The Outcomes of Needs Analysis

Introduction to teaching and learning languages online
Course instructor: Mayya Levkina Alejandro Jesús Sánchez López
This occasion the target group is composed of twenty employees of an English

textbook publisher in Israel, in Hod HaSharon. Spain has called upon the service of this
company, for their secondary school textbooks, but they need them to incorporate cultural
Spanish content. In this scenario, as Brown (2009, p. 274) argues, the focus would be on
learning about a language for specific purposes (SP), and more specifically, for
occupational purposes (OP).
The group in question fluently speaks three languages: Hebrew, Arabic and English, so it
is understood that they have a solid linguistic foundation. They range in age from 25 to
60, but we require that they fill in the form, so that we know exactly how old they are.
They are all native Israelis, except for five of them who are from England (they do not
speak Hebrew, but they do speak Arabic), as the company wanted to bring in some native
English speakers for possible corrections and to improve their texts. At work they
communicate in English.
The company's directors tell me that the five foreign employees receive a higher salary,
which is why the local workers are very much at odds with them, having occasional
disagreements. They plead with me to try to include pedagogical elements not only for
them to acquire what is needed for the development of the Spanish curricular contents,
but also to help them to communicate better with each other (perhaps proposing
collaborative activities would help them to find a point of convergence and
understanding).
As can be imagined, they are textbook publishers, and they have a high level of education,
as they are all, at least, English philologists, and this gives them a sound economic
position in Israel. In fact, the company provides them with all the necessary materials for
the online course.
It is necessary to carry out a Needs Analysis, firstly because, as González-Lloret (2014)

explains, any didactic design "must always begin with an empirical, ideally multi-
methodological, analysis of the needs" (pp. 23-24). Why is this essential? As Levkina
1
(n.d.) argues, it is fundamental to carry it out both to know their language needs, and to
be able to fulfil them, as well as to know about their digital literacies and resources. In
this particular case, it is even more indispensable, because it is a company that wants to
preserve its traditional way of working, using huge iron and ink printing plates, leaving
technology on a minor level. And, given that the classes will be conducted entirely
virtually, I need to know in advance their level of technological competence, and whether
they even know how to join a videoconference.
For this evaluation study, I need to formulate everything as specifically as possible, as

this will provide me with a solid basis for my evaluation (Chapelle, 2017, p. 387), to
ensure, as far as possible, its effectiveness in terms of the needs of the target group. In
addition, the NA will help me to determine whether I can count on the integration of more
complex dynamics that include the use of more advanced technological tools, thus being
able to enhance their learning of Spanish. And, of course, this NA will help me to know
what notions they have of Spanish, and of cultural and/or geographical elements of Spain,
enabling me to plan how to start and approach my classes.
The initial questionnaire has been designed so that it is not too invasive, and to be able to
ascertain the learners' attitude in an initial phase. The directors of the company informed
me that they, the workers, are not satisfied with this new stage of their career, as it implies
working more intensively. That is why I do not want to overwhelm them from the
beginning with more complex or invasive questions. I want to check their attitude towards
this new stage, and to know their digital literacies, and if they manage, minimally, how to
conduct a videoconference. I also hope to find out how much Spanish they know, and
what cultural elements of Spain they are familiar with, as well as some geographical
elements, as these are the points they will have to include in their publications.
Finally, two questions that appeal to their motivation, both for technology and for learning
a foreign language, in this case Spanish. All this will be very useful for me as a teacher,
to be able to design the starting point, and to know if, for example, I should think about
more motivating approaches, even if they take me more time to prepare, such as
gamification, for example. Or if it is not necessary, and I can focus entirely on
communicative competence and linguistic content. Bearing in mind that these students
need to learn Spanish with a specific purpose, and that based on this purpose the tasks
and the pedagogical approach will be structured, as argued by Wilkins (1976, as cited in
2
Brown, 2009), this would be known as "analytic syllabuses". And based on the way these
syllabuses are organised, and the potential use of data collection to be made, Brown
(1995, as cited in Brown, 2009), explains the different approaches that can be taken into
account, such as notional, task-based, etc.
3
REFERENCES
Brown, J. D. [James Dean] (2009). Foreign and Second Language Needs Analysis. In M.
H. [Michael Hugh] Long & C. [Catherine] J. Doughty (Eds.), The Handbook of
Language Teaching (pp. 269-293). John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated.
Chapelle, C. A. [Carol Ann]. (2017). Evaluation of Technology and Language Learning.

In C. A. [Carol Ann] Chapelle, & S. [Shannon] Sauro (Eds.), The Handbook of
Technology and Second Language Teaching and Learning (pp. 379-392). John
Wiley & Sons, Incorporated.
González-Lloret, M. [Marta] (2014). The need for needs analysis in technology-mediated

TBLT. In M. [Marta] González-Lloret & L. [Lourdes] Ortega (Eds.), Technology-
mediated TBLT: Researching Technology and Tasks (pp. 23-30). John Benjamins
Publishing Company.
Levkina, M. [Mayya], & Granena, G. [Gisela] (n.d.). Introduction to Teaching and

Learning Languages Online [textual learning resource]. Universitat Oberta de
Catalunya Campus, virtual classroom.
https://materials.campus.uoc.edu/cdocent/PID_00275702/
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APPENDIX
Questions from Task 2
QUESTIONNAIRE
1. What is your name?
2. How old are you?
3. What do you usually use the internet for at work?
4. What programmes or applications do you usually use at work?
5. Have you ever participated in a video conference?
6. Have you ever heard Spanish words? Which ones?
7. Which cities or regions of Spain do you know?
8. Do you think it is important for you to learn how to use technology at work? Why?
9. Do you think it is important for you to learn some Spanish for your job? Why?

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Introduction to teaching and learning languages online

Course instructor: Mayya Levkina Alejandro Jesús Sánchez López

This occasion the target group is composed of twenty employees of an English

It is necessary to carry out a Needs Analysis, firstly because, as González-Lloret (2014)

Course instructor: Mayya Levkina Alejandro Jesús Sánchez López

For this evaluation study, I need to formulate everything as specifically as possible, as

Course instructor: Mayya Levkina Alejandro Jesús Sánchez López

Course instructor: Mayya Levkina Alejandro Jesús Sánchez López

Chapelle, C. A. [Carol Ann]. (2017). Evaluation of Technology and Language Learning.

González-Lloret, M. [Marta] (2014). The need for needs analysis in technology-mediated

Levkina, M. [Mayya], & Granena, G. [Gisela] (n.d.). Introduction to Teaching and

Course instructor: Mayya Levkina Alejandro Jesús Sánchez López

Questions from Task 2

1. What is your name?

2. How old are you?

3. What do you usually use the internet for at work?

4. What programmes or applications do you usually use at work?

5. Have you ever participated in a video conference?

6. Have you ever heard Spanish words? Which ones?

7. Which cities or regions of Spain do you know?

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