Overall Instructor Rating: Satisfactory

Ratings explanation:

• Exemplary - A model answer in almost every way (this is given out very rarely).
• Satisfactory - Very well done; you've met the expectations of the assignment. There are some minor problems, so read my feedback well.
• Marginal Pass - You pass, but there are lots of issues to consider. Read my feedback very carefully and be sure you understand the points/issues I raise.
• Not satisfactory, redo and resubmit - The assignment was not completed appropriately. I am concerned that you do not understand the process well enough yet. To get credit for the assignment, you need to redo it, most probably on another topic. Read and consider my feedback very carefully before redoing.

Instructor's Overall Feedback:

General: You did a fine job on this. Almost all of my comments are minor in nature and deal with issues that are typical for someone not familiar with the "formality" of needs assessment. You definitely seem to understand the idea of collecting data to support the contention that a problem exists. Problem statement issues: Mandy, you are a little confused about the concept of context. As Dr. Rieber suggests, the description of the context should refer to an *instructional context*, such as a course, a curriculum, a training department, etc. You may also want to look at the “Analyze Learners and Contexts” on page 6 of Chapter 1 to see the conceptual difference between learners and the context. So here for the context, you may want to refer to the Administrator Panel of some specific public schools or school districts or other appropriate organizations that are responsible for the new lesson plan submission. (Note from Lloyd: Yes, this is correct. Try to couch this in terms of the organizational structure within these teachers work, such as the "Department of English", or "Teacher In-Service Training". The idea is that we don't want to say that the "teachers" themselves are the problem.) Again, for step 3, remember Dr. Rieber always advises people to write the problem statement so that the context/system of interest is the subject of this. This means that the organization that is responsible for the administration of lesson plan submissions, or whatever "system of interest" you identify, should be the subject of the problem statement sentence. It is this training context where the solution is to be implemented; therefore, in terms of *instruction,* this entity is where a problem is not being addressed. By doing so the organization or group responsible for the problem is identified clearly and subsequently, this shows who needs to “take action” to resolve the problem. I see you made some change for step 6, and it is much closer to the expected way of writing the problem statement, but you may still want to change the subject of the statement from the lesson planning to the organization, which is responsible for the design and administration of the requirement of the lesson planning. Instructional goals Your instructional goal is simple but shows that you understand what it is. Good job! Note from Lloyd: I wonder, though, if the problem you have identified is instructional in nature. You stated that the teachers don't have opportunities or resources to collaborate. Consequently, if they were given more time and the resources, it sounds like the problem would be solved. And, if the problem is that teachers don't collaborate, I'm suspicious that there other reasons for this problem that I doubt instruction would help. Anyhow, something to think about. But, I think you can build a case for why teachers would benefit from learning how to use something like Google docs to facilitate collaborative planning. So, the "angle" should be less on "not enough time" and more on how difficult it is to work collaboratively (even when motivated to do so), and that knowledge of these technology skills can overcome this problem.

1. Preliminary: Describe the context within which this potential instructional problem takes place. This will pinpoint where the problem is located. If instruction is deemed necessary, this will be the place where it will be designed and implemented.

a. List the context, also known as the "system of interest".

Your final response:

Classroom Teachers in P-12 school

b. Describe or show how the context relates to the bigger environment. Show how this context relates to other levels of the system within which it works.

Your final response:

Classroom teachers must submit team lesson plans to adminstration every week. Lesson plans must be formed through collaboration between departments due to the new requirement of curriculum integration and cross curricular teaching.

The instructor's feedback to step 1:

No specific feedback given on this step.

2. Symptoms of a problem. Write a brief description of some symptoms that make you stop and wonder if something is wrong.

Your final response:

According to reports, plans are submitted late about 75% of the time. Since the new requirement of team curriculum integration plans, group assignments are not always completed as a group. Deadlines are not being met and there are multiple submissions of the same plans to administration.

Using the evidence cited above, describe why you believe that these symptoms signal a problem. Keeping these questions in mind, describe the reasons for identifying these symptoms as problematic.

Your final response:

Whenever there is a new system put into place which requires collaboration between departments, glitches are expected. However due to the impact to the student learner, a record of 75% late curriculum integration lesson plans is detrimental to the daily operation of classroom instruction. If this continues, student instruction may decrease. Additionally, ineffective communication for collaboration between departments may continue to increase resulting in poor lesson planning.

The instructor's feedback to step 2:

No specific feedback given on this step.

3. Preliminary Problem Statement. Based on 1 and 2, write a preliminary draft problem statement. Your context should be the subject of the statement. This is just the initial pass -- the statement will be revised in subsequent steps.

Your final response:

Classroom teachers new curriculum integration lesson plans requirement is missing an effective collaboration method.

The instructor's feedback to step 3:

No specific feedback given on this step.

4. Verify the problem and determine specific needs. Two things will now happen concurrently. First, you need a systematic procedure to identify and collect data in order to verify that a problem exists. Second, you must identify information that the data sources may help uncover.

*Note: You are not required to gather data; you can draw on your experience or imagination to list the data you might gather.

The instructor's feedback to step 4:

No specific feedback given on this step.

5. Prioritize your list of needs.Which are most important? Why are they most important?

The instructor's feedback to step 5:

No specific feedback given on this step.

6. Rewrite your problem statement. Take a moment to look carefully at the initial problem statement that you wrote. Revisit your prioritized needs and check if your problem statement is still accurate and appropriate.

Rewrite the problem statement here:

Your final response:

Classroom teachers new requirement of collaborative curriculum integration lesson planning is not providing enough time for group interaction using an effficient communication platform tool.

The instructor's feedback to step 6:

No specific feedback given on this step.

7. Identify the instructional goals. The last step in Needs Assessment is to list a few goals of instruction. Remember, not all goals can be solved through instruction. The instructional goals you identify will be the starting information for the next steps in the instructional design process. List the instructional goals in order of priority.

The instructor's feedback to step 7:

No specific feedback given on this step.