| Needs Assessment | |
|
|
The first step in the Instructional Systems Development process is to document the need for instruction. Here, a "need" is a gap in performance between what people should be accomplishing and what they are actually accomplishing. If this gap is caused by a lack of skills and knowledge, then instruction will help close the gap. Many gaps in performance are caused by other factors, so instruction is likely to be expensive and ineffective. People often identify problems which are not actually gaps in performance. |
A needs assessment avoids such problems. Look for real performance problems like kids doing poorly on a specific part of the proficiency tests or other indicators. Make sure that a major reason for the poor performance is that the potential learners are missing key skills or knowledge. Finally, make sure that the proposed project is appropriate for this course. What you want to teach here should be teachable with a self-instructional program, using written materials and simple media. It should be completely teachable in no more than an hour, probably less. |
|
