Module 3: Lesson 2 - Learner needs assessment

Question 1

What is meant by learner ‘needs’?

Answer 1

• learning goals & reason for doing the course
• internal and external motivation factors
• preferred learning styles & level
  interests and hobbies
• special educational requirements (e.g. if they have any learning or physical disabilities)

Question 2

What are typical needs for young learners?

Answer 2

• Young learners need variation, excitement, and engaging topics to get the most out of their course.
• They need lots of visual stimuli, lots of energy from the teacher, and activities and materials that are relevant to them and their lives.
• The teacher needs to work on their level, but still ensure that learners are challenged so they don’t get bored.
• Young learners need to pass an English exam.
• They need a lot of feedback from the teacher.

Question 3

What are typical needs for adults?

Answer 3

• Adults tend to learn for work.
• they may be very busy and not have the time to travel to a school.
• They want to progress faster, get more focused attention from the teacher, and sometimes, to build confidence.
• They need to understand the learning process, have lots of communicative practice, engage in topics that are interesting and relevant to them, and they need to feel like they are spending their time well.

Question 4

What are typical needs for adults - business learners?

Answer 4

• Learning English for meetings, to give presentations, engage in negotiations, writing (e.g. emails), small talk for socializing, and perhaps more specialized, industry-specific language.
• They take their learning very seriously and expect quick results.
• They need to feel that they are making constant progress in an effective and worthwhile way.

Question 5

What are typical needs for the ‘social’ learner?

Answer 5

• Studying for the fun of it.
• They’ll either go with the flow and learn whatever you like.
• They’ll stop you at the start of the lesson and tell you what they fancy learning in that class.

Question 6

Importance of assessing needs in 1:1 online class.

Answer 6

Understanding our learners’ needs is the first step to providing them with good, effective lessons. When we know what they want to study and how they learn best, teachers can then go ahead and create a course syllabus, lessons, and individual activities to suit that learner. This allows the teacher to focus on the gaps in the student’s learning instead of going over areas where the student may already have good competence.

If you do not assess your learners’ needs, you may end up wasting valuable time teaching language that they don’t need or want to study. You will waste your time and the students’ time, which could result in a drastic reduction of the effectiveness of the lessons and may even create tension. The classes would likely lack any specific focus and in the long run, this will make course planning more time-consuming and difficult.

Question 7

What is a needs analysis?

Answer 7

It is a written questionnaire that is typically one or two pages long, which which asks your learners questions about a variety of topics, such as their previous learning experience, learning preferences, and their interests or hobbies.

Question 8

What not to do to find out your student’s needs.

Answer 8

• Trial and error on different techniques.
• Asking your learners directly.
• Guessing by having general conversations with the class.

Question 9

What should be on a needs analysis for adults?

Answer 9

• Personal Details (name, nationality, level of English if known)
• Previous experience in studying English
• Reasons for studying English
• Aims and goals for their course
• Their perceived skill strengths
• Their perceived best methods of learning
• Hobbies and interests
• Job title and responsibilities
• Focus on the positives
• Consider the goals of the learners
• Remember to think about learning styles

Question 10

What should be on a needs analysis for young learners?

Answer 10

• Personal Details (name, nationality, level of English if known).
• Favorite things, such as: reading or writing, speaking or listening, favorite foods, movies, sports, favorite travel destination, and so on.
• Whether they like working alone or in groups.
• Why they like learning English.
• Their learning style (through leading questions).
• Their least favorite classroom activities.
• Hobbies and interests.
• Focus on the positives
• Consider the goals of the learners
• Remember to think about learning styles