A Comparison of Traditional and Self-Paced Instruction: Knowledge Gained in a Food Safety Certification Course

Abstract

The prevention of foodborne illness in childcare centers is a major public health concern. One prevention mechanism is the education of childcare providers. Because of the very diverse population in the childcare profession, the constant turnover rate and the need for high-quality, accessible training, providing this training proves to be an ongoing challenge for many state Extension programs. TummySafe© met this challenge by offering food safety training via two methods. Participants either attended a traditional Extension workshop or experienced the curriculum on a computer of their choosing via CD-ROM. The Mississippi State University Extension Service's 82 county offices coordinated training for childcare providers from April 2005 to June 2006. Traditional participants (n = 829) had higher posttest score means, after adjusting for pretest knowledge, than participants in the self-paced group (n = 796). An ANCOVA revealed a statistically significant difference (F = 268.00, p < .05) favoring the traditional delivery method. Nonetheless, the participants of the self-paced group were highly satisfied with the training and the convenience it offered.