DESIGNING STUDENTS' NEED ANALYSIS

Designing a need analysis involves choosing from among the various options discussed above and selecting those that are likely to give a comprehensive view of learners’ needs and that represent the interests of the different stakeholders involved. Decisions have to be made on the practical procedures involved in collecting, organizing, analyzing and reporting the information collected. It is important to make sure that the needs analysis does not produce an information overload. There needs to be a clear reason for collecting different kinds of information so as to ensure that only information that will actually be used in collected. In investigating the language needs of non-English-background students at a New Zealand University (Gravatt, Richards, and Lewis 1997), the following procedures were used:

1.      Literature  survey

2.      Analysis of a wide range of survey questionnaires

3.      Contact with others who had conducted similar surveys

4.      Interviews with teachers to determine goals

5.      Identification of participating departments

6.      Presentation of project proposal to participating departments and identification of liaison person in each department

7.      Development of a pilot student and staff questionnaire

8.      Review of the questionnaires by colleagues

9.      Piloting of the questionnaires

10.  Selection of staff and student subjects

11.  Developing a schedule for collecting data

12.  Administration of questionnaires

13.  Follow-up interviews with selected participants

14.  Tabulation of responses

15.  Analysis of responses

16.  Writing up of report and recommendations

In smaller-scale needs analysis such as that of a teacher or group of teachers assessing the needs of new groups of students in a language program, needs analysis procedures may consist of:

1.      Initial questionnaire

2.      Follow-up individual and group interviews

3.      Meetings with students

4.      Meetings with other teachers

5.      Ongoing classroom observation

6.      Tests

Making use of the information obtained

The result of needs analysis will generally consist of information taken from several different sources and summarized in the form of ranked lists of different kinds. For example, it might result in lists of the following kind:

·         Situations in which English is frequently used

·         Situations in which difficulties are encountered

·         Comments most often made by people on learners’ performance

·         Frequencies with which different transactions are carried out

·         Perceived difficulties with different aspects of language use

·         Preferences for different kinds of activities in teaching

·         Frequencies of errors made in different types of situations or activities

·         Common communication problems in different situations

·         Suggestions and opinions about different aspects of learners’ problems

·         Frequencies of linguistic items or units in different texts or situations

One of the findings of needs analysis of problem of ESL students attending university lectures was a list of the frequency with which students experienced difficulties with speaking and listening skills (Gravett et al. 1997, 36). The most common difficulties reported were (by rank):

1.      Large-group discussions

2.      Class discussions

3.      Interactions with native speakers

4.      …-of-class projects

5.      Small-group work

6.      Demonstrator interactions

7.      Class participation

The most frequent difficulties were:

1.      Comprehension of spoken English (‘they speak too fast’; ‘they mumble’; ‘vocabulary is idiomatic’)

2.      The pressing need to formulate a contribution quickly (‘I can’t think what to say’)

3.      Shyness about the value of a contribution (‘I might say something wrong’)

4.      Inability to formulate an idea in English (‘I don’t know how to say it in English’)

5.      Awareness that a given function may be realized in different ways (‘I don’t know the best way to say it’)

6.      Frustration about being unable to enter the discussion (‘some students speak too much’) (Johns and Johns 1977)

In a needs analysis as part of curriculum renewal in a state education system, different views of problems in the curriculum emerged. A number of different points of view emerged as to what should be changed:

·         Learners’ view: more support for learning needed and reduction of the amount of materials they had to study

·         Academic’s view better preparation for tertiary studies needed in terms of reading and writing skills

·         Employers’ view: better preparation for employment required in terms of basic communication skills

·         Teachers’ view: better grasp of grammar needed by learners

The format for reporting the findings may also vary. For example, it might include:

·         A full written document

·         A short summary document

·         A meeting

·         A group discussion

·         A newsletter

Needs analysis thus produces information that can be used in different ways. For example:

·         It may provide the basic for the evaluation of an existing program or a component of a program

·         It may provide the basis for planning goals and objectives for a future program

·         It may assist with developing tests and other assessment procedures

·         It can help with the selection of appropriate teaching methods in a program

·         It may provide the basis for developing a syllabus and teaching materials for a course

·         It may provide information that can be used as part of a course or program report to an external body or organization