ W' T V“ vavv‘v fi."“vv““ i ' Q‘. . |Jl ‘ I . _ -o I ‘5'. . . . D ' . ‘ - ‘ . - o ,7 - . ‘ - . , . , . . ' 1 ’ ‘ ' . v I ~ * . . , 4 ' . c - , ‘ . _ d. .’ o ' ' . .. ‘,. ' ' . - ' 0' I . . I ‘ - - ‘ ' ¢ . . Q Q O 4 O 0. Q - _ . O ‘ . r-Oo --.- -'-. ~. . "" 1.». . - ' . - I - . V. a - I o ‘.a ."'fi'. .'- ‘l .. . .l c - o c ‘ _ ~ ‘ - ‘ ,, ¢ - - , _ I . - ~ -, ,. , . ofo‘ v a ' . l O - ".‘I .' . - .- . ~ . a — , 7'- V - . , . - ‘r. ‘ffi‘ .' ...,‘,;_ ,.- . ' - ' . o' 2 ,' ' f - n-..:.o. 'o..o>;-4:v ' ' . I, .r - 'fl - v‘ v, a . A. .1 t " ""~‘r"“"". .’--‘«‘o. .-°10llflv¢n-'r‘.I (0,:zic‘:¢:..."'.o ’. 11C..p':oaro-c-‘n -’ v}.4"’.:o(toH-.-- -- . ‘.,""J’:’ ‘ 'Ha‘ ‘ "'3‘: - O "it L. - .' 'rt ' 'v_. o a o. . rl 'r'_ , ' 1' ..’-:.'I (-n‘ 1:11.821 4. ;; ... -" . . . "’J.'—. . _- 3;}. I,“ ‘t-w‘v‘. 4."-;'-:V. ‘fi','!‘~.~ A I D rr’a. Iv- ,.4-'¢:4."- ‘. -. ° ‘ 't - . -_. , - ‘ . o .'. ' «r: ' I ' ’.O;;‘I:.:" '-', , . .:r i ' . 0’. ’Ivtdol -- - ; " ‘ - " ""‘ ”‘vvuOr' M‘Fv‘JOOOI.’ . ‘ - . 0" ‘ ‘1 ' D ca. - o I . ‘wl 0-2)): v‘ffif'arto'. —- ' o- .4. . ”:17: far-to (lo'o-o ‘VAIOMO 0 “' ° ° C K D r org... ”5 ~ .‘Oiv M 'I ‘ ‘ v . . ‘ P ?” fo- Knit "0%.. W."‘:f omo“.n . , . ° - I . I_- ‘ 90-? . t maotoizl. fur. ’4‘ to» .:.r;.-'-;..w grmgnr.ov :v- v .‘ .' "1- ' v v _' r ”3’ ’ ow» mme‘lrovfwmm ~ - - 0 ’3' MN new tflnvwdhvt ' l“ ' _ QVI¢"_'_M‘ . LIBRARY Michigan Star‘s" University ABSTRACT GUIDELINES FOR TRAINING THE HOME AGENT INEXPERIENCED IN THE USE or TELEVISION by Margaret V. McKinstry In 1958, the U.S.D.A.'s Cooperative Extension Service, noting the social, educational, technological, economic, and ecological changes in the United States, recognized it faced a greater: total demand and a constantly broad- ening demand for its informal educational programs. Although historically farm families have been its first priority audience, the Service stated it must attempt to meet the highest priority needs of all publics requesting its programs. Conse- quently the Service recommended that its agents use the press. radio, and tele- visionnto serve its audience as adequately, efficiently, and fairly as possible. This thesis asks and answers, "What guidelines can be followed to train a home agent to use television effectively?" Two methods of research were used, as follows: (1) Abstracting television research findings pertinent to home agent training. Answers to the following questions were sought: Is the content of home economics suitable for television? How do audiences receive home economics shows? Is television as effective a method of teaching as Extension's traditional methods ? Does lack of feedback affect learning? What personal attributes should a home agent have to present television shows? What communication techniques are helpful in presenting shows? C a. -. __ a-" ... ”npfi-- ‘ (2) Obta and Puerto Rico a taking as many 0: Helpful 1 Helpful e Use of [ Agents' Publicat. Training What am Degree . Use of: Other p1 Finding COInpos Use of a Studio 1: Relatim TYPes c stm Fortnat The agents were 4-3 leaders, ex The re: Diffusion of re 8‘ first legal Charg traditional teach he nu“lbel‘s of 4 Home e tension “wees lie own“? Via a Margaret V. McKinstry (2) Obtaining from extension leaders in home economics in each state and Puerto Rico a list of home agents experienced in the use of television and asking as many of these agents as possible for 'the following information: Helpful college training Helpful extension inservice training Use of U.S.D.A. television training aids Agents' attitudes toward training Publications helpful in producing shows Training needs experienced agents now visualize What audiences request for homemaking shows -, Degree of frequency agents use certain sources. Use of magazines for program sources Other program sources Finding out about audience characteristics Composition of planning groups Use of series Studio preparation Relationships with program director of station Types of promotions Ways of obtaining television time Formats of shows. The agents were also asked if television had helped increase the numbers of 4-H leaders, extension program members, and new audiences. The research revealed television is an effective channel for teaching. Diffusion of research in home economics and related subjects —-the home agent's first legal charge—is as easily accomplished by television as by extension's . traditional teaching methods. Agents have, reached new audiences and increased the numbers of 4-H leaders and home demonstration club members by television. Home economics content offered by secondary schools, colleges, ex- tension services, and other adult education groups has and is being offered across the country via television. Studies reveal audiences desire home economics _r— -1. wn-n. "“2. E's-nuvwflwu-l 4"; . ~. ’ ~7'r-‘1 ‘3'! .u‘ .,.—u—.‘vp.—w-. ‘_m '—-'v ‘Y—‘I‘ ‘7 ‘ Tar w v— . r‘. V WW ‘n'p‘ programs them. T< as the me with a pr. publics t: vision ar member Purpose ' audience ment fra Training shows de “89 to k8 DGEd to b Margaret V. McKinstry programs, favorably accept themand, unaffected by lack of feedback, learn from them. To be effective, a home agent must be competent in subject matter, dress as the medium dictates, uphold a professional grooming standard, and appear with a professional emcee until she attains experience. If the home agent is to fulfill her second legal charge, encouraging the publics to apply the research she is diffusing, her prime concerns in using tele- vision are her audience member—the receiver, the inseparability of the audience member and the agent's purpose in communicating, and the phrasing of such purpose in terms of the response the agent wishes to. elicit from the receiver. Training should focus not on home economics subject matter but on audience characteristics studies, building messages (shows) within the manage- ment framework to cause the audiences to improve their family life and well being. Training should also focus on the technical aspects of television, i. e. , actual shows designed for real audiences and presented in the studio. Agents need to know the resources, research, and references they can use to keep retooling their knowledge of communication techniques. They also need to be trained in how to establish successful relationships with television station personnel. ’ ' GUIDELINES FOR TRAINING THE HOME AGENT INEXPERIENCED IN THE USE OF TELEVISION By Margaret V. McKinstry A THESIS Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS Department of Television-Radio 1964 ' , . “:7 _, OK . [,7 Approved: M 12—1 ' -—v Rafi—‘1‘" W3 r.‘w-.—l—-:‘.VW Mm'wrfi v, 2.: ‘ '— -Wfi Wv—o-z-WO.'W ‘ ’ " _ - . / r /, (.7 .'7 53 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS To the State leaders of Home Economics Extension programs, to the home agents who completed the questionnaires, to Dr. Viola K. Hansen, Chair- man of Kentucky Home Economics Extension ngrams, to Dr. Gordon Gray, thesis adviser, to Mrs. Russell Moore, typist, and to Dr. Otis Oliver-Padilla of the Puerto Rican Extension Service, I express gratitude and appreciation. To my friend, Wilbur Brettell, county agent, Cheyenne, Wyoming, 'who guided and encouraged me in the use of television, I express my deepest appre- ciation. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .......................... LIST OF TABLES ........................... Chapter I. TELEVISION—A TOOL FOR THE HOME AGENT ...... II. TELEVISION —A CHANNEL IN THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS ................... . ._ . . . IIL- TELEVISION PRACTICES AND RATIONALES OF HOME DEMONSTRATION AGENTS ....... . ...... IV SOURCES AND TYPES OF PROGRAMS ........... v. PLANNING THE TELEVISION SHOWS ............ VI. GUIDE LINES FOR TRAINING THE HOME AGENTS ...... APPENDIX .......... . ............. ‘ ........ BIBHmRAPHY ...... O O. O 0 O O O O O O I ,O O O 0 O O O O 0 0 O 0 iii Table 10. 11. 12. 13. LIST OF TABLES Location of Agents Completing the Questionnaire . . . . Home Economics Courses Rated Most Helpful with ProgramContent Comparisons between Audience Requests and Agents' Most Helpful Courses ............ . . . . . Other Courses Rated Most Helpful with Program Content Television Training Needs as Agents Perceive Them Most Helpful Features of Extension Inservice Training Publications Helpful in Producing Shows . . . . . . . . Sources for Program Ideas . . . . . . . . ....... Use of Magazines as Sources for Program Ideas . . . . Methods of Planning Shows ............... Comparison of EducationalDifferences of Chaves County Homemakers and Home Demonstration Club Members Means Used in Discovering Audience Characteristics. . Communication Techniques Used for Well-Established Television Shows and Results Obtained . . . . . . . . iv Page . . . . 33 . 34 O O O 37 O O O 39 0 O O O O '40 O O O O 42 O O 0 43 O O O 47 . . . . 4s 0 O O 66 . . . . 71 O O O O 73 O O O O 74 CHAPTER I TE LEVISION-A RESOURCE FOR THE HOME AGENT "Through demonstrations, publications, and otherwise, " the Smith- Lever Act charges the Cooperative Extension Service "to diffuse among the peoples Of the United States useful and practical information in Agriculture and Home Economics and subjects relating'thereto. "1 The Act further charges the Service to encourage the application of this information. The goal of the legislators who passed the act was to help the people to help themselves in recognizing their needs and in solving the problems affecting their welfare. During its first forty-four years, 1914-1958, in carrying out its legal charge, the Service considered farm families its audience of first priority. But multiple changes began to cause conspicuous differences in rural and ur- ban life to disappear. In 1958, in view Of these rapidly accelerating social, educational, technological, and ecological'changes, the Service re-examined its charge and redefined its audiences. In its 1958 Scope Report, the Service noted an increase in total popu- lation yet a decrease in farm population, an increase of rural non-farm popu- lation, increasing populations in the two extreme age brackets, farm residents ‘ 1U. 8. Congress, Hearings, Reports, and Debate on Smith-Lever Act of 1914, 63rd Cong., 2nd Sess.. 1913-14, p. 1994. finding employment in urban centers while industrial workers are establish- ing homes in rural areas, the rapid increase of homemakers being employed outside the home, and a higher level of education, the median for formal edu- cation training in the United States having risen from 8. 6 to 9. 3 years during 1940-1950. Besides these social and educational changes, the technological ex- plosion has caused increasing mechanization and consequently higher invest- ments in farming and ranchng operations so that each family, in order to stay on the farm, has to' understand and apply technology and follow sound manage- ment or it'must adjust its income through Off-farm employment. Social, economic, technological changes contribute to increasing ‘ demands upon the country's natural wealth-more acreage resources are needed for housing and highways, larger demands are. being made upon forest and water resources. The Scope Report states the Extension Service must adjust itself to the changing problems Of the people demanding its services. Extension must recognize a greater total demand and a constantly broadening demand for its informal education programs. A To meet these demands, the Scope Report states Extension's respon- sibilities are to farm. families first, but not to them alone, that the highest priority needs of those other than farm families must be met. All families, according to the 1960 White House Conference on Children and Youth, are characterized by their exploding aspirations to have a better life for themselves and their children. To help meet the priority needs Of all families, the Extension Service developsprograms in the follow- ing major areas: Efficiency in Agricultural Production Marketing, Distribution, Utilization of Farm Products Conservation, Wise Use, Development of Natural Resources Public Affairs . . Community Improvement and Resource Development Leadership Development Youth Development Management on the Farm and in the Home Family Living. 2 Of these nine program areas, the Extension Service's home agent with the county agent shares the responsibility to plan, execute, and evaluate programs in the next to the last seven areas and total responsibility for the last. How can she meet this complex challenge? The home agent's required training—a Bachelor of Science Degree in Home Economics—should prepare her to build programs in the areas of“ Family Living, Home Management, and Youth Development, but how about the other four program areas? If the home agent is competent in working effectively with individuals and groups, i. e. , if she can effectively use psychological, sociological, and communication research findings and if she herself is a process person, she 2Subcommittee on Scope and Responsibility, "The Cooperative Exten- sion Service Today, " April, 1958, p. 6. can develop programs in any of the nine areas. 3 If the home agent does not have this competency, then it is imperative that she receive Extension In- service Training in these fields. One essential reason that she needs this competency in working effectively with people is that she must enlist the help of a number of pro- fessional and lay people, the professionals to teach the lay leaders who then assume responsibility with group members to plan, execute, and evaluate programs. This body of lay leadership must be kept viable for group audi- ences to be reached and learning experiences to take place. Besides competence in working with people, the home agent must maintain professional standards in her knowledge of Home Economics, she must be able to recognize the audiences who seek information from Extension, know their characteristics and their cultures, and continually increase her communication skills and evaluate her work. To accomplish her legal charge, she must know her resources. The Scope Report recommends to Extension agents, resources such as press, radio and television in order that the agents may serve "their. 3In "Model for Youth, " Federal Extension Service Report 4-H 113 (5-63), page 10, Dr. Robert E. Bills, Assistant Dean Of Research, University of Alabama, defines "a prOcess’ person" as "one capable Of continued change, growth. and development . . i he now has available to him more Of his past experience, available without the need to distort or deny. He is more capable of creative and innovative behavior. In a very real sense he is as intelligent as the experience he has had an opportunity to receive permits him to be." publics as adequately, efficiently, and fairly as possible. " The United States Department of Agriculture, parent organization of the Extension Service, has a favorable attitude toward television's use in the diffusion of Extension information. Conducting research between 1948-1952, under the Research and Marketing Act Number 225, the Department produced over four hundred television programs to test and retest various program tech- niques and visual aids. One Department program series was an experimental method demon- stration study, called "let's Make a Dress. " It was supplemented by a bulle- tin entitled, "Making a Dress at Home. " The study tried to measure among a. defined audience. the effectiveness of a television'series in teaching improved dressmaking practices. Findings show the demonstrations were uniformly successful in communicating ideas and practices, that a bulletin is important as a supplement, that this series' particular audience favored longer programs than twelve minutes for clothing construction and that it evinced high interest in the series. These findings indiCate the eflectiveness of television as an educational medium. ExtensiOn Service Specialists have likewise demonstrated the effect- ivene ss of television. Iowa Extension Entomologist, Harold Gunderson, speak- ing before the 1954 Convention of the Association of Land Grant Colleges and Universities, stated that during a twelve month period, he attended 108 meetings 4"A Guide to Extension Programs for the Future, " Federal Extension Service, North Carolina State College, 'July, 1969, p. 48. whose audiences totaled 4, 012 people, but during one month he presented three, twelve-minute television shows on rat control, each of which required one hour's presentation, and in the two weeks following these presentations, he received 3, 000 requests for information from a WOI-TV viewing audience. Gunderson concluded his purpose of presenting pertinent research results in his field to the Iowans could be accomplished as easily by television as by - traditional methods and with far less time and energy expenditure. Another example of the effectiveness of television in the diffusion of Extension information occurred in Puerto Rico. In 1957, the government- Owned television station, WIPR-TV, requested the Extension Service Of Puerto Rice to produce a television series devoted to Extension information. The Service decided to present a thirteen-week gardening series entitled "Your Garden." The Service chose this subject because urban and rural residents shared an interest in home gardening and many of them had been asking for technical assistance. Also, the Tourist Bureau was developing a campaign for the ornamentation of the capital and its suburbs. According to ratings, . this series was the second most popular pro- gram presented by WIPR-TV. For each of its live broadcasts, the audience was estimated as 15, 000 by a rating-agency—more people than could be reached in one year by the combined personal contacts of three county agents. 5 50tis Oliver-Padilla, "Role of Television in the Diffusion of Extension Information" (unpublished Master's thesis, Michigan State University. 1962), p. 480 I ' As a direct result of the series, twelve garden clubs were organized on the island. These clubs distributed more than 25, 000 gardening publications. They conducted campaigns for the ornamentation of plazas, public schools, and parks and held contests for the best home garden in their municipalities. The annual report of the Extension Service for 1959-60 acknowledged that the home gardening project was sustained mainly by the "Your Garden" series. The ornamentation projects conducted by home demonstration club members were increased twenty percent as a result of the program. The series stimulated more than 10, 000 letters, requesting information about gardening from people who were using the Extension Service for the first time. The program ran not three months but two years, was filmed, and is currently being used by other stations on the island. Further documentation of the effectiveness Of television in the dif- fusion of Extension information is found in the 1957 Extension Service Circu- lar 514, "Educational Television Research Findings, " and in the annual copy of the Extension Service's Research Review. Since the home agentis responsibility is to all families, and since television is an effective medium in diffusion of Extension information, it is Obvious that here is a tool for the home agent to use in meeting her complex responsibilities. The critical factor in her use of it is her attitude toward it. This attitude can be a favorable or an unfavorable one depending upon the re- lationship existing between the home agent and the supervisor responsible for her training. The supervisor needs to understand the potential of television and be favorably disposed herself towards its being used as an integral part of Extension programs. Having been favorably oriented to the use of television as a home agent and having glimpsed the possibilities of this medium due to its cover- age, its variety of Shots, and the Opportunity it affords for high quality pro- grams to be brought to audiences, the author Of this paper determined to compile training guidelines for the home agent inexperienced in the use of television to help her visualize it as a creative tool in carrying out her re- sponsibilities. To accomplish this the author used two methods of research, as follows: 1. To read widely in research findings pertaining tO the use of educational television, abstracting those pertinent to the home agent's use of television, using the following questions as leads in seeking information: Is the content Of Home Economics suitable for television? How do audiences receive’Home Economics shows? Is television as effective a method of teaching as Extension's traditional methods? ' Does lack Of feedback affect learning? What personal attributes should a home agent have to present television shows? What communication techniques are helpful in presenting shows? 2. To write State leaders in Home Economics in each of the fifty states and Puerto Rico for the names of five home agents experienced in the use of television; to find out if these agents feel television has helped them to meet their legal Charge, and if so, to synthesize their experiences into guide- lines along with the abstracted research findings mentioned in method one above. This information would have implications for the home agent inex- perienced in the use of television and for the Extension staff member who is to encourage an agent in the use of television. A questionnaire, "Television Practices and Rationales of Home Demonstration Agents, " was designed to obtain the following information: (DmQOIUIIFWNr-t 16. 17. 18. Helpful college training. Helpful Extension inservice training. Use of U.S.D.A. '8 television training aids. Agents' attitudes toward training. Publications helpful in producing Shows. Training needs experienced agents now visualize. What audiences request for homemaking shows. Degree of frequency agents use certain sources. Use Of magazines for program sources. Other program sources. . Finding out about audience characteristics. Composition of planning groups. Use of series. Studio preparation. , Relationships with program director of station. Types of promotions. Ways Of Obtaining television time. Formats of Shows. The questionnaire was also designed to find out if television had helped any agents increase the number of 4-H leaders who organize and con- duct the programs with young people between ten and nineteen. In the 4-H Extension program, leaders make the difference between the program expanded to large numbers of children or the program'éonfined to the agent's direct work with the young people. Likewise, agents were asked if the number of home 10 demonstration club members had increased, or, if the number of new audiences reached, had been increased. If so, the agent was invited to share the results and what this increase meant to the program. The following chapters contain the results of these two methods Of research, the first being contained in Chapter II and the second being con- tained in Chapters III, IV, and V. Chapter VI establishes the guidelines for training home agents inexperienced in the use of television. CHAPTER II TE LEVISION—A CHANNEL IN THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS The home agent seeking to inform herself about using television will ask, "Is Home Economics content suitable for television programming, and, if so, how do audiences receive it ?" Thomas surveyed thirty-three educational and 176 commercial tele- vision stations presenting educational programs. Nineteen educational and thirty-five commercial stations Offered Home Economics programs which in- cluded a great deal Of the content Of Home Economics courses offered by sec- ondary schools, colleges, extension services, and other adult education groups. The content ranged from "Children Growing"—a Series depicting situations which parents face with growing youngsters—to Consumer Education on Tex- tiles, to Careers, to Food Preparation, to Renting versus Buying, to Innocu- lations for Children, Adults and Dogs. Thus, Thomas concluded a great deal of the content in Home Economics is appropriate for television. 1 The following research shows how Home Economics programs are accepted: Ericksen: and Olein found that nine out of ten respondents who had watched their television Clothing Series, "What Shall I Wear 7" presented in 1Virginia F. Thomas, "An Opportunity for Home Economics Education Through Television, " Journal of Home Economics (June, 1959), p. 422. 11 12 St. Paul, Minnesota, would watch another series if presented. The respondents also indicated they wanted more Home Economics programs on television. Knox, studying the mass media most appreciated by Extension clients in Barton County, Kansas, found that one out of four watch the extension agents' television program, "Better Family Living." Ebling surveyed 1, 000 homemakers who enrolled in Modern Management, a Telecourse, WJW-TV, Cleveland, Ohio. The twenty percent who answered, showed a preference for future telecourses in Home Economics, languages, current affairs, and speech. In Home Economics, the women wanted programs in nutrition, family life, clothing, home management, family economics and home furnishings. 4 Westley defined and measured attitudes toward educational television in Madison, Wisconsin, where Channel 21 had been Offering daily educational broadcasts since 1953. Sixty-two percent of the respondents wanted useful pro- grams, rather than academic programs. Respondents preferred Food Prepara- tion and Clothing Construction to enriching cultural experiences. Holloway evaluated the Maryland Extension Fair Exchange program of September 17, 1960, a weekly half hour TV program for homemakers, and found a large portion of the audience consisted Of people not reached through 2U.S.D.A. Extension Service Circular 541. 1961, p. 81. 31bid., p. as. 4Sally K. Ebling, "Modern Home Management Telecourse, " Journal of Home Economics (February, 1962), pp. 120-21. 5Audio-visual Communication Review 7, 1959, p. 308. I .. .___ m..— 13 organized home demonstration club work. Forty-three percent of the respond- ents stated that they wanted to get their homemaker information through tele- vision. The 1957 Baltimore, Maryland study of an urban Home Economics tele- vision program showed that of the total number of homemakers in the city, 95, 000 had seen the program, and 30, 000 had used ideas from it. The 1955 Amherst, Massachusetts study of two television series for homemakers showed that an audience of 7, 200 for each of the three shows in the first series was reached, and for the second series, an audience of 15, 600 per Show was reached. A random sample of the audience viewing the second series revealed that thirty-three percent had refinished some furniture since viewing the programs, and another eight percent said they intended to do so. 8 The 1955 Louisville, Kentucky study on how consumers got information in Louisville showed that three out of every four of all respondents in a random sample received some helpful information from the Shows. The Vermont Extension Service Television program, "Across the Fence, " over WCAX-TV, Burlington, is watched continually by twenty-six percent of its audience, conservatively estimated by Radio-Television 6U.S.D.A. Extension Service Circular 541, 1961, p. 82. 7M. C. Wilson and E. O. Moe, "Effectiveness of Television in Teaching Sewing Practices," Extension Service Circular 466, 1957. 8Lucinda Crile, "Educational Television Research Findings," Extension Service Circular 514 (1957), p. 9. 9Ibid., p. 5. 14 Manufacturer's Association as 50, 000 people. Forty-two percent watch the program occasionally, nine percent seldom, and twenty-three percent never. Fifty-three percent of the farm households watch, forty-two percent of non- iarm households, and thirty-seven percent of urban households. On a random sample questionnaire, viewers of the program commented very favorably 1 about the program. Since Home Economics content is appropriate for television and is accepted by television audiences, the Home Agent will then ask, can I teach by television as effectively as I can if I train local leaders to teach their home demonstration clubs ? Schaeffer compared the effectiveness of the three following communi- . cation channels used by a home agent in teaching homemakers: Group 1 - Usual local leader training. Group 2 - Watching television program. Group 3 - Watching television program followed by discussion led by local leader coached by agent. She concluded about as much knowledge can be acquired and retained by tele- vision teaching in small groups as by the more conventional classes conducted by local leaders, or the more involved television discussion method. She found television to be more economical in use of time of professional personnel and thought it might well be the method to choose in more extension teaching situa- 11 tions than it presently is. 10Ibid. , p. ‘5. 1 1U.S.D.A. Extension Service Circular, 1960, p. 64. 15 Coolican studied the effectiveness of teaching by television versus teaching by the use of an extension bulletin. A thirty minute presentation of the same subject matter was made to four groups—one group viewed a tele- vision show based on an extension bulletin entitled, "In Tune with the Teens— Their Eating. " One group read the same bulletin, and a third group read a mimeographed version of the bulletin. The control group read a bulletin on flower care. The results showed the television group did not retain enough of the knowledge to be significantly higher than the group reading the bulle- tin. but was significantly higher than the group reading the mimeographed version and also the control group. 12 The Iowa Cooperative Extension Service presented a twice weekly series entitled, "Make a Dress—TV, " on WOI-TV. Four teaching methods were tested: (1) television only, (2) television and personal encouragement i rom home agent[Encouragement was placing phone calls at certain specified 3 intervals to homemakers in groups of two and four, the mailing of prepared program reminder cards to women of these groups, and general counseling of women who called for help] , (3) television instruction, plus supplementary booklet, (4) television, plus booklet, plus encouragement from home agent. Results showed that there was little appreciable difference between results of the four teaching methods tested. 13 1%th p, 63. 13Crile, p. 20. 16 Although the Schaeffer, Coolican, and Iowa studies show little appre- ciable difference between television and some other methods of teaching for acquiring knowledge and retaining it, Kumata states that since 1956 there has been an increase in the number of studies which support significant differences in favor of television teaching. 114 Concerning the lack of feedback from television programs, Kumata states television students desire to interrupt the teacher but lack of facilities for them to do so does not affect their achievement scores. Kumata also states that students seldom use talkback facilities when they are available. 15 If the home agent accepts the facts that Home Economics content is suitable for television and is favorably received, and that television is as effective a method for teaching as traditional methods are, she will still ques- tion whether or not she has the personal attributes that contribute to effective television presentations. McCollum rates competency in the home economist first. It is essential that she make the homemakers in the audience feel that she is con- vincing and knows what she is talking about. 16' Ericksen's and Olien's audience respondents wanted a moderator who was a television personality. 17 Merrill 14Hideya Kumata, "A Decade of Teaching by Television," Ianact of ‘ Educational Television, Wilbur Schramm, ed. , University of Illinois, Urbana, 111.: 1960, p. 177. 15mm, p. 181. 16Ellen Pennell, Women on TV (Minneapolis: Burgess PublishingCo. , 1954). p. 116. 17U.S.D.A. Extension ServiceCircular, 541, 1961, p. 81. 17 analyzing "Town and Country" likewise found that respondents wanted a regular master of ceremonies of professional caliber. 18 Thompson found that a per- former's becoming dress and good grooming elicit more audience response. 19 Cech and Kern state that a home agent presenting television shows should wear null. pastel shades—greys, blues, pinks, soft greens, yellows, or tans in plain cloth and that she should avoid contrasting darks and lights, dangling jewelry. and dresses with figures or flowers. 2° Westley and Mobius researched the eye contact hypothesis, i. e. , when a television instructor looks directly into .the lens of the camera, he will be more effective in attracting and holding the viewer's interest, in maintaining his inter- . est. and producing more learning, and found it was not substantiated. 21 . These research findings indicate that the home agent should be competent, dress becomingly, be well groomed, wear colors and jewelry suitable to tele- vision. and present her materials as she normally would, not trying to hold the viewer's eye. It would be to her advantage to be a guest on the show and for the master of ceremonies to be a television personality. I Once a home agent decides to use television as one of her communication media, she would ask, "How do I begin?" 18Crile, p. 7. 19U.S.D.A. Extension Service Circular, 541, 1961, p. 84. 2°Crile, p. 24. 21Bruce H. Westley and Joseph B. Mobius, "The Effects of Eye Contact in TV Instruction," NAEB Fact Sheet, Series 2, No. 20, 1960. 18 The truth is, she has already begun. Even if it is her first day in the county. she and her supervisors have already discussed the potential audiences, their culture, attitudes, knowledge, and skills. If the home agent has been in the county long enough to have been accepted by the people, she has already col- lected some knowledge about her audiences. Knowledge of the audience is the guiding principle for any home agent or any communicator, for in any message—lesson, talk, panel discussion, demon- stration. etc. —the agent's purpose is to affect the behavior of her audience mem— ber. to get her to do something, to accept something, i. e. , to seek a response from her. Also, guided by this principle, the home agent can fulfill her legal charge. The Smith-Lever Act and the communication act are both in theory, if not in human deed, behavior-oriented. The Extension Service personnel, in theory. help people to help themselves; the communicators theoretically elicit some response from the receivers of their communications. When the extension worker or the communicator has no intent to affect an audience member, then while "communicating, " he may be talking only to himself. Like Humpty Dumpty, when he speaks to Alice in Wonderland, he uses words that mean just what he chooses them to mean—nothing more, nothing less. As Dr. David Berle in flrggccss of Communication states, "Many producers, teachers, extension work- ers. supervisors are not trying to affect their apparent audiences. They are trying to win the approval of their. peers, to get colleagues to say, "He's one of us. he conforms to the way we do things around here. "22 22David Berle, Process of Communication (New York: Holt, Rinehart, Winston, 1960), p. 14. 19 Why do producers, teachers, extension workers, supervisors produce, teach. diffuse information, supervise? Communication theorists state all com- munication behavior has as its purpose the eliciting of a response from a specific (”son“), the purpose of communication and the receiver are not separable, and purpose should be specified in terms of responses desired from the receivers. Pearl Buck, in My Several Worlds, describes a turn of the century scene In her father's missionary church in an interior Chinese city. .Her father's earnest. long sermon caused the congregation to grow restless. Members rose one by one and went away. The father was disturbed, and a kindly old lady on the front pew turned and addressed the people, "Do not offend this good foreigner! lie is making a pilgrimage in our country so that he may acquire merit in heaven. Let us help him to save his soul. "23 This communication breakdown prompts an examination of the source's purpose, the minister's intent. To him, it was expounding gospel; to the old lady, the minister was trying to acquire merit in heaven; and to the members who left, one cannot tell from Buck's account, but they may have thought "We'll have none of this. " We do know the source's purpose and the audience were separable. In another example from My Several Worlds, communication takes place: If there was an aristocracy in China . . . it was of scholarship. The Imperial Examination had been open to all candidates and those who passed them most successfully could even be the sons of peasants. They often were, for if a village recognized a boy genius among its inhabitants, it was quite usual for all the villagers to join together and provide for his 2 3Pearl Buck, My Several Worlds (New York: The John Day Company. 1954). p. 199. 20 education, in the hope that if he passed the Imperial Examinations, he would bring honor to the home village and would also give the villagers a return for their investment in him . . . This national attitude of reverence for learning made the task of teaching young Chinese pure pleasure, for instead of lackadaisical lounging in the classroom or childish absorption in sports, my pupils were alert and eager to learn all they possibly coule since aca- demic achievement was the key to success in Chinese society. The villagers' purpose was to educate the youth so that he might bring honor to the village and a return on their investment. The youth's desire to achieve academic success was not separable from the villagers' purpose. The purpose was specified in terms of responses desired from the receivers. Inter- - action or communication took place. Communication is a process having no ending, no beginning, no fixed se- quence of events. The process has ingredients between which exist relationships easier to grasp when experienced than when explained. The playwright, the play, the actors. the stage, the stagehands, scenery, lighting and costumes are the ingredients of the theatre but not the dynamic resulting from the myriad relation- ships existing between these ingredients, the sum total of which is known as "theatre. " as anyone who relished Moss Hart's production of "My Fair Lady" can attest. Communication theorists chart the communication process in models in which the several ingredients are listed. One is the Berle model of Source, Message, Channel, Receiver—the SMCR model. This model does not include pur- pose of the communication nor does it include feedback from the receiver. Like 2“this. , pp. 126-27. 21 any model, it is only a guide and anyone using it has to keep in mind it is an attempt to describe a process. Berlo lists some of the factors within the four ingredients which contribute to the fidelity of the process, that is, which help the source to achieve his intent to affect the receiver. These factors which contribute to fidelity in the communication process are as follows: 1. Within the source, knowledge level; attitudes toward self, subject matter, receiver; communication skills; socio-cultural context. 2. Within the message, code; content; treatment. 3. Within the receiver the same factors as are in the source— knowledge level, attitudes, communication skills, socio-eultural context. 4. Within the channel, impact; adaptability to purpose; adaptability to content of message. 25 It will be helpful to the Home Agent to understand the research about these factors of fidelity as these can serve as program planning guides. THE SOURCE The home agent's (source's) knowledge level will affect her communicating. it can range from one too technical to be understood by the receiver to a level so low the agent cannot communicate because she herself does not understand the subject matter. For example, the. agent who tells the parent of a 4-H member, "Let your child pick any topic for his 4-H demonstration. " will affect the leader (the receiver) far less than the agent who recommends, "John's about eleven, 25 Berlo, pp. 40-51. 22 isn't he 7 Why doesn't he pick a topic that will strengthen one of his already misting skills. This will help him use his best capacities which will, in turn, strengthen him. This will help him later on when he approaches the adolescent years. if he will design his demonstration so the other boys and girls will enjoy and want to do what he is demonstrating, then they will like him better and he will he more accepting of himself. "26 The source's attitude toward himself is a factor of fidelity in communi- cation. The Center for Personality Assessment and Research, University of ('alifurnin. states one of the factors of a mature personality is that he has more correct knowledge of himself or self-insight. Maslow calls this factor acceptance 0f 34'”. This positive attitude toward self results in more productiveness and an orientation toward problem solving rather than orientation toward self. Conse- quently. the individual produces more. 27 The source's attitude toward the receiver, as has been stated, is a guiding principle for any communication source. A home agent who plans to pre- sent home furnishings shows on television can plan these based on her tastes and projects she likes to accomplish with no orientation toward the receiver, or she can plan as Home Furnishings Specialist Griswold of the North Carolina Extension Service planned. She questioned a Greensboro, North Carolina, random sample 26Lawrence K. and Mary Frank, Your Adolescent (New American Library. New York, 1956), p. 42. 27Gordon W. Allport, Pattern and Growth in Personality (New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Wilson, 1961), pp. 279-80. 28 of seventy-nine families to find what homemaking programs they wanted. She asked for certain information and then interpreted it as follows: Westley. Educational level? Any children 1-1/2 to eighteen years? it.ui homemaker owned TV nvl 1-5 years? l'n-ft-rred time for shows? but families have tools for bume furnishings? WorkshOps in home? itmv many could refinish furniture? How many could paint? Ranking of program desires by audience. Interpretation Mostly high school graduate; so present programs on this level. Yes. So furnishings must be suitable for children, too. Yes. 80 audience will expect entertainment as well as education. Early evening hours; so males must be considered as audience members, too. Majority owned sewing machines. One half had carpentry tools. Show projects requiring simple tools. Show how to turn a room into a workshop . Very few. So show simple re- finishing skills—completely describe them. Three-fourths of families paint. Simple skills should not be shown. Social rooms for formal and informal living Bedrooms Kitchen-dining room Furniture arrangement How to use what's on hand to better advantage Choosing color schemes Choosing furnishings 28p. G. Griswold, "Planning TV Programs on Home Furnishings," gtgrnal of Home Economics (April, 1960), pp. 273-74. 24 (iriswold's attitude is one of caring enough for her audience to find out nit they want to know. Contributing to fidelity along with the source's attitude and knowledge incl. are his communication skills of listening, speaking, reading, writing, grsltff'lfltz. thinking. etc. Without thought, he can have no purpose. If he is mating with others in a group, then he has to listen, speak, etc. , to understand in outer that the group members set the goal of communication together. He and 'or the group members use many of their communication skills to fashion the nwnagn to carry out the purpose. The source is also influenced by his position in a socio-cultural system, as it affects his word choices, the meanings of these words, his beliefs, values, art-l roles he plays. In the first example cited earlier from My Several Worlds, won the congregation members rose and one by one left the church, there was a (solar in their socio-cultural background which permitted them to leave, for there is nothing in Chinese. custom which forbids a person to leave an audience. A per- mm sauntering away from the temple, from the public storyteller, or from the theatre when he feels like it, is acceptable; on the other hand, the sermon to a Chinese is an entirely foreign notion. THE MESSAGE The source decides content of message. words, and symbols to express it (codes) and its method of treatment. Klnpper summarizes content characteristics that relate to the ability of 25 mm communication messages to persuade as follows: i. Two-sided presentations are more effective in converting the highly educated, while one-sided are more effective in con- verting the less educated. 2. Persuasive communications stating conclusions are more likely to be effective than those which allow audience members to draw their own conclusions. 3. Communications evoking extreme fear are less likely to persuade than those not so strongly emphasizing a threat. «t. Repetition with variation increases effectiveness. Communications as a means of satisfying existing needs are more effective than those creating a new need and a way of satisfying it. (3 6. Literature investigating variables of organization and presentation is so vast and findings so va'ried it is as yet uncollated. 29 ' in view of point six, there follows a description of some of this litera- ture that is pertinent to this thesis. Berlo states that if a message is treated both visually and orally, the receiver will be more likely to decode it accurately. Brandon found women lacked interest in lecture programs and preferred interview and discussion. 30 Brown recommends visuals to stimulate receivers to answer the professor's questions 31 - and complete his statements. Cook and Michael and Kanner and Sulzer found 29 Joseph T. Klapper, The Effects of Mass Communication (Glencoe,. Ill. : Free Press, 1960), pp. 98-132. 30 J. R. Brandon, "The Relative Effectiveness of Lecture, Interview, and Discussion Methods of Presenting Factual Information by Television, " m Monograph, Vol. 23 (1956), p. 118. MP. K- Brown, UCLA, NAEB Fact Sheet, 1961. 26 implicit practice while watching an audio-visual demonstration facilitates learn- Cook states that if we accept the learning theory of drive (the student must stunt something), one (he must notice something), response (he must do .onwihing). and reward (he must get something he wants), then there is experi- mrntal evidence for the effectiveness of particular audio-visual devices for calling attrtiiiun to important cues. Lumsdaine and Sulzer using a film on how to read a micrometer found that animation devices such as pop-in labels, moving arrows, mu. produced a marked increase in the amount learned from the film. Cartoons . hii'h emphasize certain features of depicted objects have also been found to be r ttrrtivc means of calling attention to relevant cues. 33 introductions are more likely to be helpful if they familiarize the audi- c ~. o u ith some aspect of the task to be learned, if they preview the material and :9 ..~. provide the audience with an additional practice trial or if they provide an i r, g-iriunily to learn important cues that will later guide performance during the Ir arning Halal“ Lynn Poole, producer of Johns Hopkins television programs, recommends. to i real- that never detract from the idea or fact being presented. Too much u «be ry. too many gimmicks, too much of anything showing and moving detracts. “sass Fact Sheet, Series 5, Number 10. 33National Project in Agricultural Communications: Research, Principles, :~-! $'_r_a.a'ttrcs in Visual Communication (East Lansing, "Mich. :- Michigan State -_ a! c tll‘)". 1960. “that” pp. 91-94. 27 Poole also recommends this order of presentation: (1) Catch the viewer's attention with a visual act which snaps him to attention or creates a question or puzzles him so he is intrigued, (2) Pick up pace by talking faster or raising the voice. (3) introduce the show and give the audience an inkling of what will be seen and what will be done, (4) Go straight to the heart of the matter, create viewer identification and viewer participation. Poole cites this example of viewer identification: If one is freezing a semisolid, do not use a calcium salt of the sulphuric ester of hemicellulose but do use chocolate ice cream to plunge into the liquid nitrogen. This ice cream ivlrnflfica the viewer with the demonstration and exemplifies the source's aware- nru of the receiver.” THE RECEIVER Berlo states the most important link in the communication process is the receiver. Like the source, the receiver has attitudes which affect his communi- cation. One state 4-H club leader, in describing interviews with lower socio- economic youth, stated they often used the negative expression, "1 don't feel like nothin'.""“6 This attitude toward self would affect their speaking, listening, think- ing. and other communication skills. 3' , “hational Agricultural TV Clinic Workbook, Columbia, Missouri: l'nivcralty of Missouri, 1955. 36,, , Reaching New Audiences More Effectively," Federal Extension Ser- '_O.ll'fl- lklllt‘llfl, 4“ 169 (7.62). p. 580 . 28 The receiver's attitude toward the source has been well documented by the Yale Communication Research Program which indicates that sources who are regarded as credible, trustworthy, and the like, facilitate persuasion, while purces which the audience regards negatively, confer a handicap which is par- iiall)‘ overcome by the passage of time. The receiver's attitude toward subject matter depends upon his indi- v iduai characteristics and his relationships with others. Klapper states research strongly indicates that regardless of tapic (subject matter) the receiver may be more persuasible than others. Mc Lean states if a receiver likes what an educational program is about, he will watch it, and if he thinks it will be useful and understandable he will con- tinue to watch. 39 This practice implies acceptance of an idea but not adoption. Sociologists describe adoption of an idea as a process of five stages- awareness. interest, evaluation, trial, and adoption. The rate at which a person fines through these stages determines where he is along the continuum of receiv-. era—an innovator, an early adapter, a member of the early majority, a member ' of the majority, or a non-adopter.40 37Klapper, p. 129. ”use, p. 74. 39 Wilbur Schramm (ed. ), Impact of Educational Television (Chicago, iii.: University of Chicago Press, 1960), p. 77. 40”The Diffusion Process," Agriculture Extension Service. Special Report Number 18 (Ames, Iowa: March, 1957), p. 5. . A. __..___. ._..—.r_.——._.——-..———— ——r r 29 Each person in each group along this continuum of receivers has indi- v ritual characteristics and individual relationships with other persons. The inno- vators experiment with the idea, thus providing local trials which may legitimize practices for those more skeptical. The innovators seek advice from other pro- gressive thinkers and are influenced by government agencies and mass media, tut they are not often named by other people as sources of information. The early adopters are considered "influentials" in their communities and are sought out for advice, but the influence of friends and neighbors is less im;-»rtant to them. The early majority are considered key communicators because they pass on new information to less active people. They place a high value on the opinions of neighbors and friends. The innovators, the early adopters, and the early majority are all heavy users of mass communications, but the next group, the majority, usually get new information from the early majority. The last group. the non-adopters, are characterized by a non-acceptance of change in traditions and customs. From this description of audience members and their rates of adoption of a new idea. the home agent will realize that her audience is not an amorphous mass of people. that she can reach the first three groups'through television, and that the early adopters and early majority can influence through personal com- munication those in the majority group. 30 THE CHANNEL in this thesis, channel means media used by receiver to obtain information. Television has been found to be of first import when receivers become aware of mi are interested in new subject matter. When people are mentally trying out new ideas. person to person communication is the most effective channel as it is in the trial and adoption stages.“ The receiver use of these two channels—television and person to person r..emnunication—guides the home agent in observing all channels to see which one, :4 uhich combination of channels will be most effective to reach certain audiences. i.: In!!!" states research shows the several media appear to be in themselves .i..'ivrvntially effective as channels for persuasive communication. 42 Personal . am; .rnce appears to be generally more persuasive than any of the mass media. in the laboratory this ranking has been established—face to face contact, radio, pr int. TV and films probably rank between one and two. But outside the labora- tory. persuasive power of the media is likely to vary from one tapic to another. Mapper states the combined effort of several media, plus face to face contact as an effective technique of persuasion is almost untouched by disciplined research. iinwver. combined appeal has characterized highly successful propaganda cam- «I3 3mm. _. 41 Herbert F. Lionberger, "Individual Adoption Behavior," Journal of (jagwfgative Extension (Fall, 1963), p. 164'. 4 21039;)». p. 129. 431%; o p. 109. -—%._—4._—4_'—4- F... 31 in using channels, the home agent is guided by the content of the message; it can he the decisive factor in whether or not to use the visual-aural medium of lrlf'vlillon. if her purpose is to create awareness and interest in new subject matter. then television should be considered. The channel of television has an ' impact upon innovators, early adopters, early majority. The home agent has a tool in television to help her carry out her legal charge of diffusing research findings in Home Economics and related areas, and encouraging audiences to apply this knowledge. Her prime concerns in communi- cating via television are the receiver, the inseparability of the receiver and the A pupa-e. the phrasing of the purpose in terms of the responses desired from the r «river. faithfulness to the factors contributing to the fidelity of communication~ taimi within herself as source, her message, her receiver, and her channel. .‘n‘m will need to train herself to be aware of feedback. What training will help the home. agent to use television? In the next chapter the author discusses the findings of a survey on the television practices and rationales of home agents in the United States and Puerto Rico who are ex- perienced in the use of television. Emphasis is placed upon the home agents' ‘5 "1 3'80 and inservice extension training and their training needs as they now t‘vrceive them. These findings have implications for the Extension staff member “to is to encourage a new home agent to use television in diffusing extension in- formation. CHAPTER III TELEVISION PRACTICES AND RATIONALES ' OF HOME DEMONSTRATION AGENTS A questionnaire, "Television Practices and Rationales of Home Demon- airatiun Agents." was designed to stimulate agents experienced in the use of television to share their experiences and feelings so that these could serve as .7 l ”felines for training agents not experienced in the use of television. The Puerto Rican and the fifty state extension service leaders of home 3,;rtiiil were each invited to submit names of five home agents they considered ci;«~rienecd in the use of television. New Hampshire's response came from the r izenniun service's television specialist who produces television shows for New iiampshlro'l homemakers. Connecticut, Delaware, and New Jersey leaders unite their home agents were not using television or that there were no names. to submit. Leaders of forty-six states and Puerto Rico named two hundred and fifty-seven agents they considered experienced. These two hundred and fifty-seven home agents were asked to complete the questionnaire. (Refer to Appendix I.) Two hundred and twenty-seven of these replied; however, one said she had resigned her position and sixteen dis- ¢;;A““Od themselves. Another agent sent her questionnaire too late for tabu- lation. 32 33 Thus two hundred and nine agents (91% of the 227 replying or 81% of the 302.11 contacted) completed thequestionnaire. Their location is shown in the {eliciting table. TABLE 1 LOCATION OF AGENTS COMPLETING THE QUESTIONNAIRE Aiahinut .............. 2 Alas}: ........... . . . 4 Ariannau ............ 5 Atttuna ........ . . .. . 1 . i‘aiiiutnia ............ 4 t.!~radu ............. 5 iiwrida .............. 4 («mega ......... o . . o 5 l'zuail ...... . ...... . 4 Zea-v ...... . . . . 4 :HL' ”in ............. 4 it‘s ....... . . ..... 4 [Wham ...... . ....... 3 Kansas .......... . 3 ’ttrfltu‘k)‘ ............ 5 l‘u‘.‘an3 o o o o o o o ..... 6 3'3”“. 0 u o o a o o o o o o o e e 4 3lar)iand..........t....3 "t’.‘:(.hU‘c‘t' o s ‘. o o a o «I .o 00 5 5 s‘:r!l1‘1n . ..... o o o o o o 0 ‘-9--'ifwnuta . ........... 5 xhnsianunu . ... ... .. .. 3 Mum-art . . ....... 5 $2032.11}; . . "l'ziraukn ---—--.-._.___ Nevada ............. 1 North Carolina ......... 5 North Dakota .......... 4 New Mexico ........... 6 New York ............ 7 .X Ohio ............... 5 Oklahoma ............ 15 Oregon ...... .......4 Pennsylvania .......... 5 Rhode Island .......... 2 ~ South Carolina ......... 5 - South Dakota .......... 5 Tennessee ........... 5 Texas .............. 5 Utah .............. 1 Vermont ............ 5 Virginia ............ 5 Washington . . . . ....... 3 West Virginia .......... 2 Wisconsin ......... . . 7 Wyoming ............ 5 Puerto Rico .......... 5 34 0f the two hundred nine respondents, sixty-eight (32%) said theyhad had ,-.i training for teaching by television. One hundred forty-one agents (68%) stated the) had had training. Nine of these described it as "very little." Analyzing as training college courses, extension inservice training, and .r.v:.-.i.iiaiiy initiated study, the author questioned the agents about their prepara- t.-e for use of television. The intent of the question, "What three college courses have helped you ff‘w-nt \- ith program content?" was to elicit names of courses providing content. in. question was interpreted by agents in three ways—as courses providing con- tra. in courses used for treatment and coding of content, or a combination of t.“ . .n In: interpretations of the question. This varied interpretation may account i e «we agents not answering it. Eighty-four agents (40%) left the question Hm ui' wrote in "none" or "nothing. " One hundred and twenty-five agents (60%) who completed the question t aim! the college courses most helpful with program content as follows: TABLE 2 HOME ECONOMICS COURSES RATED MOST HELPFUL WITH PROGRAM CONTENT .u .. cur-... a ---—--- Course Agents Citing Course ' -- g _, No. % I ---t- and Nutrition 47 22 t ' 1.“ .ng and Textiles 31 15 \1 a.“ agrmvnt ‘ 24 11 Mortal Home Economics 14 7 3* "to Furnishings ' 6 3 5“: 4»er OI A11 6 3 I pal». IJI!‘ and Child Care 4 1-9 If a a‘1lAf‘.¢‘tu,jl 4 1.9 35 Since twice as many agents named foods and nutrition and one and one- iuirth as many named clothing and textiles as named management to be college euirses most helpful with program content, a question arises concerning the plart‘mt‘nl of emphasis in home economics television shows. In the October, 1963, Jiurnal of Home Economics, Dr. Arleen Otto states today the emphasis in home "minutes is not on teaching skills. It is "emphasizing management as a tool fur ai-hieving personal and family goals. It is emphasizing relationships as a mans of sensitizing individuals to the human potential." Dr. Otto questions if . ' quiescence can be afforded in home economics programs. 1 The Scope Report does not list in the nine program areas narrow subject r- :i'trr areas as foods and nutrition and clothing and textiles. Rather, the report states ”the management process is the framework for all educational work in all trivia and with all groups concerned in the effective use of resources. "2 For the home agent, the reason for teaching effective management programs is her tenpumihiiity for teaching the improvement of family living. if an agent presents a television show on how to prepare green beans for free-ting and states their nutritional values, she is demonstrating home economics in her public as primarily a discipline of the hand. But if with, or as a part of !.‘~.o show on green beans preservation, she presents a related show depicting the ‘ if tables that enter into a homemaker's decision regarding her family's green 3 "“ '-----fi-—-— lArleen Otto, "Can We Afford Obsolescence?" Journal of Home Eco- “ "'W‘n. October, 1963, p. 625. 0 “Scope Report, p. 22. 36 inn n~».;;~piy-—-the comparative costs and nutritive values of canned, frozen, and/or in...» green beans. time involved in preparation of each, energy to complete the }.’ ~.. family members' food preferences, attitudes, and needs, and numbers of m i ..v~-.,;,«i constituting a desired supply—then the home agent is motivating her . .'1.¢'fii'(' member to apply the principles of decision making in achieving her hmih'l gmils. tine respondent listed the foods shows she presented over a period of m mtmlhfl— Freezing Fruits and Vegetables, Main Dishes from Eggs, What I irry Cook Should Know, Pumpkin Delights, Holiday Poultry, Baking for Christ- . r; u. and Popular Rice Dishes. These titles contrast with the first seven in another .... ~.: '9 television series, entitled "Today's Food Story"—Life in Today's Super \! L' -. rt. hienu Magic, Modern Meat Counters, Meat Cut Mysteries, Not All the .‘i'n-r i-i Steak. Let's Barbecue, Money Saving Meat Dishes. The ninth. program in this series is Carving for Serving. Its description reads, "Properly carved tutkry. ham. and other meat makes for attractive and economical serving. "3 line the skill of meat carving is placed in a management framework. The four- tn-nth in this series is Food Facts Talk Back, and its description reads "A panel at specialists will answer your questions about common food fallacies. "4 The ctziphasls here is on family health and management. “. 3Sally K. Ebling and Alice E. Monard, "Today's Food Story, " Ohio State l nixet‘nli)‘, p. 2. 4ihid., p. 3. 4 _ --fivww...g._f‘...4. .* -_ 37 The agents' choices of college courses as helpful in providing program content raise two other questions. Are these choices made because of audience [rfa'll‘ftI37 The audience requests for shows are summarized in the following table mi wmpat‘cd with the agents' choices of most helpful courses: TABLE 3 COMPARISONS BETWEEN AUDIENCE REQUESTS AND AGENTS' MOST HELPFUL COURSES Number Percent RG‘QUCSIB Times Courses Citing . Cited. Courses i'm - l « -h'utrition 337 Foods—Nutrition 22 ( 'i« . t h i ng -Tcxtiles 165 Clothing—Textiles 15 iiume furnishings 111 Management 11 Management 103 General Home Economics 7 i'amiiy Life 54 Home Furnishings 2. 8 Lighting 22 Principles of Art 2. 8 Family Life 1. 9 The above information indicates to a great extent that courses are chosen treau se of the audience requests, yet two comparisons are worth noting: (1) The agents chose management courses half as often as foods and nutrition, while the audience members request management programs about a third as often as foods 38 ar. i nutrition; (2) about one-sixth as many of the audience requests are for family ’-.!.- prngrams as compared to foods and nutrition; yet roughly one-fiftieth of the I agmu found family life courses helpful as compared to the one-fifth who found {ruin and nutrition helpful. in conclusion, it appears the agents are using the management frame- ...i ii mute than the audience request it, yet are not relating home economics ; so-gramii to family living as much as the audiences perceive a need for it. The agent's responsibility is to build programs within the management t: ar';r'enrk for the improvement of family life and thus emphasize home economics i . a mind-hand discipline, not as one of teaching skills. This emphasis points to 2' 0‘ “mini question mentioned above, "How does the agent interpret audience ...,muu?" As Table 4 indicated, there is evidence that agents use audience requests :4 show topics. The audience request is an expression of the audience member's 3c revived need. As Klapper pointed out, research shows communications as a mum of satisfying existing needs are more effective than those creating a new u-«i and a way of satisfying it. It is the agent's responsibility to use the audi- cm-e‘n perceived need as a guide in choosing a tapic for a show, but she, as an suitor. fails her legal charge if she does not diffuse research and encourage 1'.- a;—,»lication. If some of the low income families in Kentucky request an exten- '- fl i'rwgram on the water bath method of canning green beans, the agent is ~--' heated to try to convince them that the pressure cooker method is the safe .-- run-i of canning. The perceived need may be knowledge of the water bath “-"“-70H emu—..- .-. r’M-e—- IrmV—v ..u ...-u “-...p-p...” .‘ p, .. ' r—w —~—o-‘,, *t‘.~ .- 1“ "~ ho,‘w, ~ --‘I"~“§— 39 method, but the real need is a safe green bean preservation method for the family. Television shows and series on management and human relationships were both shown in the 1958 Thomas Survey (Chapter Two, page nine) as suit- able for television. Examples of successful presentations of both these subjects are discussed in the questionnaires and reported in the next chapter of this thesis. As has been stated, some of the agents interpreted the questions, "What college courses have helped you most with program content?" as courses for treatment and coding of content. Table 4 shows a summary of this interpre- tation. TABLE 4 OTHER COURSES RATED MOST HELPFUL WITH PROGRAM CONTENT Course . Agents Citingigour se No. % Speech .49 23 Techniques of Demonstrating , - 24 11 Audio-Visual Techniques 15 7 Radio and Television Courses 15 7 Journalism ' ‘ I 5 2 Advertising 1 -1 - Public Relations 1 1 '- Drama 1 '1 - Communications 2 -1 - 2 1- Mass Media 40 These ratings are allied to the training needs the agents perceive they have .. These are summarized in Table 5. TABLE 5 TELEVISION TRAINING NEEDS AS AGENTS PERCEIVE THEM Needs Ratings by Number of Agents lst 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th No answer How to find out what programs audiences desire 61 42 38 29 10 1 28 Percentages 29 20 18 14 5 0 14 Evaluating shows 51 36 50 38 10 2 22 Percentages . 24 17 24 18 5 O 11 Presenting material 7 more effectively 62 67 34 20 3 0 23 Percentages 30 32 17 10 1 ' 0 10 Visual Aids 20 39 43 60 33 14 3 Percentages ‘10 17 18 30 ' 17 7 0 Home Economics - 3 4 10 17 74 13 88 Percentages 1 2 5 8 35 6 _ 42 Thirty percent of the agents placed first, "How to present material more effectively," 1. e. , how to choose words and symbols and treat content to affect the receiver. «N 41 One fourth of the agents rated evaluation or feedback in the communi- cation process as their first perceived training need. Nearly one third (29%) placed, "What the audience desires in programs" first. Communication training or more of it is what ninety-four percent of the agents perceive as their training needs, not more courses in Home Economics. This pattern is the same for agents who have presented television shows one or two years as for agents who have presented shows five years or more. Twenty-four percent of the agents listed their individual needs. Time for show's preparation and timing techniques while presenting the show were mentioned the most frequently. - Other needs related to the source—how to im- prove the voice, make-up, professional appearance, television etiquette; to the message-scripts, interviews, discussions, panels, one-minute tapes, series, camera shots, gray, scale as it reveals colors and textures; to message content-how to present Child Development shows , public affairs shows, new ideas and how to present them in an interesting way; to feedback—use of video tapes for evaluation, how to prepare writeins; and to public relations with sta- tion's personnel, securing time from stations, and how to avoid duplication of programs; and to a special audience—how to reach working women. A The questionnaire revealed one hundred and thirty-six agents (65%) had had extension inservice training, but one third (35%) had not. Those trained listed the most helpful features of the training. 42 TABLE 6 MOST HELPFUL FEATURES OF EXTENSION INSERVICE TRAINING Feature Number agents , Percentage of naming feature all agents Visual Aids 48 ‘ 23 How to present materials 23 11 Presenting actual shows 14 7 Script Writing 9 4 Camera Shots 7 3 Timing 7 3 Studio Orientation 6 3 Personal Appearance 6 3 Ideas for programs ' 4 2 Miscellaneous 16 8 Eighty-four percent of the agents had not seen the U.S.D.A. television training films, "Television Is for You." Sixteen percent had seen these. The U.S.D.A. Television Handbook Number 55—1953, entitled "Television for You," the only one the Department has issued to date, is used often by nine percent, fifty-six percent use it some, and thirty-three percent never use it. I A little over half of the agents (58%) named publications helpful in producing shows. A few agents (9% or less) mentioned the names of publications that had been helpful. Specific U. S. D.A. publications mentioned as helpful were the Handbook, "Television for You," "Giving a Food Demonstration with Tips for 43 Television, " the television Home Packet, the Agricultural Yearbook, the Mar- keting Series, and "Making Radio Work for You." TABLE 7 PUBLICATIONS HELPFUL IN PRODUCING SHOWS Publications Number Agents Percent of Naming Agents Extension publications 85 41- Home Economics magazines 26 12 Television material published by state extension services 19 9 Books 14 7 Commercial materials 10 5 O. 5 TV station publication 1 Other extension publications mentioned were the "Extension Service Review," "National 4-H News," Journal of Cooperative Extension, Circular 446, "Effectiveness of Television in Teaching Sewing Practices." Specific magazines mentioned as helpful in producing shows were Fore- cast, What's New in Home Economics, Home Economics magazines, Good House- keeping, Practical Home Economics, Better Homes and Gardens,. Today's Health. The Journal of Home Economics was mentioned twice. Books that were named were as follows: Edna B. Bish0p, Methods; of Clothing Construction (Chicago: _' Lippincott, 1959). Rudy Bretz, Technimes of Teleyigion Production (New York: McGraw- _Hill, 1953) . 44 Better Homes and Gardens, Meat Cook Book (New York: Meredith Publishing CO. , 1959), and others in the Home and Garden Series. Richard W. Hubbell, Television Programs and Productions, 2nd ed. (New York: Rinehart, 1950). Edward Stasheff, Rudy Bretz, The Television Program (New York: Hill and Wang, 1962). Mary B. Allgood, Demonstration Techniques (Englewood Cliffs: Prentiss-Hall, Inc. , 1959). Louisa F. Richardson, Genevieve Anne Callahan, How to Write for Homemakers (Ames: Iowa State College Press, 1949). Giraud Chester, Garnet R. Garrison, Television and Radio (New York: Appleton-Century , 1950) . Ellen Pinnell, Women on Television (Minneapolis: Burgess Publishing CO. , 1954). ‘ Training makes a difference in an agent's attitude toward the use of television. One agent wrote, "There is a wonderful Opportunity to teach by television, and I'm sure that in the future more will be done this way, but I think some definite training will have to be done and not just hit or miss. " Another agent wrote, "My first bout with TV came in Joe Tonkin's class at summer school, Cornell, 1955. After taking his course, I felt much more secure in working before the cameras. He gave us terrific training— and confidence! Since then, I've had very little "fear" Of doing a show. They're time and energy consuming; but well worth the effort in publicity for the exten- sion service and in my case, the county home demonstration program." What training can an extension service give an agent to motivate her to use television confidently? The agents in this survey reveal they need 45 communication training in how to find out what programs audiences desire, how to evaluate television shows, how to present materials more effectively, and more about visual aids. They state the following training features have been helpful: visual aids, how to present materials, television workshOps covering camera shots, script writing, timing, studio orientation, personal appearance. The U.S.D.A. Handbook has been useful. There is some evidence these agents are not presenting material within the framework of the management process. There is more evidence they are not emphasizing home economics shows as areas of family life and human relationships programs. There is some evidence that agents use audience requests for show topics rather than considering the audience member's perceived need as a guide to a topic. The next chapter summarizes the program sources these agents use and the most frequent audience requests for programs in Home Economics. CHAPTER IV SOURCES FOR AND TYPES OF PROGRAMS The questionnaires used in this study revealed home agents schedule daily, weekly, monthly, or seasonal television shows with numerous variations in these schedules. One series ,was presented once each week for three months. Another variation was special programs the station requested. Another was a twice monthly appearance by an agent, plus special guest appearances. Time of shows vary from one minute to two hours. NO matter what the schedule or timing, agents rely often or very often upon seven main sources for program ideas. (See Table 8.) The questionnaires reveal that agents sometimes use other govern- ment bulletins, commercial publications, and Experiment Station Bulletins for program ideas, but they rarely or never use the U.S.D.A. films, film clips, or television home feature and rarely or never use a subject check list. In examining the seven main sources for program ideas, the agent, emphasizing the management framework and family living, will find a wealth of material. Two examples from the seventh source —4-H Demonstrations—- illustrate this point. The Schallerettes 4-H club of Sac County, Iowa, pre:- sented a 4-H demonstration—"Operation Survival" to motivate audience members 46 47 to learn survival in a fallout shelter. The demonstration contained information on possible systems of ventilation, information on water, food preparation, food storage, sleeping accommodations, extra clothing, toilet facilities, first aid, and recreation. TABLE 8 SOURCES FOR PROGRAM IDEAS Sources I Number Agents Percent Agents Using Using State Extension Bulletins 17 2 82 Past Experience with Homemakers Clubs , ' . 140 67 Sharing Ideas with Other Home Economists 4' I I T 125 60 USDA Bulletins : 125 I _ 60 Audience Requests . . 105 50 Magazines : . , _ , ' 84 40 4—H Demonstrations 84 40 Members of another 4-H Club-the Franklin Farmerettes of Cass County, Iowa—spent forty-eight hours. in an underground cement block room. I From this experience they built a television demonstration on "Cooking in the .i? ‘ 1 Cave," and types of food used. lDwight M. Bannister, "Youth Stimulates Community Action," Exten- sion Service Review (November, 1961). 48 The sixth source that the agents use for program ideas is magazines. Those most helpful are shown in the following table: TABLE 9 USE OF MAGAZINES AS SOURCES FOR PROGRAM IDEAS Magazines Number Agents Percent Agents Citing Citing What's New in Home Economics 78 37 Forecast in Home Economics 62 . 30 Journal of Home Economics I 32 15 Better Homes and Gardens 31- 15 Good Housekeeping 30 14 McCall's 16 8 Farm Journal 13 6 All these magazines cover the broad areas of home economics. It may be that the reason the first two professional magazines are cited twice as often as the Journal of Heme Economics is that both are profusely and colorfully illustrated. , I About twenty-six Other magazines helpful for program ideas were men- tioned occasionally. Those emphasizing management and family living were Changing Times, Consumer's Guide, Consumer Reports, Today's Health, and the 'P. T.A. Journal. The other magazines were popular women's magazines, 49 the Extension Service Review and the National 4-H News. The quarterly Journal of Cooperative Extension, first issued in the Spring of 1962 ,was not mentioned. it contains such articles as the University of Missouri's rural sociologist Herbert F. Lionberger's, "Community Adoption Patterns," a dis- cussion of principles from diffusion research as guidelines for promoting action programs. Since the home agents expressed a need for more communication training, this journal should prove helpful in the future. The fifth source for program topics—audience requests-was dis- cussed in Chapter 111. The agent can also interpret source number two-Past experiences with Homemakers—as a type of audience request, as these teaching experiences with the Extension Homemakers clubs are based on the club mem- bers requests. 80, if the agent when selecting topics for television presentations considers these two sources of requests plus the research, she obtains from sources one and three—State extension and USDA bulletins—communication-wise she has a sound basis for planning television shows. Source number three— sharing ideas with other home economists—will help a home agent clarify needs of audiences .and also prevent duplication of programs if she and the other home economists are presenting home economics shows on the same channel. The questionnaires also revealed that about one—half of the respondents present television shows once a month or more often than once a month. Of these, fifty-two percent depend upon audience requests very often or often. Those who present shows less frequently than once a month rely heavily on State Extension Bulletins for program sources. 50 The agent will have more fidelity in her communication with the audience member if she considers both his request along with her level of knowledge drawn from research when she chooses a topic for a television program. The types of programs these experienced agents present are: series, interviews, television spots, children's show, home demonstration training shows, two hour spectaculars, shows for homemakers, shows for families, and consumer education shows. Joseph Tonkin, Division of Extension Information, Federal Extension . Service, 1961, intaking a spot check of the nation's television station managers, found they want short series of programs such as the Vermont "Across the Fence's" five ~day series entitled "Our Southern Neighbors"—-a study of Latin America in which 2, 500 television viewers enrolled. 2 Joan A. Peters, the New Hampshire television specialist, wrote on her questionnaire, "After anevaluation of one-shot programs, we turned to using only series and sign-ups. " A In the survey, fifty—one percent of the 209 respondents had used series. Only four agents had enrolled audience members in the series but all except five had used supplemental bulletins.‘ Most series were given over a period of two, three, or four weeks. There were a few unusual exceptions, noted on the '- I following page.- 2Joseph Tonkin, "Make Room for TV iner Comty Plan, " Extension Service Review (April, 1961), p. 70. 51 Following is a list of representative topics (weeks duration given in parentheses): ' Mag. Sew Along - (26) Simplified Sewing - (2) Tailoring Children's Coats - (2) Sewing New Fabrics - (5) Back to School Clothes - (3) Housing Housing - (3) Plan Your Home for Living - (4) Making a Landscape Plan - (3) Household Storage - (2) Improved Housing - (12) Home Furnishings Gluing Furniture - (2) Slip Covering (8 days) Refinishing - (6) Textile labeling Law - (4) . Family Life Preschool Activities - (3) Retirement Planning - (2) Infant Care — (52) Good Grooming for Today's Youth - (4) Self Improvement - (3) Food Management Buying Food for Lent - (4) Entertaining the Easy Way - (4) Quantity Food Preparation - (8) Low Cost Meals - (10) Ma_n_agement Take It Easy in the Kitchen, Laundry, Home - (5) 52 Planning Use of Money - (5) Family Finance - (10) Food Buymanship - (8) Budgeting - (5) A few agents commented on the use of series. One said she was pre- senting a twelve weeks series titled, "Improving Housing," shows thirty minutes each, prime evening time for a family audience. In her judgment, series were highly successful and were a much better use of the agent's time than a regular weekly program on a variety of subjects. _ Another favored series of fifteen min- utes for each part and planned to use more series in the future. The Infant Care'Series in the list above was planned for fifty—two weeks, a little baby and her mother served as talent, and a text instead of a write-in bulletin—Evelyn Millie Duvall's Faniily Livg—was the reference. Several of the agents who wrote in present Consumer Education shows about foods only. Two of the series they presented were Nutrition and Low Cost Meals. A I Some series would be especially suitable for low income families, 6. g. , Tailoring a Child's Coat from an Old Coat, Improving Housing, A Hamburger Hows, Remaking a Garment, ”Low Cost Foods. . In listing future television training needs, several agents expressed a desire to learn how to conduct television interviews. One example of a show de- voted exclusively to Tintervie‘ws appearedzin the survey. It is a weekly half hour , presented ata commercial station in Placquemine, Louisiana. The agent, Mrs. Myrtle D. Anderson, aims to bring the-story of the various schools and 53 departments of the College of Agriculture and the Experiment Station of Lou- isiana State University and the USDA Utilization Research Laboratory in New Orleans to the homemakers in thirty-two Louisiana parishes and eleven Miss- issippi counties. Mrs. Anderson stath these sources have wonderful informa- tion for the homemakers but no way to get it to them. On her show, "Reliable Gossip, " Mrs. Anderson interviews scientists and researchers such as those who have developed sweet potato flakes, the stretch sock, and frozen orange concentrate. Some of the topics covered are artificial insemination, electron microscope, alligators, snakes, power post beetle, stretch cotton, Louisiana yams, and sweet potato flakes. These tapics cited by Mrs. Anderson empha- size conservation and consumer information programs for the homemaker. Mrs. Anderson's viewing audience is estimated at 250, 000 and is in- creasing. Her show is in its eleventh year and she calls it her "most relaxing job. " Mrs. Anderson's television hallmark is her hat—a different one for each show. She does not own them all. Another type of television presentation that agents use is the "television spot," lasting sometimes one minute, sometimes twenty seconds. One agent described her show, "'Wise Buys, " as one listing plentiful foods on the market and surplus foods in local areas or other sections of the country. The show aims to motivate the producer , processor , wholesaler, retailer, and consumer to improve their relationships. This program first began as a fifteen minute one, then ten minute, then five. All changes were due to station's changing procedures and techniques from time to tune. In 1962, the five minute program was changed \ 54 to one minute tapes used three times weekly. These are scheduled four times daily just before, after, or during a popular program. The agent reports the coverage has tripled and the response is very favorable. She uses an owl in both the introduction and closing of Wise Buys. Here is a sample program-— NAME or PROGRAM: Wise Buys DATES: February 27 a 28, 1963 PERSON: Mrs. Ray B. Theaux - Home Demonstration Agent Marketing Information for Consumers THE WISE OLD OWL SAYS: 'lIt‘s Fish 'n Seafood Time!" 11.422 cu. Theanx with Fishing Pole cu. Tray of Seafood Products Audio There are 3 kinds of fishermen or ~women. (1) Energetic type— seek to unhook a fish every minute; (2) Leisure type—fishing good if fish don't bite— like to loll near the water or doze in boats—hape fish will leave them alone; (3) Fish-eating type—those who enjoy fruits of water. That includes most of us. Spring is a good time for all three types, especially for the fish eaters. Because there is such a good supply of fish these days, folks of the fish- ing industry have de signated Febru- ary 27 to April 14 as "Fish 'n Sea- food Time. " The U.S. Department of the Interior and the USDA cOOper- ate in the event because sea and farm foods complement each other. They give variety to our menus; greater eating enjoyment when served to- gether, during Lent or any other time of the year. 55 cu. Fish Marketing Bulletin The U.S. Department of the Interior has just released this bulletin "Let the Sparkle of Mardi Gras Linger on Your Table Throughout the Lenten Season. " It includes recipes of all kinds from some of the famous res— taurants that feature seafood in New Orleans. If you'd like to have a copy for the Lenten Season, let me know. cu. Topsy 'I‘urvey Here's the first one in the bulletin- Tuna Pie Topsy Turvy Tuna Pie—made with ' tuna—cream of mushroom soup- eggs-«lemon slices, seasonings and cornbread mix. It's a good meal within itself. Remember: Wise Old Owl says- "It's Fish 'n Seafood Time!" The agent in Eureka, California, says that at present she is presenting twenty second spots to publicize information available. In her words, the pre— sentation takes "a breath and a half. " One example is as follows: KIEM-TV VIDEO. . ~ AUDIO Slide: "Venison from woods _ Venison—from woods to table. to table. " - . Your hunter brings it home, but the cooking is up to you. Roasts, bar- becues, jerky, stew. Slide: Home Agent . For free directions, write Ruth Crawford, Home Adviser Box 1009 , Eureka A third type of show that agents present is a children's show. In 56 Roswell, New Mexico, the Home Agent presents a weekly fifteen minute children's show just preceding local and national news in the evening. She uses ten and twelve year olds from all groups, not 4-H members alone. They demonstrate some skill and she assumes the major portion of the explanation. During one year every 4-H Club in the county had members on the show at one time or another. Children from surrounding counties also are talent. The time for this progam was offered by the station because the senior ,home agent had succeeded with the homemaker show called Corner Cupboard. ' Several agents give Home Demonstration training lessons over tele- vision. An agent in Greensboro, North Carolina, uses the: educational television station for training; she has presented such showsas "Combining Woods in Today's Furniture"_ and "Combining Design in Today's Furniture. " At these times the Home Demonstration Club members meet in their respective communities. Their particular subject matter' leaders conduct the meetings. Prior to the television. show, the leaders brief the members for things they, should lookllfor. Immedi- ately after the show, the members are. given an evaluation sheet. The leaders tabulate the evaluation results and send them to the home agent. . I The agent reporting. this method. then tries to plan shows using as talent the leaders who have conducted the club meetings. She plans with them the material and its organization and sometimes appears with them if they lack con- fidence. ‘ h A V A A I. A Another agent uses a similar plan, shut the groups add discussion immedi- ately following the show before the members use the evaluation sheet. Club 4 —»r_‘--. ~.~.. 57 leaders lead the discussions. All clubs in the county meet the same day to see the television show which is presented both in the morning and in the evening. An agent in Owyhee, Nevada, trains some of the 4-H leaders on tele- vision. She travels to Boise, one hundred and fifty miles away, to present these shows as it is the only channel for audiences. This way she reaches all of the 200 Indian families who are one of her special audiences. Another type of unusual show that was described in the questionnaire is presented in Wausau, Wisconsin. Each fall, agents from eight counties around Wausau present one two-hour spectacular from which they receive ex- cellent audience response. This response has sold the television studio on the idea that Home Economics can have a two—hour television audience appeal as well as a sports or other type program. This program originally started as a June Dairy Month Activity. Nineteen sixty-four will mark its fourth year on the air. The agents present this spectacular in addition to regular shows for home- maker audiences and family audiences. I The questionnaires reflect many shows that are designed for homemaker audiences. In some instances where a plan of agent rotation on a regular pro- gram is used, or, where the home agent appears regularly as talent on a local homemaker show, the agent will concentrate on one program of Home Economics to strengthen the programs and to avoid duplication of effort . For example , for four years in Mobile, the agent has, for the most part, presented shows in food preservation as a guest of the local commercial station's MC for the Homemaker Show. One bonus for this agent is substituting for the MC when she is vacation- ing. 58 In the urban area of El Paso, Texas, the two Home Agents think tele- vision is "a very effective way to reach an urban population." They think their fifteen minute weekly show in general Home Economics reaches numbers of peOple they could not otherwise reach. Sometimes in one afternoon, 200 calls follow one show; These two agents plan to increase their use of television. In Baltimore, Maryland, the agent states television for homemakers was begun in 1948 and had a great deal to do with the developing of the city's extension program. The agent presents three one-half hour shows weekly. She relies upon audience requests and State Extension Bulletins very often for sources. The agent in Cleveland, Ohio, also. presents three half-hour shows weekly. She thinks, that series are most effective. The planners for her shows are all Home Economists. Series presenwd for thirteen weeks each have been Modern Home Management and Today's Food Story. In Syracuse, New York, the Home Agents' Show is well established. It has had only two time changes since it was begun some fifteen years ago. The weekly half hour shows are planned six months in advance. In Walpole, Massachusetts, there are no organized Extension Clubs. The Home Agent feels that television has introduced her to the women in the county. County home agents from six eastern Massachusetts counties partici- pate regularly on a rotating basis. They have a twelve-minute twice-weekly show on the New England Farm and Food Program on WHDH from 1:05 to 1:30 p. m. Twelve minutes is devowd to educational information and the other to 59 musical entertainment. Occasionally these agents recruit Home Economics people on a 6:00 to 6:30 p.m. show. One Home Agent in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, in addition to pre- senting television shows herself, trains Home Demonstration members to pre- sent a Home Economics program monthly. They often present programs fashioned after their monthly extension lesson. Several agents present consumer education shows only. Following are » examples of two consumer education formats: 1. Consumer Echcation regarding Food Food Buy Line—the week's good choices at market Selection, Preservation, Preparation of some plentiful food, plus family food planning. 2.. During NBC's TODAY Show, one home agent locally presents a four-minute report, once a week, on what is available in local markets. It is designed for rural and urban housewives. The questionnaires also reveal that family audience shows are presented at various times: (1) 4-H Shows at 6:45 a.m. on weekdays, (2) half-hour shows at 8:30 on Saturday mornings , presented by county extension staffs which rotate, (3) agents frequently'appear on farm shows and news programs, (4) rotating county staffs present 11:45-42:00 noon daily shows, (5) at noon 12:10-12:38 p.m. , home agents present a weekly show devoted to General Home Economics. In Vermont, the Extension Television Specialist producing a daily pro- gram, "Across the Fence, " invites agents from nearby counties. A monthly flyer previewing the programs is published. Agronomy, Civil Defense, Water , 60 Rural Sewage Disposal, and Water in Quality Milk Production are some of the tapics presented for family interest. The home agents present the Tuesday shows. In October, 1963, a short series, "Gifts from the Home, " was presented. In southwestern Montana, seven county staffs rotate on a program in Butte where, although station facilities are small, and although only one camera is available, the agents do reach "lots of folks. " The Home Economics Agents try to present their programs for four consecutive weeks to develop a topic in depth. Agents' evaluation of television in reaching audiences never reached before is echoed throughout the questionnaires. In Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the extension office had remained a traditional one, but the county was rapidly changing; therefore, the County Board in 1962 voted not to have the extension office. The extension staff, after reorganizing, has been reinstated and presents a television show twice a week, thirty minutes a show, on all phases of Extension work. In Milwaukee, there was not, according to the agent, much home eco- nomics on television, and only one woman's show. Since seven of the five agents are Home Economists and one Consumer Education Specialist will be added, the staff feels its program will be well received. All shows are being taped. Series are being planned. The agent answering the questionnaire had already had ex- perience in presenting series, e. g. , Food Buying, Money Management, and the Textile labeling Law. . The Siouxland Farmer Program over KVTV , Channel 9, Sioux City, Iowa, started over nine years ago with the Agricultural Extension Services of I 61 Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota participating. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday at 12:15 p.m. are the days for the three states. Nebraska's five counties have the Tuesday program. It is shared by five county agents and one to three home agents, depending on the number in the area. The popularity of the program has kept it on the air longer than any other single one KVTV has had. For the past five years, WDXI-TV, Jackson, Tennessee, has presenwd the "Farm and Home Hour, " a thirty-minute program (12:00 noon to 12:30) in c00peration with the Agricultural Extension Service, University of Tennessee. There are three county agents and two home agents in the Jackson Extension Office who take turns. Other county agents in the surrounding counties rotate with these agents . The two Jackson Home Agents present general Home Eco- nomics shows every Tuesday. . K , The Home Agent in Colorado Springs states her aims for her television shows—to use 4-H members to interest mothers in 44H, to promote agricultural products, to feature uses of abundant foods, and to repeat lessons which Home Demonstration Clubs have requested. She plans to use television every time she is invited. ‘ One Home Agent writing from Burlington, Colorado, expresses regret that a four-year rotation-by-county-staffs program was discontinued. "We often feel that the once a week program presented by the Kit Carson County Staff re- quired a lot of time in preparation. It was not a matter of just using fifteen minutes on the air; we really worked to plan the presentation and use apprOpriate 62 visuals. Now that this TV presentation is no longer available, we feel keenly the loss in relation to our county program and as a means of reaching more people. We would pick it up tomorrow if the time were made available. "3 In summary then, these examples encompass all types of shows pre- sented by Home Agents who completed the questionnaires: series, the interview, children's, demonstration show, home demonstration club training, a two-hour spectacular , spots, consumer education, home agent's guest appearance as a specialist, general home economics, home economics and music, and family audience shows. Comments scattered throughout the questionnaires reveal that agents feel television, thoughtime consuming, iswell worth the effort and, in several instances, the long trips to the studios. Many commented that one had to be on the alert for new ideas at all times. One agent expressed her wish as follows: My greatest need is for television 'shows' on specific subject matter, prepared by specialists in the fields, together with adequate and effective visuals. An outline with visuals or even a detailed script containing the newest and most reliable facts (something we don't always have or have the time to do the research to obtain the facts) would be invaluable. In other words, a sort of library or file of 'ready prepared' TV shows that could be picked up on short notice and presented with a minimum of advance preparation. This kind of file would also be 'good insurance' in case plans were unexpectedly disrupted or in case one had to 'fill in' on short notice. There .would be other advantages too; for example, time saved in preparation. If one specialist prepared a .show with visuals on, say, rug making which eight or ten or more Home Econoinists could use, think of the combined time and effort this would save. . 3Questionnaire from Burlington, Colorado, home agent. 4Home Agent from J ackson, Missouri. 63 Program ideas like meals to a housewife are an ever present challenge. Attitudes toward obtaining program ideas permeate the questionnaires. One agent writes, "I believe we get help most from study and reading 'across the board' and listening. Ideas come from all sources; for example, an article in What's New in Home Economics told how a teacher taught quality with egg beaters. We used this idea in presenting several different TV programs—'For Men Only— How to Buy a Quality Gift for Your Wife' at Christmas time, 'How to Buy Cutlery for the Kitchen Preparation Center, ' and 'The Gadgets in Your Kitchen.‘ . . . For an October, 1963, program my topic is 'Selecting an Electric Blanket. ' This was the result of a survey among club women on electric blankets: who owned and who planned to buy, and August WHITE SALES where I watched and listened to women who were considering buying. I was disturbed at the limited information sales people could, and did, give. Hence, the program will be timely, since the days will be crisp and cool. "5 In summary, the research about program sources and types reveals the agents rely upOn seven main sources for program ideas: state extension bulletins, past experiences with homemakers' clubs, sharing ideas with other home econo- mists, USDA bulletins, audience requests , magazines and 4-H demonstrations. They also use these magazines most frequently for program ideas: What's New in Home Economics, Forecast in Home Economics, Journal of Home Economics, Better Homes and Gardens, Good Hqu_sekeepi_r_ig_, McCall’g and Farm Journal. 5Home agent from Lexington, North Carolina. 64 They have been called upon to present the following types of shows: series, interviews, television spots, children's shows, home demonstration training shows, two-hour spectaculars, shows for homemakers, shows for families, and consumer education shows. Series are requested by the stations and have been used often by the agents who have found them effective, especially for in-depth teaching. These agents reveal they reach various audiences at various times of day and for various sqments of time. As a result, they can reach new audi- ences, new 4-H leaders,‘ and new home demonstration agents. Collectively, these agents endorse television as a means of increasing their effectiveness in dissemination of home economics and related research. The methodsfthe agents use in planning their shows are discussed in Jim the next chapter. - '. CHAPTER .V PLANNING THE SHOWS The educator and the producer-director of the commercial television station can make learning exciting. This is the belief of Producer-Director Paul Herlinger of Station KTNT-TV, Seattle, who says together they—the di- rector and the educator—can create and promote interesting and professional programs. 1 i The survey questionnaires were checked for the educator-producer director planning arrangement and also for other methods of planning. Two hundred and four of the. 209. agents, ninety-three percent, described the degree of help they receive in planning the shows. The results are shown in Table 10. Nineteen of the agents, nine percent, plan very often with the program directors. Of the nineteen, seventeen block out the use of camera with the di- _ rector prior to the show's presentation. One agent stated, "The studio personnel are used to my way of demonstrating (i. e. , they do not block out the camera position), but whenever we use new or untried methods or visuals we always discuss together these very thoroughly before the show. " The nineteenth agent 1Paul Herlinger, "Live ETV over the Commercial Station," NAEB Journal, May-June, 1962, 'pp. 38-43. 65 66 stated, "We tape our shows and the director and I always have a discussion before taping." Of the nineteen who very often plan with the director, fourteen rehearse in the studio, and fourteen are helped by the director with the rehears- al. TABLE 10 METHODS OF PLANNING SHOWS. Method ' - ' Very. , Often Sometimes - Often Agents plan alone 75 I '5 ‘ 0 Agents and Extension Personnel 34 - . r 28 2 Agents and Program Director ' 19 ~ . ‘ g' V 2 0 . Agent, Director, Extension Personnel 17 . 0 5 Agent and County people 10 0 0 Agent, Director, ~County people 2 ~. 0 0 Agent, Dimctor, County people, 6 and Extension Personnel 0 1 0 Agent, Extension and other -- specialists ' 3 0 0 Agent, Extension and viewers __9__ ' , __1_ _9_ Total ; 160 37 7 Director Herlinger also recommends discussion or a pre—production conference similar to those mentioned above. During this conference the purpose 67 and nature of the show or series, he believes, can be discussed in detail; the facilities, cameras, micrOphones, chairs, visuals, general ideas on settings and lightings. completed format of show or first show in the series. extra props can be decided upon. He also urges a blocking rehearsal to which the talent comes thoroughly prepared. "Camera blocking is understood to mean the work- ing out of camera shots, and coordination of camera and actor movement. "2 At the blocking rehearsal, major segments of the show can be blocked out with performers and prochiction staff. Herlinger believes that the pre-production conference and the blocking rehearsal are the best preparation any performer could have before the actual show. Stasheff and Bretz state that the most important stage of camera re- hearsal is the stop-start work-through. It is during this period that the camera- men learn exact placement of cameras, lens for each shot, and the cutting the director will use. "Many a production has gone on the air without a dress re- ‘ hearsal, without a complete runthrough of any kind, and come across to every- one' s surprise as a successful show, simply because the camera shots had been worked out. It is of. very little value to try for complete runthroughs if the . , 3 ,_ cameramen are not clear on their shots." Seventy-two percent of the agents in this study block out camera shots with directors prior to rehearsal, but twenty-four percent do not. 2Edward Stasheff and Rudy Bretz, The Television Prggam (New York: Hill and Wang, .1962) ,. p. 238. 3Ibid. , p. 240. 68 In Table 10, Methods of Planning Shows, other plans in which the di- rector is involved are listed. The first had a planning group of an agent, di- rector, and county pe0ple. The agents were a home agent in Raymond, Miss- issippi and several agents located near her. They participated for seven years in an eight-minute weekly segment of a Farm Show. The shows for the most part were 4-H individual or team demonstrations. The agent described the Farm Program Director as follows: "He was most helpful in planning the pro- grams, making suggestions when the boys and girls presented the programs at studio before show time and consistently helping the 45-H'ers to feel relaxed and easy. " . Another planning group was composed. of extension personnel, director and county people. This agent who planned with county people in the planning group showed an awareness of the value of communication training. ~ She stated Communications Training, English, and General Home Economics were the college courses that had helped her most with program content. She has been on the air since 1952 and presents programs on two commercial stations and is now working out a plan to contribute to the state educational television programs. She and her staff, in addition to television, present radio programs at two radio stations, write articles for two daily county papers, and occasional features for the large dailies in two neighboring counties. She and her staff use several ways to find out about audience characteristics: station's survey, studying telephone and mail response to programs, Extension Service research, talking with 4-H leaders and members of Home Demonstration Clubs. She relies upon audience 69 requests for program ideas often. She works with the program's director and rehearses in the studio prior to presentations. Another method of planning, unique in this group, is the last one tabu- lated in the table: Planning by agent, extension personnel, and viewers. The Home Agent who writes about this show says, "Early in 1963 in Wausau we started a separate Homemaker program every Tuesday and Thursday at 9:45 a.m. At this hour a Home Economics Agent had had a five-minute show instead of the noon show with all Extension Agents. In June, our time was increased to a half-hour show with fifteen minutes on Tuesday and fifteen minutes on Thursday of the same week and on the same subject. There are eight Home Economics Agents in our district, so we are on every two months. " This method involves some of the audience members, the receivers, in the planning. Thus, attitudes of source about receiver and receiver about source contribute to the planning of these shows. This agent also presents the yearly two-hour Extension Spectacular mentioned earlier in this paper. Another example of viewers being part of the planning group for a Home Economics program occurred in Roswell, New Mexico. The New Mexico Exten- sion Service conducted a cross-section study of three hundred and forty-nine homemakers in Chaves County and found they wanted ,a television program on Home Economics. The Home Agent told the local television station management and the station offered her time.- Across the county stretches the organization known as "listening Ears, " a group of twenty-five women, some members of the Home Demonstration Clubs, 70 who volunteer to listen to audiences' comments and make suggestions to the Home Agent. Two examples were a request for series rather than individual programs and a wish that the recipes could be posted behind and above the Home Agent as she gave demonstrations. This is the program mentioned elsewhere in this study which prompted the station manager to offer the Enension Agent time for a regular youth program. Other results have been an increase in the number of 4-H leaders, home demonstration club members, and new audiences. The agent in'Roswell, like the preceding agent in the Wausau example, is considering the receiver in her_ communication. Unlike one agent who stated in this. survey, "I assume audience members arethe-same as Home Demonstra- I tion Club members, " the Roswell agent knows there is a difference. Research in Chaves County? revealed the following differences in education as shown in Table 11. 4 t i .9 A The difference in education is a guideline to the Roswell Home Agent in planning Home Economics shows. ' In Chapter II of this study, that section of the audience known as."early majority" was briefly described.- These audience mem- bers, it was stated, are known as "key communicators" because they pass on new information to less active farmers. This audience sector uses mass com-' munications heavily. This passing on of information is described in research literature as "The Two-Step Flow Hypothesis." 4"Home Economics Extension Work in Chaves County, " Agricultural Extension Work (State College: New Mexico College of Agriculture and Mechanical Arts, September, 1956). 71 TABLE 11 COMPARISON OF EDUCATIONAL DIFFERENCES OF CHAVES COUNTY HOMEMAKERS AND HOME DEMONSTRATION CLUB MEMBERS Home Demonstration Education Homemakers Club Members 96 ‘1: 8 grades or less 30 9 1 to 4 years high school 49 61 some college 21 30 high school graduate 25 75 college graduate 5 7 Iazarsfeld and Gaudet hypothesized that ideas often flow from the mass media to opinion leaders, and from the opinion leaders to the less active mem- bers of the papulation. 5 Lazarsfeld and Kata, in a 1955 study, found the determinant in influenc- ing women's decisions in marketing, public affairs, movie selections, and fashions was interpersonal relations developed through oral communication. 6 5P. Lazarsfeld and H. Gaudet, The People's Choice (New York: Columbia University Press, 1948) . 6E. Katz and P, Iazarsfeld, Personal Influence (Glencoe, Illinois: Free Press, 1955). - ' ‘ ‘ 72 These Opinion leaders in this Lazarsfeld-Katz study were found in all socio-economic levels and exerted their influence horizontally on members of their levels. These key communicators the Roswell agent would try to reach. Their education will be slightly above average. 7 The average person in the Chaves study would have less than a high school education. Thus, the agent would want to design her shows for the key communi— cators who are above average—about the level of a high school graduate. But, she would want to fashion her television write-in material so that those the key communicators influence can comprehend it. Unlike the Roswell Agent, who includes viewers in her planning group, are the seventy-five agents of this survey who plan the television shows very often by themselves. (See Table 10, p. 66.) As stated in Chapter II of this study, seventy-five percent of the agents who desired further training, wanted training in communications. The practice of the seventy-five agents who plan by themselves reflects this need in communications training. One anecdote about using audience members to plan shows is the follow- ing story by the Owensboro, Kentucky, agent. "I feel my best programs are those where I have the real articles to work with. There was one program given on a three hour notice that was very effective. The County Agent had had unex- Pected complications and asked the Home Agent to take over. This was at nine L. 71he Diffusion Process, p. 5. 73 a. m. and the program was to be given in Henderson at twelve noon. I was con- ducting a tailoring workshop. The participants were consulted and they chose three members whose garments were at different stages to go on the show with me. We planned as we drove over and gave a good program we were told. " Some of the communications techniques used for some well-established television shows are summarized in Table 13. . In these eleven examples, agents use audience requests for sources as follows: nine very often or often, one sometimes, one unknown. Studying these audience requests is one means an agent has of discovering more about audience characteristics. 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