Using a Needs Analysis: Identifying Goals

The result of a needs assessment is a description of a problem, evidence of the causes of the problem, and a list of possible solutions or interventions. The result of the needs assessment should also be one or more well-defined goals.

Goals are general in nature (for they will be broken down later into objectives) and usually stated in terms of new skills, knowledge, or attitudes the learner is to acquire. The goal directs the entire design process.

To assist you in identifying you goal, you may answer the following questions:

  1. Who are the learners that you want to accomplish your goal?
  2. What should the learners be able to do, perform, or accomplish?
  3. In what context will they be attempting to accomplish it?
  4. What tools will be available to them as they attempt to accomplish it?
  5. How could you tell if they did accomplish it?

A well stated goal statement includes the following elements:

  • Identification of the learners
  • Identification of the desired skill, knowledge, or attitude
  • Identification of the desired skill, knowledge, or attitude will be applied in context
  • Identification of the tools

An example of an effective goal statement that arose from the identified need of students being unable to effectively use the Internet to do research is: Given a research topic, first-year English students will use the Alta Vista Internet search engine to locate information related to their topic and then evaluate the quality of the sources they find to select the most worthwhile.

Steps to Writing an Effective Goal

Mager suggests the following step to write a clear goal:

  1. Write the goal down.
  2. Identify the behaviors that learners would demonstrate to reflect their achievement of the goal.
  3. Sort through the list of behaviors and select those that best represent what is meant by the unclear goal.
  4. Incorporate each of the behaviors into a statement that describes what the learner will be able to do.
  5. Examine the goal statement and ask yourself this: If learners achieved or demonstrated each of the performances, would you agree that they had achieved the goal? If the answer is yes, then you have clarified the goal.
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©2010 By Michael and Amanda Szapkiw.