Needs assessment | COUN 6626 – Research Methodology and Program Evaluation | Walden University
**YOU MUST ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS IN THE ATTACHED WORKSHEET – DO NOT CREATE A SEPARATE PAPER**
As a counselor, you will individualize services for clients. It is important for you to understand how to conduct a needs assessment to help you know how to create new services that will meet the needs of your clients or the clients of an agency. Keep in mind that a needs assessment and program evaluation are not synonymous. A Needs Assessment will show you what services are needed for your clients, while a program evaluation will tell you whether services that have already been delivered were effective for your clients. You will dig deeper into program evaluations next week.
For this Assignment, you will review a case example of a needs assessment and make a recommendation for program development based on the data that was collected.
To Prepare
- Review the Needs Assessment Worksheet found in the Learning Resources, and consider the requirements for this Assignment.
- You may work independently or form small groups of no more than three people. If you choose to work in small groups, you may use the Blackboard Collaborate Ultra “Live Meetings” tool found in the left-hand navigation of the classroom to collaborate with your group in a synchronous way. Once you access the “Live Meetings” tool, use the “Sessions Help” feature in the top right-hand corner to guide you through setting up your session with your group if you choose to do so.
- Review the Needs Assessment Worksheet and consider the requirements for this Assignment. Specifically:
- Review the case study.
- Answer all questions in the worksheet.
Assignment
Imagine you are a task force or part of a task force charged with making a decision about the development of a new program. Your job is to review the data that was collected and complete a Needs Assessment Worksheet that will help you determine whether a new program should be developed and for which populations it will be helpful.
- As an individual part of a task force or in your small group task force, complete the Needs Assessment Worksheet.