Assessing the Effectiveness of Extension/Education Courses for Experts about Protection of Natural Resources (With Particular Emphasis on Forest Ecosystems)

This research is about assessing the effectiveness of the extension and education courses for experts about protection of natural resources with particular emphasis on forest ecosystems. This research was an applied type research with a descriptive-correlation and retroactive method. The target population includes the experts who took part in those training courses at 2008 (N=414). The sample population was 180 respondents who were selected by random sampling method. The data was collected by using questionnaire and analyzed by SPSS win. The results acquired through the spearman coefficient correlation showed that there was correlation between educational level, the number of attendance in the training courses, the conformity of the educational objectives with the educational needs of the participants, appropriate location of classes, the novelty of the educational materials, the suitability of the educational subjects, consent from the instructor, instructor’s ability to teach educational subjects, instructor’s experience in his/her job; using group discussions, scientific visits, scientific instruction and educational aids with effectiveness of training courses. The results from the multi-variable regression showed that the variables including the educational level, the conformity of the educational objectives with the educational needs of the participants, using scientific instruction and group discussion had a positive role in the effectiveness of the training courses. At the same time, the above cited variables determine %50 of the changes of the dependent variable, effectiveness of the training courses.