Running head: NEEDS ANALYSIS
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Needs Analysis
Grace Gregor
Wright State University
EDT 8220-90B
November 3, 2015
Dr. Noah Schroeder
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Problem at hand.
Beth Hersman has been hearing for a long time that the Adapted Physical Education
(APE) and Physical Education (PE) teachers in the Dayton area are unsure of what all they need
to fill out on a student’s Individualized Education Plan (IEP). They don’t know how to assess for
present level of performance to get valid and reliable data, do not know how to set appropriate
goals and write specific objectives. In addition, many school districts want the PE/APE teachers
to list APE as a related service when in fact it is by law a direct service (many administrators do
not know that). What Beth is hoping for is help in addressing what administrators want from the
PE teachers. In addition, Beth would like help for the PE/APE teachers in writing IEP’s that are
appropriate to a student’s needs (and then suggesting an appropriate placement based on the
assessment data).
Administrative Survey: 15 Questions
Likert Scale
1. I know what a related service is.
2. I know what a direct service is.
3. I know the current law for Adapted Physical Education.
4. My PE/APE employees know how to accurately fill out IEPs.
5. School districts should have a special education coordinator to help with the IEP writing
process.
6. I am personally motivated to learn more about Related and Direct Services.
7. I am personally motivated to learn more about the IEP writing process.
8. I am willing to compensate employees who learn more about properly writing IEPs, Related
Services, and Direct Services.
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9. I am confident that my PE/APE teachers accurately place students based on their [accurate]
present level of performance.
10. It is important to know how to accurately assess a student’s present level of performance.
11. It is important for PE/APE educators to know how to accurately write IEP goals and
objectives.
12. I am motivated to help my PE/APE educators learn more about the IEP writing process.
13. I am motivated to help my PE/APE educators learn more about Direct Services and Related
Services.
Open Ended
14. What kind of environment is available for the PE/APE teachers to use in order to assess the
students?
15. What is the best “tool” to use in order to accurately assess a student’s present level of
performance?
16. What type/amount of training should an administrator have on the IEP writing process?
17. Does the school district have an appointed Special Education Coordinator?
18. What are some possible solutions to the problem at hand?
This is the link to the Administrative Survey in Qualtrics:
https://wright.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_d4k6UXa7mIc09Jr I have included the above
questions in case the survey does not work. In addition, the survey states that I have only 6
questions. However, I have 18. The Likert Style survey took up the majority of my questions. I
tried to input each question individually but I did not like the result.
Worker/Student Survey: 15 Questions
Likert Scale
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1. I know how to write an appropriate goal.
2. I know how to write specific objectives.
3. I know how to properly assess a student for their present level of performance.
4. I know what a related service is.
5. I know what a direct service is.
6. I know how to appropriately place a student based on their present level of performance.
7. I am confident that I accurately place a student based on their present level of performance.
8. I would like some professional development on how to write appropriate goals.
9. I would like some professional development on how to write specific objectives.
10. I would like some professional development on how to fill out an IEP.
11. School districts should have a special education coordinator to help with the IEP writing
process.
12. I am personally motivated to learn more about Related and Direct Services.
13. I am personally motivated to learn more about the IEP writing process.
14. I am only motivated to learn more about the IEP writing process if I am compensated.
15. I am only motivated to learn more about Direct Services and Related Services if I am
compensated.
16. It is important to know how to accurately assess a student’s present level of performance.
17. It is important for PE/APE educators to know how to accurately write IEP goals and
objectives.
Open Ended
18. In what type of environment do you assess the students?
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19. What is the best “tool” to use in order to accurately assess a student’s present level of
performance?
20. What should a correctly written IEP look like?
21. What prevents you from being able to write an IEP correctly?
22. What are some possible solutions to the problem at hand?
Once again, the survey in Qualtrics states that I have 6 questions when in actuality I have
22 questions. The link to my Worker survey is:
https://wright.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_cPeujeXXyVzZzff
Administrator Interview: 10 Questions
1. In your own words, explain the current Ohio law For Adapted Physical Education.
2. Describe the difference between a direct service and a related service.
3. Why do you feel like your PE/APE teachers can/cannot accurately fill out IEPs?
4. What does an IEP look like when it is accurately completed by the PE/APE teacher?
5. Describe the types of environments that the PE/APE educators use to assess students.
6. How do you feel about the problem at hand?
7. In your opinion, what is the PE/APE educator’s role in writing an IEP?
8. What type(s) of professional development are you willing to provide to your PE/APE
educators?
9. What tools do PE/APE educators have access to in order to assess students for their present
level of performance?
10. Explain why you feel APE is a related service and not a direct service.
11. What does an IEP look like when it is written by one of your PE/APE educators?
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12. What do you feel needs to happen in order for your PE/APE educators to write an appropriate
IEP?
The link to my Administrative Interview is:
https://wright.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_3mHs7yXOj5QF1lP
Worker/Student Interview: 10 Questions
1. Describe how you write appropriate goals.
2. Take me through the steps of how to write specific objectives.
3. Explain the difference between a direct service and a related service.
4. What does an IEP look like when it is accurately completed by the PE/APE teacher?
5. Describe the type of environment that you use to assess students in.
6. How do you feel about the problem at hand?
7. What type(s) of professional development would you like to see offered?
8. What is the administrator’s role in the IEP writing process?
9. What is the Special Education Coordinator’s role in helping you write IEPs?
10. What tools do you personally have to work with to assess a student’s present level of
performance?
11. Explain why you feel APE is a direct service and not a related service?
12. Should your administrator help you write your IEP? Explain why or why not?
13. What do you feel needs to happen in order for you to be able to write an IEP accurately?
The Worker Interview can be found with this link:
https://wright.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_02LntfU9o0yDzyR I understand that we were not
supposed to have the same question for our Administrator Survey/Interview and our Worker
Survey/Interview. However, there were a couple of important items that I needed both sides of
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the issue to provide an answer for. By understanding both sides of the issue, I will be able to get
to the root of the problem quicker. However, due to the fact that I did duplicate some of the
questions, I created additional ones to meet the number criteria for each item.
Observation Protocol
1. What I am observing.
I. The IEP writing process.
II. PE/APE teachers assessing students for their present level of performance.
III. The IEP meeting itself.
2. When, and for how long, I’ll be observing.
I. I will observe each PE/APE teacher while they assess two [different] students, for
present level of performance, for no more than 30 minutes each (60 minutes total per
educator).
II. I will observe each PE/APE educator write IEP goals and objectives, based on the
assessments performed on the students, for no more than 30 minutes each (60 minutes
total).
III. Two student’s IEP meetings (for a total of no more than 4 hours).
3. The purpose of the observations is:
I. Determine if PE/APE teachers know how to accurately assess student’s present level of
performance.
II. Determine if PE/APE teachers can write an appropriate goal.
III. Determine if PE/APE teachers can write specific objectives.
IV. Determine if PE/APE teachers can accurately fill out IEPs.
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V. Determine if PE/APE teachers know how to accurately select the appropriate
assessment tool for evaluating a student’s present level of performance.
VI. Determine if administrators understand the difference between direct services and
related services.
4. What I am specifically looking for.
I. To see how PE/APE teachers assess for present level of performance.
II. How they write appropriate goals in IEP’s.
III. How they write specific objectives.
IV. How many administrators understand the current law in regards to related vs. direct
services for students on IEP’s.
V. To determine how many PE/APE teachers select the appropriate tool to use to assess
the student’s present level of performance (based on disability, age, etc.).
5. The benefits of observing the workplace.
The immediate benefits of observing the workplace include: determining if educators
know how to assess a student’s present level of ability, whether or not they know how to select
the appropriate tool for assessing the student’s present level of ability (based on disability, age,
etc.), whether or not the educator knows how to write goals and objectives based on the data that
the assessment of the present level of ability provided them, whether or not PE/APE educators
have access to the appropriate tools to assess student’s present level of ability, whether or not the
PE/APE educator has access to help/clarification when writing an IEP, whether or not an
administrator understands the difference between a direct service and related service, and how
well the PE/APE educator and the administrator work together during the IEP writing process
(and meeting). Another benefit of observing the workplace is that I will be able to determine if
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the situation is serious and significant professional development is needed. Or whether the
situation is not that serious and a small amount of ongoing professional development or
communication skills between the administrator, PE/APE educator, and Special Education
Coordinator is needed.
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Resources
Brown, A. H., & Green, T. D. (2016). The essentials of instructional design (3rd edition). New
York, NY: Routledge.
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