Needs, Interest and objectives

1. Objectives
According to Kelsey and Hearn (1949), objectives are expression of the ends towards which efforts
are directed. However, some educated use the terms objective, aim and purpose synonymously.
Leagans (1961) says that in reality it is not very important that we distinguish between these terms
so long as we understand what is meant by them. It is generally agreed that objectives means a
direction of movement , for example , in which direction do you wish to go in the given area with
respect to the dairy enterprise towards greater number of dairy cattle ,larger herds , fewer dairy
cattle , better quality of cattle or some other possible direction.
Morris (1937) speaks of aims has being a very generalize and broad statement of direction
which life on the farm should be taking with respect to given activities. For example improvement of
the farmers economic welfare may be thought of as an aim. This may have some more specific
objective such as better feeding practices, larger size of herds, and improvement of soil fertility.
Some extension workers like to make a distinction between the meaning of objective and goals. if
objectives are define as direction of movement , than a goal may be as the distance in any given
direction one expect to go during a given period of time. For example an objective in a block
extension programme may be to raise the average wheat yield from 40 quintal to 50 quintals per
hectare. The goal then for the current year may be to raise the wheat yield by 5 quintals per hectare.
In summary, we can say that objectives as they are develop from an analysis of the situation
range from the general to the specific. The general ones may be termed aim . Thus the term is
generally used in the broad sense and usually includes several objectives in it. A goal is a small part
of and objective. it designates the distance to be travel during a given period.
An extension worker, working with rural people, often deals with working objective. The working
of clear cut objectives is a skill in itself. It requires care in the use of words, avoiding incoherent and
vague statements.
It is important to harmonize what rural people feel they need and what proffesinal
extension workers think the people ought to have. It is not safe to let either group dominate the
setting of objectives. What people want may not be what they need most. What professional
workers think people need may not be what the latter want.
The gap between the situation and objective is the area of needs. This area becomes well
defined after the situations and the objectives are determined by the leaders, extension workers and
specialists.
1. What do you understand by need and Interest?
Need is what one desires. It is lack of something. Need is the difference between what is
and what ought to be.
Interest may be defined as a desire on the part of an individual to learn, study or gain more
information and skill about some field or subject matter that he thinks of value to him.

2. What are some of the characters of needs?

a. Expressed in terms of behaviour in a particular direction.
b. Periodical or sporadic. At times they are very active and actually felt. At other times not so
active. Often dormant.
c. Often interrelated. They seldom operate singly. Usually expressed in groups.
d. Needs often conflict with one another, and this sets up priorities.eg.drowning man forgets
all other needs except the need for air.
3. Kinds of needs: peoples needs usually can be classified into two categories.
(i)
Felt or recognised need (ii) unfelt or unrecognised needs
4. Why should extension worker s take into consideration the felt needs of the people among
whom they are going to work? Why should their programme of work be determined by the
felt needs of the people?
Legislature and planning at the administrative level are not sufficient. The programme has to
arise from the felt needs of the people if is really meaningful for them. One of the important
jobs of the extension worker is to make unfelt needs felt by the villages. It should be
recognised that in a free society all needs must become felt before they serve as motivating
forces.
Research in adult education indicates that adults often or not aware of their most. Important needs
to the extent that this is true, adults have needs that are unfelt. Significant of whish people are not
conscious most be ferreted out in ordered to have to advance towards more desirable condition.
One of the problems in rural programming, therefore, is to help people identify important needs
they do not recognise. Thus it is not enough to base programmes entirely on what people feel their
needs are, because these often may not represent some of their most important needs. Leaders of
programmes must dig deep and identify needs people have, which they do not recognise, then plan
educational effort to convert these into felt needs. Without this, rural development programmes will
be less significant and may tend to focus on the everyday short term interests of people rather than
on their more basic long-time needs. (A.S. Sandhu, 2000)
According to A.A. Reddy, 2006, Peoples needs are the basis for developing meaningful
programmes. Lea gens (1961) defined peoples needs as the difference between what is , what could
be , and what ought to be. What is the indicates the present state of affairs, and may be determined
by the study of existing situation .this involves collection of facts about the people, their attitudes,
knowledge, level of living etc. Physical factors like soil, crops, livestock levels of production and the
like.
From a psychological standpoint, needs may be classified into two categories. One is, felt need or
consciously recognised need i.e. the need of which people is aware of. The other one is unfelt need
or unrecognised need i.e. need of which the people are not aware of at present. People may
however be made aware of unfelt need i.e. unfelt need may be brought to the level of felt need,
through appropriate motivational techniques.
Even if the people have a felt need i.e. aware of a need, they may or may not act on it. In many cases
the people are to be motivated to act on their felt need. For example, in an area where every year
there is inundation which causes damage to crops and sufferings to the people; people are aware of
the problem, but they may not act on it. It may require motivation of the people by the extension

agent and mobilization of resources and funds, before the people come forward to dig out a
drainage channel and solve the problem permanently. This is a case where the felt need has been
developed to social action for converting an undesirable situation to a desirable one.
It may be mentioned here that many of our basic social needs like need for better health ,
better education , need for energy etc.. remain in the masses as unfelt needs , which must be
brought to the level of felt needs , before we can expect the people to act on them .people have to
recognise the gap between the actual and the desirable , and place value of attaining the desirable ,
before they will be motivated to change in the desirable directions .
A gap of some magnitude nearly always exists between the existing and the
desirable condition. Recognition of this fact gives rise to programmes for promoting have been
carried out, gaps usually will still be present between the anticipated and the attained. Each change
in behaviour of people in a desirable direction constitutes progress towards a goal which in turn
brings other goals into focus that lie further towards the ultimate condition desired for the people.
The essence of progress is found in this process (cited in Reddy, 2006)

2. Interests
The extension worker needs to be alert to the interests of the people for it is largely through
ones interests that a persons accomplishments in life are determined. As a rule people learn those
things that lead towards the attainment of their goals or their wants. For this reason, knowledge of
interests is important to the educator. What a person wants has an influence upon his learning. If
interest in an existing need is not present, it is the job of the extension educator to create such
interest.
The following may be said of interests:
-

People who are interested in certain problems or needs will acquire more information about
them.
People tend to expose themselves to information which is congenial to the interests they
already hold.
Interests usually represent the objectives of the individual.
Interest is the most important phase of motivation.
Interest gives the learner satisfaction when met.
Present interest provides a starting point in the learning process.
Interest tents to control the distribution of extension education.
These statements serve as useful criteria to the Extension Worker in guiding people
in the process of programme building.
Effective programme building is dependent on accurate determination of the needs and
interest of people. Extension workers need to have an understanding of the nature of needs
and interests to developed more effective programmes.

Collection of Relevant Facts: - In extension programme planning, an accurate determination of

a situation is dependent on data that includes several kinds of information. The people themselves
are the first important source of information. From them can be obtained their:
-

Interests
Opinions regarding needs
Attitudes
Knowledge of conditions affection the problem
Possible solutions
Actual practices and

Their goals.
Physical situation:- the physical situation provides the second source of information regarding
economic and social factors affecting the problems under consideration. Knowledge of the physical
situation should include information about:

Land
Crops
Livestock
Type and size of farms
Farm and home practices being followed
Community facility.

3. Needs of Programme planning

Peoples needs are the basis for developing meaningful programmes. Leagens (1961)
defined peoples needs as the difference between what is , what could be , and what ought
to be. What is the indicates the present state of affairs , and may be determined by the
study of existing situation .this involves collection of facts about the people , their attitudes ,
knowledge ,level of living etc. Physical factors like soil , crops, livestock levels of production
and the like.
From a psychological standpoint , needs may be classified into two categories . one is , felt
need or consciously recognised need i.e.the need of which people are aware of . the other
one is unfelt need or unrecognised need i.e. need of which the people are not aware of at
present. People may however be made aware of unfelt need i.e. unfelt need may be brought
to the level of felt need, through appropriate motivational techniques.
Even if the people have a felt need i.e. aware of a need , they may or may not act on it. In
many cases the people are to be motivated to act on their felt need. For example , in an area
where every year there is inundation which causes damage to crops and sufferings to the
people ;people are aware of the problem ,but they may not act on it. It may require
motivation of the people by the extension agent and mobilization of resources and funds
,before the people come forward to dig out a drainage channel and solve the problem
permanently. This is a case where the felt need has been developed to social action for
converting an undesirable situation to a desirable one.

It may be mentioned here that many of our basic social needs like need for better
health, better education, need for energy etc.. remain in the masses as unfelt needs , which
must be brought to the level of felt needs , before we can expect the people to act on them
.people have to recognise the gap between the actual and the desirable , and place value of
attaining the desirable , before they will be motivated to change in the desirable directions .
A gap of some magnitude nearly always exists between the existing and the
desirable condition. Recognition of this fact gives rise to programmes for promoting have
been carried out, gaps usually will still be present between the anticipated and the attained.
Each change in behaviour of people in a desirable direction constitutes progress towards a
goal which in turn brings other goals into focus that lie further towards the ultimate
condition desired for the people. The essence of progress is found in this process (Leagan
1961)

4. Information about Existing Treatment Resources

Drug court planners need to know about the treatment resources (including detoxification
facilities) that currently exist in the community, the services that are provided to specific
types of clients, and the gaps that exist in provision of services. Planning committee members
familiar with the community's treatment system can help with this inventory, as can the office
of the State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Director. Both public and private providers should be
included in information-gathering efforts, and the inventory should cover ancillary services
that, even though they may not be provided directly by a substance abuse treatment
professional, are important for addressing client needs.
Substance abuse treatment clients are likely to have needs and deficits in one or more of the
following areas:

Education
Literacy skills
Life skills (such as parenting)
Physical and mental health
Housing
Vocational training
Employment
Child care
Specific cultural/gender needs
Conclusions
Although subjective and objective assessments of preadolescent orthodontic
treatment need are rather consistent, the percentage of actual treatment
recommendations exceeded both the subjective and objective assessments of
treatment need. Preadolescent self-assessments and desire for braces were
significantly correlated, and also correlated with the treatment recommendations
and the objective and subjective components of the index of orthodontic
treatment need score.