Needs Analysis

September 8, 2014
As the people in charge of promoting change at our schools, Taeler Good and I started with a needs analysis via a Google Form.  The Google Form asked teachers which Google Apps they would like support in to increase student communication and collaboration.  Our reasoning was teachers are expected to use Google Apps with their students, but we know that teachers must first feel comfortable with Google Apps before implementing them into their curriculum.  We also wanted to show teachers how efficient and organized their teaching can be with Google Drive. When teachers feel comfortable with Google Drive, we know they will be more open to using Google Apps with their students.  We also analyzed the data from a comfort survey that was given to all teachers at the end of the last school year.  We used the data from the Google form and comfort survey to prioritize teachers’ needs to create a focus for our PD.  

We recruited the other Digital Learning Coaches, our Curriculum Coaches, and Leadership Team to help us ensure that our PD focus was meeting the teachers’ needs to increase teacher collaboration within grade levels. We know student collaboration will increase once teacher collaboration does.

Below is the Technology Comfort Survey that teachers completed at the end of the last school year.  The purpose of the survey was to gather initial information on teachers' technology comfort levels to assess needs.  Click on the below image to view the entire survey.

Below are the Technology Comfort Survey results.  Click on the image to view all of the teacher responses.

This is a screenshot of the Google Form survey I sent out to the teachers to gather information on their specific Google Apps needs.

Below is the summary of teacher responses from the Google Form survey.

From the needs analysis of the teachers at Roosevelt Elementary School, I found that teachers mostly need support in Google Docs and Slides.  This survey supports what I have found through conversations, classroom observations, and the Technology Comfort Survey given at the end of last year.  

My partner, Taeler, and I moved forward with our PD plan because we knew we were ready. We knew this because we already had data from the teacher technology comfort survey and got more current data from the Google Form. Teachers had expressed a need for urgency in learning the Google Apps because principals stated that teachers must be using Google Apps this year to foster 21st century skills.  Although we would love it if our teachers were all eager and ready to learn about the different Google Apps, we knew there was a lot of anxiety surrounding this area.  Our goal was to ease this anxiety and empower teachers through our PD.

Taeler and I are change agents in our schools because we are Digital Learning Coaches.  We feel so passionately about educational technology that we want to pass on this knowledge and excitement to other teachers.  Our position as Digital Learning Coaches is new in Anaheim City School District, and we are determined to promote positive change in our four schools.