Note: This is part of a Research Update series that highlights projects funded by the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s (CDFA) Fertilizer Research and Education Program (FREP) annual grant program.
Project Title: Next Generation N Management Training for Certified Crop Advisors
Project Leaders: Sat Darshan Khalsa, Professional Researcher, UC Davis; Erik Porse, Director, California Institute for Water Resources; Marina Vergara, Research Assistant, UC Davis; Amanda Crump, Associate Professor, UC Davis
Project Status: Completed
Project Location: The Nitrogen Management Training is currently available online in two formats:
- Open access to the modules on the CDFA FREP website
- Periodic access to a fee-based, facilitated course through the Western Region Certified Crop Advisors (WRCCA), which offers virtual office hours and discussion opportunities, as well as the option to receive CCA Continuing Education Units (CEUs).
Overview:
This FREP grant funded the development of a Certified Crop Advisor (CCA) California Nitrogen Management Specialty (CA-NSp) training program and exam. The goal of the project was to create an online course that would support present and future generations of CCAs interested in providing nitrogen (N) management planning services, including certifying Irrigation and Nitrogen Management Plans (INMPs) for their clients. The asynchronous course has eight N and irrigation-focused modules designed to provide up-to-date, science-based information that can prepare individuals to pass the CA-NSp specialty exam and receive 10 Continuing Education Units (CEUs) to maintain their CCA license.
Project Highlights:
- Developed a comprehensive online training course and a competency-based certification exam to assess knowledge and application of N management strategies.
- Covered key competency areas in N management, including:
- Environmental impacts of N loss
- Soil N cycling
- Plant N uptake
- N sources
- N budgeting
- Irrigation and N management
- Annual and permanent crops
- Barriers to adoption
- Engaged over 200 participants in the course, including 130 CCAs and over 70 additional agricultural professionals, UC advisors, and students.
Background:
CCAs provide key technical assistance to growers in nutrient and irrigation management. Currently, the Central Valley and Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Boards require growers located in high vulnerability areas to have their INMPs certified by a professional trained in irrigation and nutrient management practices. In the past, CCAs could qualify to certify these plans by attending a CDFA-organized N Management Plan certification training. Between 2014 and 2020, CDFA FREP partnered with the California Institute of Water Resources (CIWR) and UC Cooperative Extension to develop in-person trainings and short courses for CCAs focused on improving N and irrigation management for the crops and growing conditions in California.
At the time this project was proposed, there was growing recognition by the project partners, WRCCA, and industry stakeholders that there was a need for online training that could equip CCAs working in California with the scientific information necessary to provide nitrogen management recommendations to their clients. By developing the exam and CA-NSp certification in tandem with the course, an official pathway recognized by CDFA and the Regional Waterboards could be established for CCAs interested in gaining the specialized knowledge to develop and certify INMP worksheets for growers.
You can find a review of INMP reporting requirements for CCAs and growers in this Progressive Crop Consultant magazine article.
In March 2020, project organizers hold an in-person training in Fresno, including lectures, discussions and breakout sessions covering annual and permanent crops.
Approach:
This project consisted of four distinct phases:
- Delivering in-person CCA workshop: In March 2020, the project hosted a two-day CCA N Certification Training workshop in Fresno, CA, attended by 65 CCAs. This interactive format allowed the project team to refine and adapt the curriculum for the online course.
- Developing learning objectives and curriculum for an online course: In early 2020, the researchers completed the study curriculum for the course. This included 1) Consolidating existing training modules and study materials; 2) Drafting the exam question categories and outlining levels of difficulty; and 3) Organizing workshop slides to be developed into video content.
- Creating an online course and incorporating feedback: Starting in 2020, the project leaders developed, implemented, and expanded the online training program based on the learning objectives and competency areas that had been established. The project recruited content experts to record a total of 20 concise PowerPoint presentations with voice-over video lectures lasting 10 to 15 minutes to support learner engagement and retention. In 2021, the curriculum was expanded to include a ‘Barriers to Adoption’ module. In addition to video lectures, each module included reflective prompts designed to help participants critically engage with the material and connect new knowledge with their existing understanding.
- Deploying specialty exam: The final version of the CCA CA-NSp exam, which consisted of more than 60 questions, launched in October 2021. The exam was developed by a team of subject matter experts and validated using psychometric analysis.
Project Results and Discussion:
The online course officially launched in October 2020 for the 2021 testing season, with continuous enrollment over multiple years. Enrollment trends over time reflected strong early engagement, with 78 students enrolling in 2021, 64 in 2022, 39 students in 2023 and 20 in 2024.
Over the course of the project, more than 200 individuals, including 130 CCAs and over 70 additional participants, enrolled in the online courses. During that time, 138 CCAs took the exam, with 116 achieving certification, resulting in an 84% pass rate (Table 1).
Table 1. Enrollment in the online CCA N Training Course from 2021 to 2024, including the total number of students, the number of CCAs, and the percentage of enrollees who were CCAs. While the course was designed for CCAs, enrollment data indicate that a significant number of additional participants engaged with the course, broadening its impact.
To evaluate the effectiveness of the online course, the researchers conducted a qualitative analysis of the reflective responses collected from five iterations of the online course. Preliminary findings suggest that most learners were highly satisfied with the course and reporting increased confidence in N management principles. The course also included a quantitative self-assessment, where students ranked their pre-course and post-course knowledge levels across each module topic, which was done to measure learning gains across the entire course (Figure 1). Overall, students reported a gain in knowledge scores between 20-30%. This evidence suggests that the online course delivers valuable knowledge gains for the targeted population.
Figure 1. Results of online course self-assessments, where students ranked their pre-course (initial) and post-course (final) knowledge levels of each module topic, demonstrate valuable knowledge gains.
Impact and Future of the N Management Training Course:
This project successfully expanded knowledge and training opportunities for CCAs, industry professionals, and students; strengthened industry compliance with N management regulations; and developed a sustainable certification process through the American Society of Agronomy (ASA).
To maintain flexibility for the wide audience interested in accessing the N Management Training, two options are currently available:
- For certified CCAs interested in preparing for the CA-NSp exam and/or obtaining CEUs, the WRCCA periodically administers a fee-based, facilitated online N Management Training course. This includes additional interactive discussions, question and answer opportunities, and enables participants to claim CCA CEUs for participation.
- For anyone interested in watching, the modules can be accessed individually at no cost on the CDFA FREP website or on the CDFA YouTube playlist: Nitrogen Management Training for Certified Crop Advisors.
Upon completion of the training course, CCAs interested in obtaining the CA N Management certification must take and pass the CA-NSp exam. More information on exam registration and CEU requirements to maintain the license are available on the ASA’s CCA exam registration webpage.
To learn more about this project and other current and completed FREP projects please visit: https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/is/ffldrs/frep/Research.html.