1. Needs Analysis Instructor: Dr. Mavis Shang
Presenter: Sophia Yar-ling Tsai
27 March 2008
I-Shou University, Taiwan

2. Introduction What are ‘Needs’?
Wants, desires, demands, expectation, motivations,
lacks, constraints, and requirements (Brindley 1984)
What is ‘Needs Analysis’?
Procedures for collecting information about learners’
needs.
When did ‘Needs Analysis’ emerge?
In the 1960s
ESP movement

3. The purpose of needs analysis
1. To find out what language skills a learner needs
2. To help determine if an existing course adequately addresses the needs of potential students
3. To determine which students are most in need of training in particular language skills

4. The purpose of needs analysis
4. To identify a change of direction that people in a reference group feel is important
5. To identify a gap between what students are able to do and what they need to be able to do
6. To collect information about a particular problem learners are experiencing

5. The purpose of needs analysis
‘Needs’ also includes students’ rights
‘It’s school’s responsibility to take into account the cultural,
political, and personal characteristics of students …. in order to plan
activities and objectives that are realistic and purposeful.’ (Linse, 1993)
Needs also includes perceived and present needs,
potential and unrecognized needs
Needs analysis may take place
1. prior to
2. during
3. after a language program

6. Examples of needs analyses conducted prior to a language program
Method:
Staff questionnaire:
* background information about the course the lecturer was
describing
* overview of problems experienced by ESL students
* linguistic demands of the course
* suggestions to which language skills should be focuses on
* modifications made in teaching or in examinations
Students questionnaire

7. The users of needs analysis
Big-scale needs analysis
curriculum officers in the ministry of education
Teachers
Learners
Writers
Testing personnel
Staff of tertiary institutions
Small-scale needs analysis
Teacher
Program coordinator

8. The target population Language learners or potential language learners
Policy makers
Ministry of education officials
Teachers
Academics
Employers
Vocational training specialists
Parents
Influential individuals and pressure groups
Academic specialists
Community agencies

9. The target population Subcategories of respondents
students currently enrolled in a foreign language course
students previously enrolled but no longer studying a language
students who have never studied a foreign language
An important issue in determining the target population: Sampling
Sampling involves asking a portion of potential population instead of the total population

10. Administering the needs analysis
Who will administer the needs analysis?
Who will collect and analyze the results?
* academic or research assistant
* colleagues in different department
* students who piloted the questionnaire
* academic staff of the university
* secretarial support

11. Procedures for conducting needs analysis
Questionnaires
Self-ratings
Interviews
Meetings
Observation
Collecting learner language samples
Task analysis
Case studies
Analysis of available information

12. Design of Questionnaires
The following questions need to be considered:
Preliminary questions
The types of information asked for
How the questions are worded
The type of items in the questionnaire:
open questions, closed questions, checklist, rating scale, ranking, inventory

13. A disadvantage of Questionnaires
The information obtained may be fairly superficial or imprecise.
The information will often need follow-up to gain a fuller understanding.
* Advice: to familiar with the principles of
good questionnaire design.

14. Self-ratings
Self-ratings might be included as part of a questionnaire.
Disadvantage:
It provides only impressionistic information.

15. Interviews Advantage: * Allow for a more in-depth exploration of issue
* may be useful at the preliminary stage of designing
a questionnaire.
Disadvantage:
* Take longer to administer
* Only feasible for smaller groups

16. Meetings Advantage: * Allows a large amount of information to be
collected in a fairly short time.
Disadvantage:
* Information may be impressionistic and subjective

17. Observation Take into account:
* People often do not perform well when they are
observed.
* The skill of observer.

18. Collecting learner language samples
Language samples may be collected through:
Written or oral tasks
Simulations or role plays
Achievement tests
Performance tests

19. Task analysis
Analysis the tasks the learners will have to carry out in English in a future occupational or educational setting.

20. Case studies
A single student or a selected group of students is followed through a relevant work or educational experience in order to determine the characteristics of that situation.

21. Analysis of available information
Books
Journal articles
Reports and surveys
Records and files

22. Designing the needs analysis
Procedures for bigger-scale
Literature survey
Analysis of a wide range of survey questionnaires
Contact with others
Interviews with teachers
Identification of participating departments
Presentation of project proposal
Development of a pilot student and staff questionnaires
Review of the questionnaires

23. Designing the needs analysis
Piloting of the questionnaires
Selection of staff and student subjects
Developing a schedule for collecting data
Administration of questionnaires
Follow-up interviews
Tabulation or responses
Analysis of responses
Writing up of report and recommendations

24. Designing the needs analysis
Procedures for smaller-scale
Initial questionnaire
Follow-up individual and group interviews
Meetings with students
Meetings with other teachers
Ongoing classroom observation
Tests

25. Making use of the information obtained
Making a list consists of information collected from different source and summarized in ranking
More analysis and research
‘…..The primary goal of analysis is to bring meaning to the obtained information …’ (Stufflebeam et al. 1985)
Take different views into account:
* learners’ view
* academics’ view
* employers’ view
* teachers’ view

26. Making use of the information obtained
The format for reporting the findings:
A full written document
A short summary document
A meeting
A group discussion
A newsletter

27. Thank you!