The Effectiveness of Women’s Agricultural Education Programs: A Survey from Annie’s Project

Abstract

This study determined the effectiveness of ‘Annie’s Project—Education for Farm Women’ in improving women’s skill sets. Illinois farm women who participated in Annie’s Project were given a pre–test or baseline survey which measured farming practices in the five areas of risk (production, marketing, financial, legal and human resource). The women were later resurveyed. The main methodology to measure improvement in skill is calculated by the difference in the percentage of ‘yes’ responses from the baseline to the post–test. Results suggest an overall increase of 10.92 percent with the largest improvement occurring in the financial area of risk. In general, the differences in ‘yes’ responses were found to be significantly different from zero. Regression analysis was also performed to determine whether socio–economic variables, such as marital status and farm size, play a role in the difference in the percentages of ‘yes’ responses.