Extension and Educational Needs of Clergymen to Participate in Agricultural and Natural Resources Extension and Educational Plans

This study aims at identifying the extension and educational needs of the clergymen to participate in the plans for agricultural extension/education and natural resources. This is a descriptive-correlation research in survey method with a statistical society including all the clergymen who are actively involved in cultural configuration of agriculture and natural resources; and out of them, 260 persons are selected from the provinces of Kermanshah, Khorasan (Razavi, South and North), Ilam, Qazvin, and Yazd, as a sample by using Cochran formula with a proportionate to size stratified sampling technique. The study is carried out during 2009-10 period; and the required information is gathered through questionnaire, the formal and content validity of which is confirmed by experts’ views at the pre-test stage. Study results show that familiarity with laws and regulations of agriculture and natural resources, awareness of the occasions, and familiarity with the important plans in the ministry of Jihad for Agriculture are respectively the first to third priorities of the clergymen’s extension and educational needs.