CUR/528 Planning a Needs Assessment 1

Planning a Needs Assessment

William Stewart

CUR/528

April 16, 2018

Siddeeqah Johnson
CUR/528 Planning a Needs Assessment 2

Planning a Needs Assessment

In the summer of 2013, the University of Phoenix established a Full-Time Staff

Faculty program for the purpose of providing enhanced support to first-year students to

increase engagement and buttress student persistence. Approximately 200 faculty that

had previously taught first-year sequence courses were selected for the new role and were

provided extensive training in student support strategies. Five years after the launch of

the program, a survey of the full-time faculty (FTF) body revealed that additional training

was a substantial priority for them. The results of the survey serve as a catalyst for

conducting a comprehensive training needs assessment plan.

The Needs Assessment Planning Process

The process for planning a needs assessment entails a number of steps, each

requiring a focus on documenting needs:

1. Defining parameters by developing a clear understanding of the purpose, level

of assessment, stakeholders, budget and available resources, and allotted time.

2. Identifying the specific information that must be acquired.

3. Determining the existence of necessary information or the means by which the

information can be obtained.

4. Designing methodology and instrumentation.

5. Collecting and analyzing information.

6. Preparing a report.

7. Disseminating preliminary information to key stakeholders and obtaining their

feedback.

8. Formally disseminating results. (Royse, Thyer, & Padgett, 2010, p. 59)

CUR/528 Planning a Needs Assessment 3

Step 1: Defining the Parameters

The priority set on additional training by FTF from the results of the faculty

survey merits a closer look at proposition of providing that training. Therefore, the

purpose of the needs assessment centers on achieving the following goals:

 Identify training deficiencies or gaps within the existing FTF training program

 Align and prioritize the current training needs of FTF

 Determine the need for, and scope of a new FTF training program

The level of the assessment will be within the FTF program, which falls under the

College of Humanities and Sciences (COHS). The FTF program is set up as a unit within

the COHS and is differentiated from other units by instructional characteristics and

strategies necessary to achieve higher levels of engagement and persistence among first-

year students. Data will be collected within the scope of the FTF program only.

The key stakeholders of the needs assessment are identified as the FTF body,

administrative staff that directly oversee the FTF program, the Academic Governance

Team, first-year students enrolled at the university, and Academic Counselors who advise

first-year students. Though other personnel at the university have a stake in the success

of first-year students, these key stakeholders represent the well of information from

which decisions regarding training for FTF can be best concluded.

Budgetary requirements of the needs assessment will be minimal, as the means by

which information can be obtained already exist within the university. A

communications network is in place, and the three FTF Program Supervisors, along with

the COHS Dean of Faculty, will conduct the work involved in the assessment. They will

be compensated through their existing salaries.

CUR/528 Planning a Needs Assessment 4

The time to be allotted to the needs assessment will span a six-month period in

order to allow for the collection of the necessary information, its analysis and reporting

(Appendix A). Should the timeframe need to be extended, the additional cost of doing so

would be neglible. However, six-months should be sufficient for the purpose of

completing the needs assessment.

Step 2: Identifying the Specific Information to be Acquired

The existing knowledge of first-year teaching strategies possessed by FTF will

need to be determined, including skill areas such as outreach, engagement, instructional

multimedia, supportive assessment, and intervention. This information will be analyzed

to help identify gaps that can be filled with additional training. Additionally, the current

effects of the FTF program relative to aspects such as student retention and persistence

will also need to be determined. Connected to this set of information will be an

examination of FTF performance information to determine the degree to which existing

FTF teaching requirements are being met.

Step 3: Determining Existing Information and That to be Obtained

A significant amount of the necessary information exists and is readily available

for a needs assessment. The COHS has previously collected information on proven

strategies and teaching practices that promote student engagement and support student

persistence. First-year student performance, success rates and persistence figures are

compiled in report form. Additionally, FTF performance reports will be used to measure

current effects of their instructional approaches and efforts in the classroom.

FTF performance reports are available via the Academic Governance Team,

which conducts faculty observations and evaluations and compiles this information.
CUR/528 Planning a Needs Assessment 5

These will need to be collected and analyzed to help determine the evaluators’ perception

of FTF members’ proficiency in specific skill areas.

A survey of all FTF members will need to be designed, administered, and

analyzed to help determine their own perception of their proficiency in specific skill areas

and measure their opinions on skill areas in which they can benefit from additional

training.

Information from first-year students regarding their experiences in their first-year

courses in the COHS will need to be obtained.

Step 4: Designing Methodology and Instrumentation

Structuring the data-gathering efforts will entail a description of the procedures,

the participants, instruments, and objectives (Royse, Thyer, & Padgett, 2010). This

methodology outlines how the assessment process will be conducted.

The Dean of Faculty will direct the data-gathering process, supported by the three

FTF Program Supervisors. The existing body of knowledge on effective student success

strategies will be used to inform on targets for skills promoting student engagement and

persistence.

Instruments to be used in the quantitative data-gathering process:

 Existing FTF performance evaluations

 First-year student performance reports

 Reports compiled from first-year student SEOCS results

Instruments to be used in the qualitative data-gathering process:

 Survey questionnaire administered to FTF members (Appendix B)

CUR/528 Planning a Needs Assessment 6

 FTF focus groups

 Survey questionnaire administered to first-year student Academic Counselors

(Appendix C)

Step 5: Collecting and Analyzing Information

The COHS Dean of Faculty will collect the previously-developed information on

strategies and skills for promoting student engagement and persistence and will conduct

analysis of the qualitative and quantitative data with input from the program supervisors.

The program supervisors will also perform the following roles:

 Electronically administer survey questionnaires to FTF and Academic

Counselors through the existing communication network.

 Analyze, and report to the dean, the results of the survey questionnaires

measuring FTF and Academic Counselor perception of FTF proficiency

in, and opinions on, specific skill areas and gaps which might be filled

through additional training.

 Coordinate with the Academic Governance Team to obtain FTF

performance evaluations and review, analyze, and report to the dean.

 Design and conduct focus groups that include all FTF members to gain

additional insight and help identify gaps that can be filled by additional

training; compile and report to the dean.

 Coordinate with the Academic Operations department to obtain SEOCS

reports, analyze them, and report to the dean.

CUR/528 Planning a Needs Assessment 7

Step 6: Preparing a Report

The COHS Dean of Faculty, with support from the program supervisors,

will prepare a comprehensive report that converges the quantitative and qualitative data.

The report will provide to the Provost a comprehensive analysis, with statistical factors

and underlying implications, of key findings. The report will clarify the current perceived

level of efficacy from different categories of participants, as well as the true level of

efficacy as measured through quantitative data. From that information, the determination

of a gap meriting additional training will be followed by information on how such a

training program could be completed and the associated costs.

Step 7: Disseminating Preliminary Information and Obtaining Feedback

The Provost will construct a report on the findings of the needs assessment and

disseminate it to the Executive Management Team, led by the President of the university,

and he will obtain feedback from them, ultimately providing approval to proceed with a

new FTF training program.

Step 8: Formally Disseminating Results

The results of the needs assessment will be communicated by the Provost and

COHS Dean of Faculty in a formal report to the FTF body and other stakeholders

including Program Supervisors, the Academic Governance Team, and first-year student

Academic Counselors. The report will be disseminated via email and presented and

discussed in separate, formal meetings with each group.

Conclusion

The training needs assessment is well-timed given the FTF program’s age of five

years. It will provide leadership with reliable quantitative and qualitative information to
CUR/528 Planning a Needs Assessment 8

guide a determination of how well the first-year student is being supported by FTF, the

prospect and viability of improving that support through a new FTF training program,

and how such a program could be constructed.

CUR/528 Planning a Needs Assessment 9

References

Royse, D., Thyer, B. A., & Padgett, D. K. (2010). Program evaluation: An

introduction (5th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Cengage Learning.

CUR/528 Planning a Needs Assessment 10

Appendix A
CUR/528 Planning a Needs Assessment 11

Appendix B
CUR/528 Planning a Needs Assessment 12
CUR/528 Planning a Needs Assessment 13
CUR/528 Planning a Needs Assessment 14

Appendix C