The integration of hard and soft skills has become increasingly important to employers. Colleges of agriculture and natural sciences can facilitate the development of these skills in their students. The purpose of this study was to explore impacts of a behavioral style learning unit on soft skill development with 15 students enrolled in a senior-level undergraduate capstone course. The research objectives were to (a) explore students' preflections and reflections for indications of soft skill development, (b) explore team dynamics, and (c) identify best practices for integrating a behavioral style learning unit into a capstone course. Qualitative content analysis methods and basic quantitative methods were used to examine the preflections and reflections of the students. Students found the behavioral assessment improved understanding of their own behavioral needs, and allowed them to flex their style to meet the needs of team members. Relationship compatibility, based on behavioral styles within teams, correlated with the ability of team members to accurately perceive their contributions to tasks, relative to peer-based perceptions of contributions. Based on these results, it is recommended that a behavioral style learning unit, or a similar psychological type unit, be integrated into courses where soft skills are a desired student learning outcome.

Agricultural literacy programs are effective pathways to informally teach the public about agriculture through stakeholder (attendee and exhibitor) interaction. Such programs are generally evaluated using attendee feedback but fail to include exhibitors' experience. The purpose of this study was to evaluate a local community agricultural event by (a) exploring attendee agricultural literacy, purchasing behavior, and overall experience at the event, and (b) exploring exhibitor experiences at the same event. Attendees and exhibitors were given electronic surveys to provide quantitative and qualitative feedback as it pertained to the event's educational programming aspects. Attendees reported positive attitudes and perceptions of locally produced agricultural goods. Exhibitors reported satisfaction with the event and found the interactive digital scavenger hunt to be an effective way to interact with attendees and increase exposure to their business. Suggestions from attendees and exhibitors were concerned with pre-event communication and event logistics. The findings identify areas where education could be beneficial (e.g., nutritional information, impact of purchasing locally grown agricultural products, and where to find/purchase locally grown agricultural products). We recommend including attendee and exhibitor feedback to evaluate and improve similar agricultural literacy programs to guide marketing strategies and to better engage attendees and exhibitors with integrated learning activities.

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is a program manager with the Institute for Scientist and Engineer Educators, which is housed in the Division of Social Sciences at UC Santa Cruz. Coming from an educational background in astronomy and engineering, Austin manages the Akamai Internship Program, a seven week summer internship program in Hawai'i dedicated to retaining local undergraduate participants in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

Learning by doing plays a critical role in a learner’s conceptual understanding. By actively engaging with a concept, students gain experience and develop an enduring understanding of the concept. The concept of pollen viability is a critical component in the field of plant breeding and can be used to explain various aspects of pollen quality. An inquiry activity was designed to expose undergraduate students in a horticulture course to the concept of pollen viability and its application. The entire class was tasked with collaborating to identify an in vitro germination medium optimized to germinate plumeria (Plumeria rubra) pollen. To determine optimum sucrose and pH concentrations of the medium, student groups were assigned treatments of pollen from two plumeria cultivars that were germinated in Brewbaker and Kwack media of differing sucrose and pH concentrations. Students calculated the percentage of germinated pollen and assessed pollen tube integrity and used these variables as evidence of an optimized medium. Although undergraduates were engaged in authentic research practices during the inquiry activity, lack of time and resources impeded completion of the activity. However, students were exposed to methods and instrumentation directly related to evaluating pollen viability. Moreover, they were exposed to the basic practice of pollen quality assessment that they can use to carry out investigations on pollen fertility. In addition, insight was gained to improve the inquiry activity in the future. Now, well-informed modifications to the inquiry activity can be made to pilot this activity in a formal horticulture laboratory section.

Consumer behavior is a complex phenomenon encompassing internal, external, and situational factors. This study examined perceptions of market consumers about fruits and vegetables in Trinidad and Tobago in terms of produce origin, growing method, and willingness to pay. A stratified purposive sample of consumers at 14 unique market locations was surveyed to measure the three constructs and demographics. Descriptive statistics, correlational analysis, a ttest, and one-way analysis of variance were used to analyze the data. Findings revealed consumers have positive perceptions of locally grown produce and produce grown without chemicals. Findings also revealed a slight willingness to pay more for such characteristics. There were small to moderate correlations among the three constructs. Male and female perceptions of locally grown produce were significantly different, but no differences were found based on age. Extension educators working with producers who sell directly to consumers can utilize results from this study in working with clientele to tailor marketing and production strategies. Further research into social norms and perceived behavior control is recommended to better understand consumer behavior and help Extension better prepare stakeholders for success in the market places.