Computer Assisted Learning - Using New Technology in Farm Management Teaching

Teachers of farm management are, like others, faced with the problem of improving the quality of teaching with falling staff resources. Computer assisted learning (CAL), when sensitively implemented, can enhance the learning experience without increasing staff input. The development of CAL modules, however, requires very high initial investment, often beyond the means of individual institutions, and is often more widely adopted if developed co-operatively. This paper discusses the place of CAL in farm management teaching and describes a CAL module for whole farm budgeting. Budget Builder has been developed by a consortium of farm management lecturers and a software development team. It has a tutorial component explaining the budgeting concepts and a modelling component in which the user is guided through the construction of a spreadsheet-based farm budget. Both tutorial and model are delivered at two different levels of complexity. A ‘'Help” facility contains information on spreadsheet techniques, budgeting terms and agricultural terminology and husbandry. The module can be used as a stand-alone teaching resource or for support or revision purposes and has an integral student exercise. It is currently under evaluation in UK universities as one of a suite of agriculturally related CAL modules and has shown promising preliminary results.