Needs Assessment
- 1. by Leila Zaim-2018 Needs Assessment :Obtaining N.A Approval - Collecting Data
- 2. What is A NEEDS ASSESMENT ? • A needs assessment is a systematic process for determining and addressing Gaps between current conditions and desired conditions . • An educational needs assessment can be defined as the gap between what is known and what should be known. / continuous improvement. • Its About Where you are and where you want to be. • A needs assessment is a strategic planning tool for any learning activity.
- 3. WHY is NEEDS ASSESMENT NECESSARY ? • To learn about problems and issues facing our educational system , in order to design effective educational programs . A continuous improvement tool. • It Allows educators to make informed decisions about needs/Gaps in the educational system. • Extends the reach and impact of educational programs. • By knowing the learners’ needs, we can integrate knowledge, skills, and behavior to over come gaps that & improve performance
- 4. Two Goals of the needs Assessment 1. What does the audience already know and think ? What are the educational products and services needed ? 2. What can we do to make our educational products more accessible acceptable and useful?
- 5. A successfully performed Needs Assessment provides the following : • Impact : how education and training can impact your audience . Example : class room management work shops for teachers which impact the classroom positively . Less disruptive – better learning environment • Approaches : Knowledge about educational approaches that may be effective . Example Project Based Learning (PBL) students engage in explorations of real- world problems and challenges. Teaches content and problem solving . • Awareness : of existing programs and of present gaps. Example: ineffective safety procedures . • Outcomes: information about the current situation , used to document outcomes.- credible data • Demand: Knowledge about the potential demand for future programs and products- safety ED programs for childhood protection. • Credibility: That the program is serving the target.
- 6. Two Types Of Assessment • Direct Needs Assessment : • Accomplished through formal research that gathers data from clients. • quantitative in terms of probability and confidence. • Pros Results in data that is more specific in needs of individuals • Cons requires more resources to design , conduct , and implement • Requires institutional approval to conduct • Should be conducted periodically . • Indirect Needs Assessment : can be conducted any time during meetings . • asks advisors for their opinion about priority needs • Doesn't not require the same planning time, design, implementation , analysis. • But still must follow credible procedures and must be carefully documented • It may uses secondary data ( data collected for previous research)
- 7. Nine steps of Needs Assessment 1. Decide to plan using data from needs assessment. 2. Choose the needs assessment and planning scope 3. Identify Needs assessment and planning team. 4. Obtain needs assessment planning partner’s participation . 5. Obtain Acceptance of the Needs Assessment Frame of Reference: The Linkages among Mega-Macro- and Micro • Obtain institutional Approval before conducting needs assessment . • secondary data ( data that already exists ) doesn’t require an institutional approval
- 8. 6. Collect data 7. List Identified documents and agreed upon Needs . 8. Place Needs in Priority Order 9. List problems ( selected Needs that need to be resolved)
- 9. Step 3. Establishing a Needs Assessment Planning partners • The members of the planning team will depend on the level , on the purpose and on the Scope at which the assessment is being conducted. Mega, Macro, Micro • Establish a team leader who pulls the larger team together and directs the needs assessment process.
- 10. Make sure the team is consists of individuals who have a variety of skills or knowledge-can actively contribute to one or more aspects of the needs assessment process, such as : 1. ability to request and obtain data and resources 2. ability to analyze and synthesize / produce the data, or access to a team of people who can assist with this 3. ability to prepare a report and develop action items 4. ability to act on the results once the action items are identified 5. ability to represent a unique perspective (e.g. teachers, parents, students) of all impacted groups
- 11. Ensure a cross section of individuals / representative sample of a larger group • Individuals who work in the system and who will be involved in implementing changes based on the results, such as administrators, principals, teachers, transition coordinators, security and/or other staff • Individuals who benefit from or are impacted by the services, parents or family representatives, students, community members, and other stakeholders • Consider developing a permanent (rather than 1-time) needs assessment team who can revisit the resulting plan and priorities, and identify new needs as they arise on an ongoing basis.
- 12. Step 5. Obtain Acceptance of the Needs Assessment • It is essential to obtain approval for direct needs assessment research. • Share with partners the scope :3 needs planning levels Mega , Macro , Micro. • Get their commitment to the level Ideally Mega level Critical to obtain common frame of reference /point of view . Spend enough to obtain their understanding and commitment . Have common understanding & expectations
- 13. Institutional Approval • Institutional approval required : for any direct human research . • Approval before Conducting NA research. • Some institutions have IRB Institutional Review Board .That reviews human research to ensure compliance with policies and regulations. • Some time you must submit a study plan and proposes instrument- online courses usually 6 weeks for approval Exempt from Regulations for the protection human subjects Qualified for the review of IRB
- 14. Institutional Approval not required: • Indirect research using secondary data ( data obtained for other research ) • Meetings and committees asking for ideas form experts & advisory committees. ( this is not research activities )
- 15. Step 6. Collecting Data Soft /Hard Data • Hard Data: is a verifiable fact that is acquired from reliable sources . • Data that is Quantitative built to understand the question of “what” or “how much” • Measurable, factual and indisputable. • Can be obtained from organizational records, drop out rates . public records , absences ,complaints etc…. • Can include multiple choice/ structured surveys , questionnaires answer What ? How much
- 17. Soft Data • Data that has been collected from qualitative observations and quantified. • This doesn't mean that such data is unreliable. Considered the best data when supported by hard data( performance results) • Example: questionnaires interviews, meetings Surveys Note : should choose both ,Make sure that both types of Data agree. Consider how much time does each method take Needs Assessment Techniques
- 20. Focus Groups • Group discussions conducted in person with limited number of stake holders to gain information about their views and experiences. • It is not a primary tool for needs assessment . • Pros: • highly useful- gathered details as follow up to survey. • Inexpensive • Socially oriented inspire : Synergism( people responding in natural situations) • High validity: credible questions easily understood . • Cons: time consuming . Note :Secondary Data : is data that was originally collected for other research purposes.
- 21. Data that should be collected • Baseline information – what recognition activities are currently taking place in the school ? What have the employee surveys told us? What does the general research and literature say? • Employee needs – what type of recognition is most meaningful to employees? In what way do • employees prefer to be recognized? Who do employees prefer to receive recognition from? Do • they prefer public or private praise? • Department/division business needs - What types of behaviors do managers want to promote to • meet business objectives? What are the corporate values? What are the department’s/division’s • top priorities? If client service is the #1 priority, then tailor recognition activities to support that • priority. ‘ • Organizational culture – assess the climate or culture of your department, division or unit. Low • morale? High turnover? What are the demographics of your employees? Work-life balance? • What are the underlying issues that affect satisfaction and feeling valued? Employee survey • results may shed some light on this subject.
- 22. Needs Assessment Questionnaire. • Some times it is useful to develop a needs assessment questionnaire using the following guide lines 1. Make sure the questions are about results , not about processes or inputs . 2. Ask about perceptions of gaps in . What is and what should be . 3. Ask questions about the three levels of needs : Mega : external contributions. Macro : Organizational Contributions. Micro: building block- internal and operational results 4. Have evidence of appropriate validity and reliability of questions and samples 5. Make sure questionnaire long enough to get reliable responses , but short enough that people will respond.
- 23. • SWOT stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. It is sometimes referred as SLOT analysis with liabilities coming in place of weaknesses. • In a business or a company, GAP analysis compares the actual performance with the potential performance. • it helps to identify if a company is performing to its potential and if not performing, why? And what are the gaps . ?flaws in resource allocation, planning, production etc.
- 24. • SWOT analysis evaluates a company against its peers, while GAP analysis is an internal evaluation to identify performance deficiencies. • SWOT analysis is done for long-term planning while GAP analysis is often done to reach short term goals. • SWOT analysis is often a comprehensive study evaluating many aspects and many competitors. GAP analysis can be very simple targeted towards fine-tuning one process. Thank you