Technological Advancement and Trend

The NMC Technology Outlook for Cooperative Extension 2016-2021 was produced to explore emerging technologies and forecast their potential impact expressly in Cooperative Extension programs. In the effort that took place from April through July 2016, an esteemed panel of experts was asked to consider hundreds of relevant articles, blog posts, research, and project examples as part of the preparation that ultimately pinpointed the most notable emerging technology topics, trends, and challenges for Cooperative Extension programs over the next five years. Known as the 2016 Horizon Project Cooperative Extension Expert Panel, that group of thought leaders consists of knowledgeable individuals, all highly regarded in their fields. Collectively the panel represents a range of diverse perspectives across the Cooperative Extension sector. The project has been conducted under an open data philosophy, and all the interim projects, secondary research, discussions, and ranking instrumentation can be viewed at extension.wiki.nmc.org. The precise research methodology employed in producing the report is detailed in a special section found at the end of this report. The expert panel identified 9 key trends, 9 significant challenges, and 12 important developments in educational technology. The 12 developments in technology are profiled, each on a single page that describes and defines a technology ranked as very important for Cooperative Extension programs over the next year, two to three years, or four to five years. Every page opens with a carefully crafted definition of the highlighted technology, outlines its educational relevance, points to several real-life examples of its current use, and ends with a short list of additional readings for those who wish to learn more. Preceding those discussions are sections that detail the expert panel’s top ranked trends and challenges, and frame them into categories that illuminate why they are seen as highly influential factors in the adoption of technology in Cooperative Extension programs over the next five years. The three key sections of this report constitute a reference and straightforward technology planning guide for Cooperative Extension directors and administrators, educators, agents, faculty, staff, campus leaders, policymakers, and technologists. It is our hope that this research will help to inform the choices that institutions are making about technology to improve, support, or extend teaching, learning, and creative inquiry in Cooperative Extension programs. Educators and administrators worldwide look to the NMC Horizon Project and both its global and regional reports as key strategic technology planning references, and it is for that purpose that the NMC Technology Outlook for Cooperative Extension 2016-2021 is presented.