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Developing LIS Educational Program for Agriculture in Iran: Challenges, Opportunities, and Achievements

This article explores Iranians' efforts in designing the first long-term educational program for LIS professionals in agriculture in Iran. It delves into the importance of agriculture in Iran, challenges faced, laws and regulations, share of agriculture in GDP and labor force composition, indigenous knowledge, rural population needs, and international trends. The text discusses the background, skills and knowledge acquired, reasons for proposal rejection, post-positivism paradigm, and suggestions for future initiatives in agricultural information management. The importance of negotiating with stakeholders, lobbying, and integrating indigenous knowledge into the curriculum is emphasized.

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Developing LIS Educational Program for Agriculture in Iran: Challenges, Opportunities, and Achievements

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  1. Iranians’ efforts to design and accredit the first long-term educational program for LIS professionals in agriculture By: HamidrezaMokhtari A. Mokhber

  2. Background • Importance of agriculture in Iran

  3. Challenges and opportunities • Laws and regulations • Share of agriculture sector in GDP • Share of agriculture in labor force composition; • Wealth of indigenous knowledge • Rural population • Specific needs of agricultural audience • International trends

  4. number of agriculture students

  5. agricultureshare of GDP(%)

  6. labor force by occupation

  7. Number of Rural ICT offices

  8. Agricultural information in Iran • Two ministries for agriculture • Two competing LIS bodies • Many achievements • Merging

  9. The need for LIS in agriculture • Paradigm • Language • Communication: • Environment

  10. Iranians’ efforts • 1989: the ministry of Science • 2000: one of the authors • 2003: justification report • Rejection • 2012: restarting with AIM

  11. Skills & Knowledge acquired • Familiarity with agriculture research • Working with agriculture databases like FAO’s • Familiarity with agriculture statistical systems and datasets • General knowledge of agriculture • Knowledge and respect for nature and its products • Working with agriculture -specific terms and concepts • Good command of English for specific purpose in agriculture

  12. Reasons for rejection of proposal • negative perception about librarians in agriculture sector; • the present experts can do the job(even if it is not efficient); • the name: “library” is not proper;

  13. AIM: a leap frog • Context matter as stated by USAID • Difference between developed and developing countries • Good example: • Kenyan university of Nairobi: Postgraduate Diploma in Agricultural Informationand Communication Management (AICM)

  14. GDP and labor force in developing and developed countries

  15. Post positivism paradigm Agricultural Information Management Agriculture Discipline Management Discipline LIS Discipline Participatory/advocacy paradigm

  16. Conclusions & Suggestions • defining human resource needs assessment researches for LIS in agriculture; • notice major audience in agriculture sector and base the agriculture colleges for the development of courses; • providing a momentum through NGOs in the sector is very important for the success;

  17. Conclusions & Suggestions • negotiating with major stakeholders and lobbying ; • know the big picture of knowledge and information systems and placing the new discipline in them; • finding the place of indigenous knowledge in the curriculum and relating it to the courses

  18. Acknowledgement: National Library of Singapore for awarding a generous grant to me

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