There are two Feeder (support) courses

• Integrated Agriculture – focuses on knowledge and skills in a range of farming/ horticulture/ animal husbandry systems that are cost effective, sustainable and income-generating.

• Health & Nutrition – focuses on acquiring knowledge and skills of food and nutrition principles, and its application to health, to encourage and advocate healthy choices and practices in the community.
 

I. Integrated Agriculture

This course focuses on knowledge and skills in a range of farming/ horticulture/animal husbandry systems that are cost effective, sustainable and income-generating. The course integrates a number of fields in agriculture studies.

Its aim is to provide students with an understanding of the general scope of agriculture needed for a sustainable supply of resources in their community and the ability to demonstrate basic practical knowledge of crop and livestock production systems. The course work and assessment tasks are designed to help you achieve the objectives of the course.

Learning outcomes:

Students are expected to achieve the following learning outcomes for this course. They reflect key knowledge and skills that students should acquire.

• Select an ideal garden site and prepare the plots to the right texture.

• Select crops that are adaptable to local climatic condition and those that are available locally.

• Describe the relationship between agricultural activities and climate change.

• Communicate about strategies to reduce adverse impacts of climate change on agriculture with other learners, family members and the local community.

• Demonstrate how to raise seedlings.

• Demonstrate seed saving techniques and how seeds can be stored for later use.

• Cultivate at least three vegetable crops (choice of crops is to include one transplanted, one directly planted and one trellised).

• Manage crops well, which may include weeding, watering, fertilising and using aromatic plants to control vegetable pests.

• Demonstrate correct harvesting procedures and post-harvest management skills.

• Produce a garden report that shows farming activities carried out from planting to harvesting.

• Demonstrate proper and safe use of farming tools and equipment.

• Manage broiler birds from brooding to market stage.

• Manage pigs from birth to market stage.

• Manage tilapia from fingerling to market stage.

• Calculate FCR (food conversion ratio) of broiler.

• Calculate profit/loss margins of either broiler or tilapia project.

• Propagate plants using the grafting and marcotting methods.

• Prepare potting mixes for flower and fruit plants.

II. Health and Nutrition

This course is designed to equip you as community workers with knowledge and skills of food and nutrition principles and their application to health, in order to encourage and advocate healthy nutritional choices and practices in the community.

After studying this course, we hope that you will be able to:

1. demonstrate an understanding of the principles of healthy eating in order to plan healthy meals;
2. appreciate the importance of maintaining a healthy weight in order to help others become more familiar with the risks related to overweight;
3. explore the changing food choices and lifestyles of Pacific Island communities in order to understand the negative health impacts of these changes;
4.  recognise the relationship between food security and health in order to use knowledge and skills to secure food for the household and community;
5. use local foods to provide healthy meals for family members with special nutritional needs;
6. understand food safety standards in order to plan and process new products using local foods successfully;
7. advocate suitable health intervention projects aimed at improving community health and wellness.