1. Ways of doing Needs Assessment

2. Remembering needs analysis
What is needs analysis?
Finding out what learners know and can do and what they need to learn and do
Types of info to gather for NA?
Objective
Subjective
Present situation
Future expectations

3. Objective needs Subjective needs Factual info
Cognitive and affective needs

4. Info about present situation
Who the learners are
Learners’ level of language proficiency
Learners’ level of intercultural competence
Interests
Learning preferences
Attitudes

5. Info about future expectations
Learners’ goals and expectations
Target context
Types of communicative skills they need and tasks they will perform
Language modalities they will use

6. Look at p. 107 for a sample needs assessment plan

7. Scenario
You are asked to teach a group of adult learners who want to improve their speaking skills in English. The group involves people from various occupations: doctors, engineers, businessmen, etc.
What types of information would you like to gather for this group? Why?
Make an initial needs assessment plan.

8. WAYS OF COLLECTING INFO
There are various ways of doing needs assessment:
The data collected once
Ongoing teaching activities
It is important to decide which one to use and how to use it!

9. NA Activities Used Once or on a Regular Basis
1. Questionnaires
They are an obvious choice but not the most effective.
Look at p. 115 in your course-book for a sample questionnaire
Advantage:
Questions can be tailored according to a particular group
Disadvantages:
Teachers might exaggerate
Students might not be sure about the right answer
Students’ language might not be enough to understand.
(e.g. if they haven’t experienced ‘role play’ before, they cannot answer; thus, questionnaires about ways of learning should be given after they experience different ways)

10. Can be in different forms
2. Interviews
Can be in different forms
Teacher interviewing students
Students interviewing each other
Students interviewing the teacher
Look at p. 116 for a sample

11. 3. Grids, Charts, Lists
Gathering info (either from student interviews other forms) and filling in a class grid or chart using this info.
Can be about students’ background, interests, professions, target needs, learning preferences

12. Can serve a variety of purposes:
4. Writing Activities
Can serve a variety of purposes:
Assess proficiency
Diagnose strengths and weaknesses
Gather info about students objective and subjective needs

13. A way for the group to address some of the areas related to needs.
5. Groups Discussions
A way for the group to address some of the areas related to needs.
Advantage:
Allow students to hear different points of views
Allow teachers to watch how individual students participate
Disadvantage:
There may be some reluctant students who don’t want to be heard

14. 6. Ranking activities
Students can be asked to list some points (e.g. where and for what purpose they use English outside of the classroom) and to rank them from the most important to the least important

15. Ongoing Needs Assessment Activities
A) It follows the basic needs assessment cycle:
Gather info (where are the learners?; Where do they need to be?)
Interpret the info
Act on it
Evaluate it
B) Through careful observation as learners learn
Ongoing NA helps teacher make adjustments.

16. Ways of Ongoing NA 1. Regular feedback sessions
See p. 119 for a sample
Students have a chance to reflect on the class: what has been productive and what hasn’t.
The point to keep in mind!
The focus of feedback is not the teacher’s performance but the learning itself.

17. Writing regularly in a journal and the teacher responds to them
2. Dialogue Journals
Writing regularly in a journal and the teacher responds to them
3. Learning logs and diaries
See p. 120 for a sample
Are kept by the students and they include topics such as:
What they are learning
Where they feel they are making progress
What they plan to do to continue making progress

18. 4. Portfolios
Collections of student works to show progress and achievement.
5. Participatory processes
Active participation of all members

19. Summary We should consider the following points while designing a NA
Kind of information: no need to assess everything; just consider the most important information you can handle and the one(s) that will help you design/modify your course.
Types of activities: see whether they are appropriate for your students; try to use activities you are already familiar with. When you first conduct a NA you may not get all the info you need but you can modify it the next time.
The time of conducting the activities: don’t do too many at one time! Don’t overwhelm your students with your need to find out about their needs!!

20. In-class task
Let’s remember the scenario from our last class

21. Scenario
You are asked to teach a group of adult learners who want to improve their speaking skills in English. The group involves people from various occupations: doctors, engineers, businessmen, etc.
What types of information would you like to gather for this group? Why?

22. Work in pairs/groups and make a needs assessment plan: (see p. 107)
A) decide what type of info you would like to collect for that group (refer to the typology of needs analysis and select one from each box)
B) decide how you would like to collect your data (instruments)