Conducting Educational Needs Assessments

1 Introduction to Needs Assessment.- The Current Practice of Needs Assessment.- Current Needs Assessment Literature.- Problems in the Practice and Theory of Needs Assessment.- Definition of Need.- The Needs Assessment Process.- A Checklist for Designing and Evaluating Needs Assessments.- Summary.- 2 Preparation.- Identifying the Client, Other Audiences, and the Target Population.- Purposes of the Needs Assessment.- Determining Information Needs.- Identifying the Agency or Person that Will Conduct the Assessment.- Needs Assessment Planning: An Example.- Developing the Basic Design.- Converting the Design into a Management Plan.- Institutional Support.- Reaching and Formalizing Agreements to Govern the Assessment.- The Example Revisited.- Appendix 2A: Needs Assessment Planning Chart.- Appendix 2B: Planning Budget.- Appendix 2C: Summary Budget.- Appendix 2D: Memorandum of Agreement Between the School Board and Learning Disabilities Council.- Appendix 2E: Grant Letter.- 3 Information Gathering.- Definition.- Designing and Operationalizing the Information Collection Plan.- Planning Information Collection.- Conducting Observation Procedures.- 4 Analysis.- Preliminary Analysis.- Needs and Strengths Analysis.- Treatments Analysis.- Summary.- 5 Reporting Needs Assessment Information.- General Guidelines.- Reporting Criteria.- Preparing a Reporting Plan.- Functional Elements in Reporting.- Reporting Examples.- Charts, Graphs, and Tables.- Summary.- 6 Evaluating the Needs Assessment.- Why Evaluate a Needs Assessment?.- Standards of a Good Needs Assessment.- Evaluation Questions.- Types of Evaluation.- Summary.- Appendix 6A: Questions for Evaluating a Needs Assessment.- Appendix 6B: Checklist for Judging the Adequacy of an Evaluation Design.- Appendix A: Establishing Validity and Reliability in Instrumentation.- Appendix B: Techniques for Analyzing Needs Assessment Information.