Communication approach
A method is a procedure or process for attaining an objective. The choice of a channel or method of communication, also known as extension teaching method, generally depends on the number and location of the target audience and the time available for communication. They are categorized as individual method, group method and mass method.

Individual method:
In this method, the extension agent communicates with the people individually, maintaining separate identity of each person.
Method applicability
This method is followed when the number of people to be contacted is few, conveniently located close to the communicator and sufficient time is available for communication.
Examples: Farm and home visit, farmer’s call etc.
Advantages

• Help the extension agent in building rapport
• Facilitates gaining firsthand knowledge of farm and home
• Helps in selecting demonstrators and local leaders
• Helps in changing attitude of the people
• Helps in teaching complex practices
• Facilitates transfer of technology
• Enhances effectiveness of group and mass methods
• Facilitates getting feedback information

Limitations         

• This method is time consuming and relatively expensive
• Has low coverage of audience
• Extension agent may develop favoritism or bias towards some persons

Group method
Definition of group: A group may be defined as an aggregate of small number of people in reciprocal communication and interaction around some common interest.
In this method, the extension agent communicates with the people in groups and not as individual persons.
Method applicability
This method is adopted when it is necessary to communicate with a number of people simultaneously, who are located not far off from the communicator.
Examples: Method demonstration, group meeting, small group training. Field day or farmer’s day and study tour.
Advantages:

• Enables the extension agent to have face- to-face contact with a number of people at a time
• Can reach a select part of the target group
• Facilitates sharing of knowledge and experience and thereby strengthen learning of the group members
• Reach fewer people, but offer more opportunities for interaction and feedback
• Satisfies the basic urge of people for social contacts
• Motivate people to accept change due to group influence
• More effective than mass method in stimulating action
• Less expensive than individual method due to more coverage

Limitations:

• Wide diversity in the interest of group members may create a difficult learning situation
• Holding the meeting may be regarded as an objective in itself
• Vested interests, caste groups and village factions may hinder free interaction and decision making by the group members

Mass method
In this method, the extension agent communicates with a vast and heterogeneous mass of people, without taking into consideration their individual or group identity.
Method applicability
This method is adopted where a large and widely dispersed audience is to be communicated within a short time.
Advantages:

• Suitable for creating general awareness amongst the people
• Helps in transferring knowledge and forming and changing opinions
• Large number of people may be communicated within a short time
• Facilitates quick communication in times of emergency
• Reinforces previous learning
• Less expensive due to more coverage

Limitations:

• Less intensive method
• Little scope for personal contact with the audience
• Little opportunity for interaction with and amongst the audience
• Generalized recommendations hinder application by individuals
• Little control over the response of the audience
• Difficulty in getting feedback information and evaluation of results

Classification of instructional methods

The instructional methods adopted in extension may be classified as follows

Individual methods:

1. Farm and Home Visit
   Farm and Home Visit is a direct, face –to – face contact by the extension agent with the farmer or homemaker at their farm or home for extension work

Objectives

• To get acquainted with and gain confidence of farmers and homemakers
• To obtain and or give firsthand information on matters relating to farm and home
• To advise and assist in solving specific problems, and teach skills
• To sustain interest

Limitations
Only limited number of contacts may be made
Time consuming and costly method
Attention may be concentrated on a few big and progressive persons; neglecting the large number of small, marginal, tribal farmers; landless labour and backward people which may prejudice them

2. Farmer’s call
   Farmer’s call is a call made by a farmer or homemaker at the working place of  the extension agent for obtaining information and assistance

Objectives

• To get quick solution of problems relating to farm and home
• To enable the farmer and homemaker to bring specimens for proper identification of the problem
• To ensure timely supply of inputs and services
• To act as a reminder to the extension agent

 Limitations:
Being away from the situation, it may be difficult for the extension agent to understand the problem in its proper perspective
Extension agent may not be available all the time

3. Personal letter
Personal letter is written by the extension agent to particular farmer or homemaker in connection with extension work. This should not be regarded as a substitute for personal contact.

Objectives
To answer to queries relating to problems of farm and home
To send information or seek cooperation on important extension activities

1. Adaptive or Mini kit Trail
   Adaptive or mini kit trail is a method of determining the suitability or otherwise of a new practice   in farmer’s situation

Objectives
To test a new and promising practice under the resources, constraints and abilities of the farmer
To find out the benefits of the new practice in comparison to the existing one
To build up confidence of the extension agents, research workers and farmers
To act as a precaution against insignificant, faulty or hasty recommendations

Limitations

• Being scattered, the trails may suffer from lack of adequate supervision of the extension agent
• Satisfactory results depend on the clarity of objective and careful selection of the practice and the farmers

2. Farm clinic
   Farm clinic is a facility developed and extended to the farmers for diagnosis and treatment of farm problems and to provide some specialist advice to individual farmers.

3. Result demonstration
   Result demonstration is a method of motivating the people for adoption of a new practice      by showing its distinctly superior result.

Objectives

• To show the advantages and applicability of a newly recommended practice in farmer’s own situation
• To motivate groups of people in a community to adopt a new practice by showing its result
• To build up confidence of the farmers and extension agents
• To develop innovation leadership

Limitations

• Need more time, energy and funds for extension work
• Unsuccessful demonstrations may cause some setback to extension work

Group methods

1. Method Demonstration
   A method demonstration is given before a group of people to show how to carry out an entirely new practice or an old practice in a better way.
   It is essentially skill training, where the emphasis is on effectively carrying out a job, which shall improve upon the result.

Objectives:

• To teach skills and stimulate people to action
• To get rid of inefficient or ineffective movements
• To improve upon the result by doing a job in a better way
• To build up learner’s confidence and satisfaction on the practice

Limitations

• Suitable mainly for practices involving skills
• Needs good deal of preparation, equipments and skill of the extension agent

2. Group Meeting
   Group meeting is a method of democratically arriving at certain, decisions by a group of people, by taking into consideration the member’s points of view.

Objectives

• To prepare a favorable climate for discussion and help in better understanding of the problem by pooling the knowledge and experience of a number of persons
• To facilitate in – depth discussion by involving a small number of participants
• To generate new ideas and methods, and select the rational ones through group interaction.
• To help formation of opinion about a specific issue
• To develop a favorable attitude and commitment for action through group involvement
• To act as a safety valve for reducing tension

 Limitations

• Requires understanding of group dynamics and skill of the extension agent
• Village factions may hinder successful use of this method
• Group members must have some self-discipline
• A slow process and may not be suitable in crises and emergency situation

3. Small group training
   Small group training is a technique of imparting specific skills to a group of people who need them by creating an appropriate learning situation.

Lecture   used to present authoritative of technical information to develop background and to integrate ideas. Organized, Cover subject matter, adaptable to large groups, conserves time, easy to check the results
Debate pattern to have two teams; one representing the affirmative and other the negative side of the question.
Symposium is a short series of lectures ; usually by 2 to 5 speakers, each one speaks for a definite amount of time, and presents a phase of a general topic.
Panel is an informal conversation put on for the benefits of the audience, by a small group of people i.e 2- 8 in no..
Types: – 1 question answer      2. Set speech   3.conversational
Forum  is a discussion with question period in which members of the audience may ask questions  or make brief statements.
Buzz sessions with large groups when there  is limited time for discussion, the audience may be divided into smaller units (6-8 people ) for a short period.   The secretary of each group will present findings.
Brain Storming is a small group interaction designed to encourage the free introduction of ideas on unrestricted basis and without any limitation .
Workshop a long meeting from 1 to several weeks involving the all delegates in which the problems being discussed are considered by delegates.
Seminar may have 2 or more sessions to pool the opinions of a large no. of persons.
Conference is pooling of opinions/ experiences among a group of people who have special qualification in an area.

Objectives

• To impart the needed skills to a small group people
• To motivate people to adopt new practices through skill training

Limitations

• A small number of people may be trained at a time
• Fallow-up requires more staff and time

1. Field Day or Farmer’s Day
   Field day or Farmer’s day is a method of motivating the people to adopt a new practice by showing what has actually been achieved by applying the practice under field conditions

     Objectives

• To convince the participants about the applicability of the practice in their own situations
• To motivate them to adopt the practice by showing its performance and profitability under field conditions
• To remove doubts, superstitions and unfavorable attitude about the new practice
• To reinforce previous learning about the practice

Limitations

• Field days cannot be held frequently
• Does not facilitate in depth learning

2. Study Tour
   In study Tour, a group of interested persons accompanied and guided by one or more extension agents out of their neighborhood to study and learn significant improvements in farm and home elsewhere.
   The main purpose is to motivate the visitors by showing what others have been able to achieve

Objectives

• To expose the visitors to a new and different situation which shall help in changing their outlook and extend their mental horizon?
• To understand the gap in technology adoption
• To explore the feasibility of adopting new practices in visitor’s own situations
• To induce a spirit of competition amongst the participants by showing what others have been able to achieve

Limitations

• Because of limitations of funds and time, study tours can not be held frequently
• There may be some possibility of subordinating educational aspect to sigh seeing and recreation
• Unpleasant experience may cause a setback

Mass methods

1. Farm Publication
   Farm publication is a class of publications prepared by the extension agency in printed form, containing information relating to the improvement of farm and home.

Objectives

• To reach a large number of people quickly and simultaneously at a low cost
• To provide accurate, motivating, credible and distortion-free information
• To provide support to other extension methods
• To facilitate use at convenience and to serve as a future reference

Limitations

• Can not be widely used in areas of low level of literacy
• May lose its significance if not carefully prepared and used
• Periodical revision is necessary to keep the publications up-to-date

Leaflet is a single printed sheet of paper of small size, containing basic info.. related to a topic.
Folder is a single printed sheet of paper of big size, folded once or twice .
Bulletins is a printed, bound booklet with number of pages  with comprehensive information  about a topic.
Newsletter is a miniature newspaper in good quality paper, with info.. on activities and achievements of the org..& is periodical.
Journal / Magazine   are periodicals, with     information on various topics of interest not only for the farmers, also for extension agents. supplied against pre-payment of subscription for a particular period.

Objective:

• To reach large number of people quickly and simultaneously at a low cost
• To provide accurate, motivating, credible and distortion – free information
• To provide support to other extension methods
• To facilitate use at convenience and to serve as a future reference

2. Mass Meeting

Mass meeting is held to communicate interesting and useful information to a large audience at a time. The size of audience for mass meeting may be a few hundreds, but at the time of fairs or festivals it may be few thousands.

Objectives

• To focus attention of the people on some important topic
• To create general awareness about a programme or project and to announce its progress
• To enlist people’s participation in community work
• To appear personally before a large audience

Limitations

• In –depth discussion of the topic not possible
• Cannot be held frequently
• Difficult to get feedback information

3. Campaign
   A campaign is an intense educational activity for motivating and mobilizing a community to action, to solve a problem or satisfy a need urgently felt by it.
   Duration: A campaign may be for a single day on a theme like Water for life, for a few weeks as in family planning, for a few months as in Vanamahotsava and for a few years as in ‘Grow More Food’ campaign.

Objectives

• To create mass awareness about an important problem or felt need of the community and encourage them to solve it
• To induce emotional participation of the community at the local level and create a favorable psychological climate for adoption of new practices

Limitations:

• Applicable only for topics of community interest
• Success depends on cooperation of the community and their leaders
• Less suitable for practices involving complicated technicalities
• Requires adequate preparation, concerted efforts and propaganda techniques, and uninterrupted supply of critical inputs

4. Exhibition
   An exhibition is a systematic display of models, specimens, chars, photographs, pictures, posters, information etc. in a sequence around a theme to create awareness and interest in the community.

Objectives:

• To promote visual literacy
• To acquaint people with better standards
• To create interest in a wide range of people

Limitations:

• Requires lots of fund and preparation
• Cannot held frequently

Factors affecting the selection and use of methods

1. The audience
   a) Individual and collective differences:
   Knowledge, Attitude, Skill
   Position in Diffusion and adoption
   Educational training, age, income level, social status, religious beliefs
   b) Size of Audience:
   GD cannot be used effectively for more than 30 participants
   MD   can be used for relatively small audience
   Lecture can be used for large audience.
2. The Teaching objective
   Nature of change aimed at – is it thinking/ attitude/ action
   Arrive at consensus of opinion- arrange GD
3. The Subject matter
   If the new practice is simple or familiar then news article, radio etc.
   For complex practices face to face contacts, written materials and Audio visual aids.
4. Stage of Development of Extension Organization
   If it is initial stages of extension, result demonstration is necessary to gain Confidence
5. Size of Extension Staff
   It is in relation to Extension clientele – the larger the number of extension Workers, the greater the scope for direct or personal contact method.
6. The Availability of Certain Communication media
   News papers, Telephone, radio etc
7. The Relative Cost of the method
   Amount to be expended on extension teaching
8. An extension worker’s familiarity
   Influences the choice and use of methods

Combination of methods
As the number of methods of exposure to the extension information increases, the number of farm families changing the behaviour increases.
Seeing and doing- 6.67%
Seeing, doing and hearing – 37.49%
Seeing, doing, hearing, reinforced by reading – 49.29%
Seeing, doing, hearing, reinforced by reading, personal contacts – 69.99%
Seeing, doing, hearing, reinforced by reading, personal contacts, more hearing and seeing – 78.69%
Seeing, doing, hearing, reinforced by reading, personal contacts, more hearing and seeing, indirect influence – 100%

USING THE METHODS IN PROPER SEQUENCE
Our extension plans of work must include methods that Enable our farmers to see, hear and do the things to be learned Enable to reach large number of people and Create confidence.