The basis for the training approach . . . is non-formal education, itself a ‘learner-centred’ discovery process.  It seeks to empower people to solve ‘living problems actively by fostering participation, self-confidence, dialogue, joint decision making and self-determination.
. . . the ‘discovery learning’ by farmers on the basis of ‘agro-ecosystem analysis’, which uses their own field observation, is science informed.  The agro-ecosystem analysis methodology was developed carefully on the basis of the latest entomological knowledge.  Hence this participatory approach does not represent a violation of the ‘integrity of science’, but rather a new interactive way of deploying science.  (pp. 163-165)

Roling and van de Fliert in Facilitating Sustainable Agriculture  

The Key Principles of Farmer Field Schools  

1. What is relevant and meaningful is decided by the learner, and must be discovered by the learner.  Learning flourishes in a situation in which teaching is seen as a facilitating process that assists people to explore and discover the personal meaning of events for them.  

2. Learning is a consequence of experience.  People become responsible when they have assumed responsibility and experienced success.  

3. Co-operative approaches are enabling.  As people invest in collaborative group approaches, they develop a better sense of their own worth.  

4. Learning is an evolutionary process, and is characterised by free and open communication, confrontation, acceptance, respect and the right to make mistakes

5. Each person’s experience of reality is unique.  As they become more aware of how they learn and solve problems, they can refine and modify their own styles of learning and action.  

Jules N. Prettty, Regenerating Agriculture, p. 256  

The well proven reduction of insecticide use by FFS graduates, the stable or even increased yield, and the reduced risk for farmers following the IPM principles imply that farmers are directly profiting from the programme.   Over and above, FFS’s have two main results:  Farmers regain the competence to make rationally based decisions concerning the management of their crops (in contrast to the instructions which were part and parcel of the Green Revolution packages).  Secondly the participants gain social competence and confidence to speak and argue in the public.

Peter Schmidt, Jan Stiefel, Maja Hurlimann,

Extension of Complex Issues, p. 19