Current perspectives on distance education in veterinary medicine

A brief review of technologies currently used in distance-education endeavors in veterinary curricula is presented. The article provides the results of a survey on how distance education has been used in veterinary curricula.     

Support services for students and faculty

Distance learning is hardly a recent phenomenon. The recent growth of distance-education courses and programs, particularly those offered online, has been dramatic. Students enrolled in distance-education courses deserve the same quality and type of services that students taking courses on campus receive. The same is true of faculty teaching distance courses. Developing strong support services for both groups is an evolutionary process. This article discusses support services for both students and faculty involved in the rapidly expanding online distance-education landscape. Models for providing support to students and faculty are described, the development of these services is explained, and examples of support services are provided.     

Purdue University's Veterinary Technology Distance Learning Program

The Purdue University Veterinary Technology Distance Learning Program (VT-DLP) is an AVMA-accredited, 70-credit-hour curriculum that grants an Associate of Science degree in veterinary technology. Creation of the VT-DLP required the application of creative instructional design methods to meet the educational goals set by the faculty, maintain an academic rigor equivalent to the on-campus program, and address the concerns and distance-education criticisms of faculty, alumni, and other stakeholders. This article describes the educational principles on which the VT-DLP was created, how various challenges were identified and addressed, and important lessons learned during the creation and delivery of a curriculum that is traditionally very hands-on.     

Communicating risk and uncertainty in relation to development and implementation of disease control policies

Scientific evidence is one of the key factors to be considered in the development of disease control policies. It is generated using investigations into cause-effect relationships, which usually produce results that are associated with a varying degree of uncertainty. Experience has shown that taking account of these uncertainties can become a formidable challenge for policy makers when devising the strategies and when communicating them to stakeholders. The situation has been further complicated by a reduction in public trust in scientific evidence. It is now recognised that this challenge cannot be managed by simply providing more information, but it is also necessary to consider the influence that variation in risk perception amongst stakeholders has on their response to and commitment towards the policies.     

Workshops propose national programme for veterinary helminthology for South Africa

A workshop was held at Onderstepoort on 2-3 July 1999 to set priorities in veterinary helminthology for South Africa. Representatives from 19 organisations attended. The workshop achieved 2 of its 3 aims, namely to identify the priority areas within the field and to set specific objectives to be achieved in addressing these needs. Seven strategies were proposed, namely, motivation, education, therapeutic, worm resistance, animal tolerance, biological control and diagnostic strategies. A follow-up session took place on 8 September 1999 and at this workshop and in subsequent meetings, preliminary action plans were developed for these strategies. It was felt that the proposed activities delineated by this process should form the basis for a National Programme for Veterinary Helminthology and a national forum is to be convened to encourage all stakeholders to consider, discuss and adopt these activities. The forum is scheduled to take place in April 2000.     

Stakeholder position paper: pork producer perspective on antibiotic use data

Modern pork production uses a variety of tools to ensure the health, welfare and productivity of pigs. Therapeutic (treatment and prevention of disease) use and use for enhancing growth and feed efficiency (growth promotion) are the two options for use on the farm. Collecting meaningful and accurate antibiotic use data faces significant challenge because of the number and variety of production systems, the need for broad stakeholder analysis of the data and the lack of consistent and science-based definitions of antibiotic use categories. The National Animal Health Monitoring System (NAHMS) is one mechanism that estimates uses based on a statistical sample of the nation's swine herd. If, based on sound science, additional information on antibiotic use is considered necessary, stakeholders should discuss the best implementation strategies to achieve the desired result. Producers continue in their science-based commitment to ensure the safety of pork and to maintain consumer confidence.     

Community-based clinical veterinary education at Western University of Health Sciences

This article describes a distributed model clinical curriculum developed by the College of Veterinary Medicine, Western University of Health Sciences (CVMWU), and presents outcome data for the 2005/2006 academic year. Extramural clinical education requires close institutional involvement, including planning, formulation of learning objectives, selection of partner sites with numbers compatible with teaching needs, training of clinical preceptors, faculty commitment, administrative support, and ongoing assessment. Extramural delivery of the CVMWU clinical curriculum is facilitated by its geographical location in close proximity to participating sites and by an admissions process designed to select students judged likely to succeed in a student-centered learning environment. Outcome data collected from students and clinical preceptors supports the conclusion that year 3 of the curriculum was successfully delivered.     

The needs for public health education: reflections from the 27th world veterinary congress

The needs for public health education are addressed based on papers presented at the 27th World veterinary Congress held in Tunis, Tunisia, on September 25-29, 2002. The article first summarizes the public health problems presented from developing countries, followed by the problems from developed countries. A summary of the solutions proposed or practiced by each group of speakers is presented. On the basis of the problems and solutions presented, the author suggests how education can address the problems and their solutions. The dichotomy between developed and developing countries is not new, but educational advances in veterinary public health (VPH) are required to provide the citizens of all countries with safe food and less risk of zoonotic diseases. This is true whether a country is too poor to have adequate veterinary services for good food safety and preventing major zoonoses, or is a wealthy country plagued by the emerging pathogens associated with modern intensive agriculture systems.     

The cooperative University of Iowa / Iowa State University MPH program

Public health is an important component of veterinary medicine. In the last 10 years, there has been growing recognition of the need to increase the number of veterinarians trained in public health. The Center for Food Security and Public Health (CFSPH) at Iowa State University (ISU), College of Veterinary Medicine, received a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to support veterinarians working at CFSPH while pursuing the Master of Public Health degree. CFSPH and ISU administrators worked with the University of Iowa (UI) College of Public Health to establish three cooperative programs for veterinarians to earn the MPH degree. This article describes how these programs were developed and how they operate. (1) Between 2002 and 2005, CFSPH used funds provided by the CDC to support 15 veterinarians as they worked for CFSPH and toward the MPH degree. As the program grew, distance-education methods such as the Internet, Polycom videoconferencing, and the Iowa Communications Network (ICN) were incorporated. (2) A concurrent DVM/MPH degree is now offered; students can complete both degrees in four years. As of January 2008, three students have received their DVM and MPH degrees and 16 students are enrolled in the program. (3) In June 2007, the UI and ISU launched a distance MPH program for veterinarians working in private practice, industry, and government. Eight veterinarians are participating in the program, which includes two two-week, in-person summer sessions, with the remainder of the coursework taken at a distance via the Internet.     

Using Participatory Workshops to Integrate State-and-Transition Models Created With Local Knowledge and Ecological Data

State-and-transition models (STMs) depict current understanding of vegetation dynamics and are being created for most ecological sites in the United States. Model creation is challenging due to inadequate long-term data, and most STMs rely on expert knowledge. There has been little systematic documentation of how different types of knowledge have been integrated in STMs, or what these distinct knowledge sources offer. We report on a series of participatory workshops where stakeholders helped to integrate STMs developed for the same region using local knowledge and ecological field data. With this exploratory project, we seek to understand what kinds of information local knowledge and ecological field data can provide to STMs, assess workshops as a method of integrating knowledge and evaluate how different stakeholders perceive models created with different types of knowledge. Our analysis is based on meeting notes, comments on draft models, and workshop evaluation questionnaires. We conclude that local knowledge and ecological data can complement one another, providing different types of information at different spatial and temporal scales. Participants reported that the workshop increased their knowledge of STMs and vegetation dynamics, suggesting that engaging potential model users in developing STMs is an effective outreach and education approach. Agency representatives and ranchers expressed the value of both the local knowledge and data-driven models. Agency participants were likely to critique or add components based on monitoring data or prior research, and ranchers were more likely to add states and transitions based on personal experience. As STM development continues, it is critical that range professionals think systematically about what different forms of data might contribute to model development, how we can best integrate existing knowledge and data to create credible and useful models, and how to validate the resulting STMs.     

Teaching basic medical sciences at a distance: strategies for effective teaching and learning in internet-based courses

In recent years, the Internet has become an effective and accessible delivery mechanism for distance education. In 2003, 81% of all institutions of higher education offered at least one fully online or hybrid course. By 2005, the proportion of institutions that listed online education as important to their long-term goals had increased by 8%. This growth in available online courses and their increased convenience and flexibility have stimulated dramatic increases in enrollment in online programs, including the Veterinary Technology Distance Learning Program (VT-DLP) at Purdue University. Regardless of the obvious benefits, distance learning (DL) can be frustrating for the learners if course developers are unable to merge their knowledge about the learners, the process of instructional design, and the appropriate uses of technology and interactivity options into effective course designs. This article describes strategies that we have used to increase students' learning of physiology content in an online environment. While some of these are similar, if not identical, to strategies that might be used in a face-to-face (f2f) environment (e.g., case studies, videos, concept maps), additional strategies (e.g., animations, virtual microscopy) are needed to replace or supplement what might normally occur in a f2f course. We describe how we have addressed students' need for instructional interaction, specifically in the context of two foundational physiology courses that occur early in the VT-DLP. Although the teaching and learning strategies we have used have led to increasingly high levels of interaction, there is an ongoing need to evaluate these strategies to determine their impact on students' learning of physiology content, their development of problem-solving skills, and their retention of information.     

Marker-based selection within smallholder production systems in developing countries

Livestock plays an important role in the livelihoods of millions of poor smallholders within developing countries. Although it has been recognized that smallholders could benefit from genetic improvement strategies (breeding programmes), the challenges associated with establishing genetic improvement strategies for smallholder systems are considerable, resulting in limited successes to date. This paper considers the potential role of marker-based selection to genetic improvement strategies for smallholder production systems, taking into account the socio-economic, infrastructural and institutional issues. The paper stresses that no genetic improvement strategy, with or without the use of markers, is likely to succeed unless a systems approach is applied and other system constraints are met. The marker-based selection technologies discussed in this paper include marker- and gene-assisted selection, marker-assisted introgression and genomic selection. The issues addressed include the priorities of marker-based selection against other genetic improvement strategies, the potential benefits of these technologies to smallholder producers, and conditions under which marker-based selection will most likely succeed in smallholder production systems. We suggest that, of these marker-based selection technologies, marker-assisted introgression and the emerging technology of genomic selection appear to offer the most promise to smallholders, although this is yet to be clearly demonstrated. In relation to genomic selection, developing countries should maintain a ‘watching brief’ on this technology, but simultaneously act now so that they can capitalize on this technology if and when it becomes applicable in the future.     

Exploring Current and Future Situation of Mediterranean Silvopastoral Systems: Case Study in Southern Spain

Extensive range-based livestock production has suffered a sharp decrease in Mediterranean Spain in recent decades due to two opposing trends in land use: progressive abandonment of practices in marginal rural areas and land use intensification in more productive areas. In this study, we explored the visions of key stakeholders on the current and future situation of silvopastoral systems in the Sierra Morena mountain range of southern Spain, where extensive livestock grazing is declining because of competition with other more profitable activities, such as intensive olive groves and game hunting. We performed a discourse analysis using Q methodology and evaluated the existing relationships of information exchange and conflict among local institutions such as farmer’s associations, the provincial council, and conservation organizations using social network analysis. Semistructured interviews were conducted with key stakeholders representing local formal and nonformal institutions involved in extensive livestock production. Results showed three distinct discourses among stakeholders related to profitability, conservation, and modernization. There was a strong consensus on the management strategies that should be promoted to support extensive livestock production and preserve the associated silvopastoral systems. Social networks revealed high cohesion and communication exchange and a low level of conflict among stakeholders, with few exceptions. The low influence of livestock producers on policy decision making largely hinders the development of participatory management schemes. Nevertheless, similarities among the visions and opinions of different institutions suggest that new possibilities might emerge for silvopastoral systems through the collaboration among the different socioeconomic sectors present in the area.     

Range Education in the 21st Century: Striking the Balance to Maintain a Relevant Profession

Range science education programs strive to keep pace with the changing needs of the range profession and to ensure that range graduates are knowledgeable, skilled, and able to address contemporary, complex problems unique to rangelands. Today, range education programs face many challenges in our ability to meet the demands and needs of our profession and society. First, our capacity to meet the demands for range science graduates has been diminished by 1) elimination or restructuring of academic rangeland science programs, 2) reduced numbers of range-trained faculty teaching rangeland courses, and 3) limited public awareness of degrees and careers in rangeland science and management. Second, range education programs are challenged to strike a balance between retaining traditional basics and modernizing curriculum to include contemporary concepts and technologies. Third, range science graduates need to understand the current social, political, and economic context of resource management, including global change issues that are of paramount concern to society. We propose multiple approaches to meet these challenges: 1) perform needs assessments with diverse stakeholders to ensure that range education programs are relevant to society's needs and address the future of the profession; 2) find innovative approaches to strike the educational balance between fundamental concepts, practical field experiences, and mastery of technical and interpersonal skills; 3) collaborate across institutional boundaries to share educational resources and incorporate course formats that meet the diverse needs of today's students; 4) examine and align professional qualifications, educational standards, and curriculum by defining learning outcomes and core competencies needed by well-trained range professionals; and 5) communicate the unique features of the rangeland profession that solidify its position among the disciplinary pillars of natural resource science and management.     

Web 2.0 and the veterinary profession: current trends and future implications for lifelong learning

The NOVICE project is an EU initiative under the Lifelong Learning Programme, which aims to develop an online, professional network to promote informal, lifelong learning within the veterinary profession, using Web 2.0 tools. To inform the development of the network, a need analysis study was undertaken with relevant stakeholders. Focus group discussions were undertaken with veterinary students and veterinarians and a survey was administered to first-year students and recent graduates. The results indicate that use of computers and the internet is ubiquitous among junior members of the profession and that use of Web 2.0 tools is increasing. Concerns raised in relation to participation in online communities include verifying the quality of information and issues around professionalism. Compared with face-to-face communities, online communities were perceived to offer a number of advantages. These include convenient access to expert advice on an international scale, as well as helping to alleviate certain barriers to participation in formal, continuing education such as time, distance and cost.     

Importance-performance analysis of food-supply veterinary medicine career commitment

This study presents the results of an analysis that identifies factors important to veterinary students in making a lifetime commitment to a particular career area. Using an importance-performance framework, the study evaluated 28 veterinary career attributes. Results indicate that to develop greater lifetime commitment among students, careers in food-supply veterinary medicine need to improve in the areas of health care and retirement benefits, free time available for family, opportunities to become authorities in the field, opportunities for advancement, and more contact with peer veterinarians.     

In retrospect: teaching is "dribbling and passing"

An introspective view of the author revealed that his philosophy, style, and methods of teaching were anchored in the broad fundamentals of considering, organizing, and implementing an educational plan. Key elements of these fundamentals included the art of teaching, time management and the commitment of time to students, experience and repetition, teaching methodology, communication and listening, relevancy of information, the laboratory teaching environment, and the responsibilities of students. A coherent approach to teaching was developed by blending these individual elements with a commitment to learning by all students.     

European veterinary education: a bridge to quality

The aim of this review is to provide an insight into the current state of, and future changes in, veterinary education within the European Community, as well as the role of the European Association of Establishments for Veterinary Education (EAEVE) in evaluating and raising standards of education and training. It also describes the role of EAEVE in developing strategies for changes in the future. Veterinary schools have traditionally aimed at producing the omnicompetent veterinarian at graduation. Many have questioned whether this is possible, and a recent European Commission (EC) funded market survey has confirmed that this is indeed an impossible task and has identified the requirements of society within the European Union (EU) for veterinary services in the future. There is however a need to change the current 1978 European Directive. The current mechanisms which have been used by EAEVE to evaluate over 100 veterinary schools in Europe and their relationship with other systems of appraisal are described. The future of veterinary education within the context of higher education in Europe as part of the Bologna process and in relation to standards of veterinary education worldwide are discussed. Whilst the merits of standardisation of educational quality so that there can be mutual recognition of qualifications are supported, the need to preserve the strengths associated with the diversity of approaches and teaching methods is strongly advocated.     

Knowledge,attitudes and management of bovine viral diarrhoea virus among eastern Australian cattle producers: results from a 2013 cross-sectional study

Bovine viral diarrhoea virus (BVDV) is an economically significant disease affecting the Australian cattle industry, with losses stemming from decreased production and reproductive performance and control costs. However, these losses can be difficult to appreciate, particularly in endemic regions. Overall, there is a variable but high herd-level seroprevalence in Australia. Despite a potentially high financial burden of the disease, the onus for control ultimately falls on producers and strategies employed will vary between regions. A cross-sectional study, using a postal survey, was conducted in 2013 to evaluate the BVDV knowledge, attitudes and management practices utilised by Australian cattle producers. A total of 192 producers participated in the study, and results indicate that knowledge and attitudes towards disease risk are variable and can be improved. Producer knowledge of how persistently infected (PI) animals are produced was higher than that of disease outcomes or transmission pathways. Implementation of biosecurity practices was limited, with approximately half of respondents employing quarantine procedures for introduced stock and only 2% indicating they would antigen test introduced stock for BVDV. Approximately a third (36%) of producers reported engaging in BVDV control, with the majority of these using vaccination strategies over deliberate exposure to a PI. Knowledge of and engagement with BVDV control was positively influenced by the producer relationships with veterinarians. Findings from this study suggest that building on education and delivering a consistent message among stakeholders would likely improve producer awareness and understanding in relation to BVDV and support decision making in BVDV management.     

Approaches to formulating practical breeding objectives for animal production systems

Abstract

This review paper provides an overview of the role of breeding objectives in livestock industries. The analyst developing a breeding objective must use the many and varied tools available in an appropriate theoretical context to quantify the benefits of alternative trait changes. The development in tools for deriving economic values has been from simple profit equations to detailed bio-economic models simulating the whole production system or industry. The importance of including the perspective of the stakeholders is also stressed. Stakeholder perspectives can be considered by using stated preference methods such as choice experiments. Also desired gain index or selection indices can be used in combination with profit equations or bio-economic models to adjust for undesirable genetic changes in breeding objective traits. This review shows that defining appropriate breeding objectives to account for the perspectives of different key stakeholders requires a multi-disciplinary approach.