Examines problem areas of training needs analysis (TNA), first by presenting a model of the TNA process, then by listing sources of data available for TNA (based on an analysis of the literature), and finally by proposing a method of choosing appropriate data-gathering techniques for TNA. (CT)

This personal reaction to Cummings'"Comparison of Three Algorithms for Analyzing Questionnaire-Type Needs Assessment Data to Establish Need Priorities" specifically questions Cummings' use of the Mean Difference Analysis for comparison with Weighted Needs Index, and his focus on characteristics of the statistic that are of secondary…

The author discusses three issues related to the understanding of needs assessment in adult education in a critique of Brackhaus's article. These issues are definition of need, measurement of need indicators, and inference of need based on available indicators. The author discusses these issues at length and includes examples. (CT)

Planning for customer-focused library services requires a reexamination of the business and customers. Libraries must continually collect and evaluate data about the community they serve to accommodate ever-changing needs. (AEF)

A self-examination of the Central Library System (CLS) at Temple University was undertaken by a task force made up of staff members to examine the current organizational structure in the light of technological, financial, curricular, enrollment, and library service considerations, as well as such organizational concerns as work flow, appropriate…

Suggests sources of data related to the distinctiveness of a community college, including institutional histories, needs assessments, institutional impact studies, marketing research, and strategic planning studies. Considers ways of organizing the data. (DMM)

Discussion of information management focuses on three main areas of activities and their interrelationship: (1) strategic, including establishing frameworks and principles of operations; (2) analytic, or research elements, including user needs assessment, data gathering, and data analysis; and (3) operational activities, including reference…

The technique of multivariate analysis is particularly suited to educational needs assessment research because it allows for the summarization of data across any number of learners or components of educational need to produce a single numerical index of need for each skill examined. In the needs assessment process, educational or training need is…

Reviews problems involved in analyzing data on educational or training needs and details use of the proportionate reduction in error (PRE) approach (Hildebrand, et al., 1977), which predicts the probability that certain combinations of a joint distribution will occur, then tests to see how closely the prediction matches the observation. (MBR)

The conditions facing postsecondary education during the 1980s, it is suggested, call for institutional planning styles that are comprehensive, systematic, public, regular, and expansive. The formal democratic style is described as a comprehensive planning process that requires all departments to submit their plans to the college. (Author/MLW)

This paper describes the current status of teacher supply and demand in both special and general education, presents examples of the kinds of data and analyses which comply with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and discusses how educational policymaking might be affected by the mandate to project future personnel needs. (Author/DB)

This report synthesizes the results of activities of the National Center on Educational Outcomes (NCEO) focused on determining whether secondary data analysis of state and/or national data collection programs could produce policy-relevant reports on the status of children and youth with disabilities. The report describes methodology and findings…

An attempt is made to clarify the language of the Adult Education Act of 1966 to yield operational criteria for identifying its goals within a needs assessment/treatment framework. Criteria for general and special target populations are set forth. Singled out are the group of those with four or less years of formal education and those determined…

Training indicators are functional suites of quantitative and qualitative indicators of current or future vocational education and training (VET) supply and demand. The training indicators approach to educational planning considers indicators of present and likely future conditions for skilled labor and forms judgments about the most appropriate…