WFED 573: Needs Assessment for Industrial Trainers
Course Syllabus
Course Syllabus
The information contained on this page is designed to give students a representative example of material covered in the course. Any information related to course assignments, dates, or course materials is illustrative only. For a definitive list of materials, please check the online catalog 3-4 weeks before the course start date.

WF ED 573 Needs Assessment for Industrial Trainers (3 credits) Acquire skills to identify training and development needs, distinguish problems with management versus training solutions, develop and evaluate training solutions.


Overview | Objectives | Materials | Library Resources | Technical Requirements | Course Schedule | Grading | Assignments | Academic Integrity | Policies

Overview

WF ED 573 is designed to familiarize you with the models, concepts, and techniques for designing, implementing, and analyzing the results of training needs assessments in organizations. After successfully completing this course, you will have the necessary skills and competencies to identify human performance problems, distinguish between training and non-training plans of action, and design and develop appropriate plans of action in response to human performance problems.

Course Objectives

By the end of this course, you should be able to:

  • Define and explain key concepts, models, and methods for designing, implementing, and analyzing the results of needs assessments in organizations.
  • Distinguish between training and non-training plans of action.
  • Demonstrate the competencies necessary to conduct needs analysis.
  • Develop proposals and plans of action to respond to human performance problems.

Required Course Materials

Most World Campus courses require that students purchase materials (e.g., textbooks, specific software, etc.). To learn about how to order materials, please see the Course Materials page. You should check LionPATH approximately 3–4 weeks before the course begins for a list of required materials.

Library Resources

Many of the University Libraries resources can be utilized from a distance. Through the Libraries website, you can

  • access magazine, journal, and newspaper articles online using library databases;
  • borrow materials and have them delivered to your doorstep—or even your desktop;
  • get research help via email, chat, or phone using the Ask a Librarian service; and
  • much more. 

You must have an active Penn State Access Account to take full advantage of the Libraries' resources and service.  The Off-Campus Users page has additional information about these free services.


Technical Requirements

Technical Requirements
Operating System Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8*; Mac OS X 10.5 or higher
*Windows 8 support excludes the tablet only RT version
Processor 2 GHz or higher
Memory 1 GB of RAM
Hard Drive Space 20 GB free disk space
Browser We recommend the latest ANGEL-supported version of Firefox or Internet Explorer. To determine if your browser fits this criterion, and for advice on downloading a supported version, please refer to the following ITS knowledge base article: Supported Browsers and Recommended Computers.
Note: Cookies, Java, and JavaScript must be enabled. Pop-up blockers should be configured to permit new windows
from Penn State websites.

Due to nonstandard handling of CSS, JavaScript and caching,
older versions of Internet Explorer (such as IE 6 or earlier) do not work with our courses.
Plug-ins Adobe Reader [Download from Adobe]
Flash Player (v7.0 or later) [Download from Adobe]
Additional Software Microsoft Office (2007 or later)
Internet Connection Broadband (cable or DSL) connection required
Printer Access to graphics-capable printer
DVD-ROM Required
Sound Card, Microphone, and Speakers Required
Monitor Capable of at least 1024 x 768 resolution

If you need technical assistance at any point during the course, please contact the Service Desk.

For registration, advising, disability services, help with materials, exams, general problem solving, visit World Campus Student Services!


printer icon[printer-friendly version]

Course Schedule

 

Lesson Reading Assignment Activities

Lesson 01 Part 1 - Getting Started

  • Lesson 01 Part 1 Commentary

Complete the Lesson 01 Part 1 Assignments (Individual)

Lesson 01 Part 2 Fundamentals of Needs Assessment
  • Lesson 01 Part 2 Commentary
Complete the Lesson 01 Part 2 Group Work Factory Scenario (Group); and FACT or MYTH Activity (Individual)

Lesson 02 Diagnosing Performance Gaps

  • Lesson 02 Commentary
  • Text Readings
  • E-Reserve Readings

Complete the Lesson 02 Discussion Forum (Individual but review others' posts); Models and Practices Assignment (Individual but review others' posts), and Individual Performance Goals Assignment (Individual).

Lesson 03 Strategies for Collecting and Analyzing Data

  • Lesson 03 Commentary
  • Text Readings

Complete and submit the Lesson 03 Article Review Assignment (Individual).

Choose and submit the Topic for your Needs Assessment Project (Individual).

OPTIONAL (ungraded, no feedback) Complete the IRB Basic Training on the Protection of Human Participants.

Lesson 04 Writing Reports/Proposals and Ethical Considerations

  • Lesson 04 Commentary
  • Text Readings

Complete and submit the Lesson 04 Ethics Discussion Forum Assignment (Group).

Complete and submit the Final Post. (Group)

Complete and submit the Needs Assessment Project Proposal (Individual).

 

Lesson 05 Techniques: Training Needs Assessement

  • Lesson 05 Commentary
  • Text Readings

Complete and submit the Lesson 05 Needs Assessment Interview and Summary Report Assignment (Individual, open to peer review and comments)

Continue to work on your Needs Assessment Project (Individual).

Complete and submit the HRER Mid-Course Survey

 

Lesson 06 Techniques: Job and Task Analysis

 

  • Lesson 06 Commentary
  • Text:

Complete the Lesson 06 Job Analysis Questionnaire Assignment (Individual)

Continue to work on your Needs Assessment Project (Individual).

Lesson 07 Techniques: Competency-Based Assessment

  • Lesson 07 Commentary
  • Text Readings

View the Lesson 07 Video and complete and submit the Lesson 07 Assignment (Individual).

Continue to work on your Needs Assessment Project (Individual). Prepare to conduct the Needs Assessment sometime between now and the Lesson 11 time frame.

Lesson 08 Techniques: Strategic Needs Assessment
  • Lesson 08 Commentary
  • Text Readings
  • E-Reserve Reading

View the Strategic Needs Assessment video and complete and submit the Lesson 08 Assignment (Individual).

Continue to work on your Needs Assessment Project (Individual). Arrange to conduct the Needs Assessment sometime between now and the Lesson 11 time frame.

Lesson 09 Evaluation and ROI
  • Lesson 09 Commentary
  • Text Readings
  • E-Reserve Reading

Complete the Lesson 09 ROI GROUP Assignment. Your instructor will access the completed assignment directly in Google Docs by the due date listed at right.

Continue to work on your Needs Assessment Project (Individual). Arrange to conduct the Needs Assessment sometime between now and the Lesson 11 time frame.

Lesson 10 Case Study Discussion
  • Lesson 10 Commentary

Complete the Lesson 10 Case Study Assignment (Individual).

Continue to work on your Needs Assessment Project (Individual). By now you should have conducted your Needs Assessment.

Lesson 11 Part 1 Needs Assessment Project Paper

  • Lesson 11 Commentary
  • No assigned readings
Complete and submit your Needs Assessment Project Paper.
Thanksgiving Break
  • No assigned readings
No Assignments
Lesson 11 Part 2 Project Presentations
  • No assigned readings
Schedule and conduct your Needs Assessment Project Presentation.
Lesson 12 Final Exam
  • Lesson 12 Commentary
  • No assigned readings
Complete and submit the Open Book Final Exam.

 

Note: If you are planning to graduate this semester, please communicate your intent to graduate to your instructor. This will alert your instructor to the need to submit your final grade in time to meet the published graduation deadlines. For more information about graduation policies and deadlines, please refer to Graduation at the Chaiken Center for Student Success.

Formal instruction will end on the last day of class. Provided that you have an active Penn State Access Account user ID and password, you will continue to be able to access the course materials for one year, starting from the end date of the academic semester in which the course was offered (with the exception of library reserves and other external resources that may have a shorter archival period). After one year, you might be able to access the course based on the policies of the program or department offering the course material, up to a maximum of three years from the end date of the academic semester in which the course was offered. For more information, please review the University Course Archival Policy.



Grading

The World Campus follows the same grading system as the Penn State resident program. The grades of A, B, C, D, and F indicate the following qualities of academic performance:

A = (Excellent) Indicates exceptional achievement
B = (Good) Indicates extensive achievement
C = (Satisfactory) Indicates acceptable achievement
D = (Poor) Indicates only minimal achievement
F = (Failure) Indicates inadequate achievement necessitating a repetition of the course in order to secure credit

Lesson Title Discussion Forum Assignment Drop Box Assignment Other Type of Assignment Points
01 Part 1 Getting Started Upload Business Bio  
 
ungraded
01 Part 1 Getting Started   Drop Box Practice   ungraded
01 Part 1 Getting Started   Student Questionnaire   ungraded
01 Part 1 Getting Started   Academic Integrity   ungraded
01 Part 2 Fundamentals of Needs Assessment Lesson 01 Part 2 Group Work Factory Scenario     20
01 Part 2 Fundamentals of Needs Assessment   Lesson 01 Part 2 FACT or MYTH Activity - Individual   10
02 Diagnosing Performance Gaps Lesson 02 Discussion Forum - Individual but review others' posts     10
02 Diagnosing Performance Gaps   Lesson 02 Models and Practices Drop Box - Individual but review others' posts   20
02 Diagnosing Performance Gaps   Lesson 02 Individual Performance Goals Drop Box - Individual   20
03 Strategies for Collecting and Analyzing Data   Choose and submit your Topic for your Needs Assessment Project   ungraded
03 Strategies for Collecting and Analyzing Data   Article Review - Individual   75
04 Writing Reports/Proposals and Ethical Considerations Lesson 04 Group Work - Ethics Discussion Forum and Final Post debrief - Team discussion and whole class debrief     20
04 Writing Reports/Proposals and Ethical Considerations   Lesson 04 Needs Assessment Project Proposal - Individual   50
05 Techniques: Training Needs Assessment Training Needs Assessment Interview and Summary Report - Individual but set to Peer Review and comments invited     100
05 Techniques: Training Needs Assessment     HRER Mid-Course Survey Ungraded
06 Techniques: Job and Task Analysis   Job Analysis Questionnaire Assignment - Individual   20
07 Techniques: Competency-Based Assessment   Lesson 07 Competency-based Assessment Assignment - Individual   10
08 Techniques: Strategic Needs Assessment   Lesson 08 Assignment - Existing or Future Needs Form plus key takeaways- Individual   20
09 Evaluation and ROI Data Collection Analysis and ROI Analysis Plans + Peer and Self-Evaluation Forms - Group Work     75
10 Case Study   Case Study Recommendations - Individual   50
L11     Needs Assessment Project Paper   200
L11       Needs Assessment Project Presentation 200
L12 Final Exam   Final Open Book Exam   100
        COURSE TOTAL 1000

Grade Minimum %
A 93
A- 90
B+ 88
B 82
B- 80
C+ 78
C 70
D 60
F < 59

Please refer to the
University Registrar's information about University grading policies.

return to top of page


Assignments

IMPORTANT: Note that in some lessons you may come upon assignments located within the lesson commentary. Be sure to complete the assignments as you come upon them, rather than waiting until the end. It's important to begin your lessons EARLY in the week (Monday) in order to support dialog in the discussion forums. Be sure to check back to add comments and read your classmates' posts throughout the week.

Article Review

Each student will prepare an abstract of a research article that is related to the focus of a particular type of needs assessment or identification of performance problems.

Needs Assessment Interview

Each student will select an organization that has conducted a formal or informal training needs assessment, contact the appropriate human resource development representative, and interview him/her by phone or personal visit. Assignment submission will be open to peer review.

Case Study Review Group Work

Students will team up (3-4 per team) to discuss the Case Study provided. Using Google Spreadsheets, as a team, you'll complete the Data Collection and ROI Analysis Plans provided for the scenario described in your Case Study. Make sure each team member has a chance to contribute to each of the plans. Your instructor will send you a link to these worksheets.

Needs Assessment Project

The purpose of this assignment is to provide you with the opportunity to apply the principles learned in this course and participate in an actual needs assessment. You will select your topic early in the course, and in subsequent weeks, you will research your topic, create any survey instruments needed, conduct the needs assessment, analyze the results, and recommend solutions. For this assignment, you'll submit a Needs Assessment Project Report.

To give you practice in presenting the results of a needs assessment, you'll create a brief PowerPoint slide presentation highlighting the major points in your report, and conduct a 15-20-minute one-on-one presentation with a classmate. In turn, your classmate will conduct their presentation to you. Your instructor will evaluate the presentations for grading. Guidelines are provided within the assignment for using Elluminate Live to conduct and RECORD your presentations in real-time.

It will be critical for you to pay attention to the schedule for completing the Needs Assessment Project so that you have a chance to conduct the research, create the survey instruments needed, conduct the needs assessment, write the Project Report, create the PowerPoint slide presentation, and conduct the presentation in the time frames specified. Follow the directions provided in the Syllabus and within the course lesson assignment pages carefully. Contact your instructor if you have questions or concerns. In order to succeed, plan to spend some time on this project each week.

Completion of Human Subjects Certification

As part of the Lesson 02 Assignments, you'll complete the IRB Basic Training on the Protection of Human Participants, and complete the quiz provided on their Web site. When you receive your confirmation e-mail that you have successfully passed the quiz, you'll submit a copy to your instructor.

Final Examination – The Final Exam is open book and you will have approximately five days to complete it.

Citation of Sources

The required style for all papers and sources: Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. (5th ed.). (2001). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Resources for APA guidelines are provided under the Lessons tab on your course Web site.

Students please note: The Department of Labor Studies and Employment Relations does not view Wikipedia as a valid source for information cited in academic work. It can be a useful tool for quickly finding general information on subjects or as a starting point for research. However, students should not cite Wikipedia as a source in papers, reports, assignments, etc.

Some of your assignments will include Group Work. Please read this information on working in teams and groups. Note that members of the same team may receive different grades according to the level and quality of their participation.

As a Penn State student, you have access to lynda.com, your one-stop shop for video tutorials on Illustrator, Dreamweaver, Photoshop, Access, Excel, PowerPoint, and hundreds more topics--all free to active Penn State faculty, staff, and currently enrolled students. Take tutorials to help with coursework, learn techniques for your own projects, and build tech skills to boost your résumé. (Tutorials are not required or graded.)


Academic Integrity

According to Penn State policy G-9: Academic Integrity (for undergraduate students in undergraduate courses) and policy GCAC-805 Academic Integrity (for graduate students and undergraduate students in graduate courses), an academic integrity violation is “an intentional, unintentional, or attempted violation of course or assessment policies to gain an academic advantage or to advantage or disadvantage another student academically.” Unless your instructor tells you otherwise, you must complete all course work entirely on your own, using only sources that have been permitted by your instructor, and you may not assist other students with papers, quizzes, exams, or other assessments. If your instructor allows you to use ideas, images, or word phrases created by another person (e.g., from Course Hero or Chegg) or by generative technology, such as ChatGPT, you must identify their source. You may not submit false or fabricated information, use the same academic work for credit in multiple courses, or share instructional content. Students with questions about academic integrity should ask their instructor before submitting work.

Students facing allegations of academic misconduct may not drop/withdraw from the affected course unless they are cleared of wrongdoing (see G-9: Academic Integrity or GCAC-805 Academic Integrity as appropriate). Attempted drops will be prevented or reversed, and students will be expected to complete course work and meet course deadlines. Students who are found responsible for academic integrity violations face academic outcomes, which can be severe, and put themselves at jeopardy for other outcomes which may include ineligibility for Dean’s List, pass/fail elections, and grade forgiveness. Students may also face consequences from their home/major program and/or The Schreyer Honors College.

How Academic Integrity Violations Are Handled
World Campus students are expected to act with civility and personal integrity; respect other students' dignity, rights, and property; and help create and maintain an environment in which all can succeed through the fruits of their own efforts. An environment of academic integrity is requisite to respect for oneself and others, as well as a civil community.

In cases where academic integrity is questioned, procedures allow a student to accept or contest/appeal the allegation. If a student chooses to contest/appeal the allegation, the case will then be managed by the respective school, college or campus Academic Integrity Committee. Review procedures may vary by college, campus, or school, but all follow the aforementioned policies.

All academic integrity violations are referred to the Office of Student Accountability and Conflict Response, which may assign an educational intervention and/or apply a Formal Warning, Conduct Probation, Suspension, or Expulsion.

Information about Penn State's academic integrity policy is included in the information that students receive upon enrolling in a course. To obtain that information in advance of enrolling in a course, please contact us by going to the Contacts & Help page.


University Policies

Penn State welcomes students with disabilities into the University’s educational programs. Every Penn State campus has an office for students with disabilities, including World Campus. The Disabilities and Accommodations section of the Chaiken Center for Student Success website provides World Campus students with information regarding how to request accommodations, documentation guidelines and eligibility, and appeals and complaints. For additional information, please visit the University's Student Disability Resources website.

In order to receive consideration for reasonable accommodations, you must contact the appropriate disability services office at the campus where you are officially enrolled, participate in an intake interview, and provide documentation. If the documentation supports your request for reasonable accommodations, your campus's disability services office will provide you with an accommodation letter. Please share this letter with your instructors and discuss the accommodations with them as early in your courses as possible. You must follow this process for every semester that you request accommodations.

Students with disabilities participating in internship, practicum, student teaching, or other experiential learning opportunities as part of their degree requirements may also be eligible for reasonable accommodations to ensure equal access and opportunity. These accommodations are determined through an interactive process involving the student, their University supervisor, and the site supervisor. Student Disability Resources can assist students with identifying potential barriers, facilitating accommodation requests, and coordinating with University supervisors to promote inclusive learning experiences.

For information about additional policies regarding Penn State Access Accounts; credit by examination; course tuition, fees, and refund schedules; and drops and withdrawals, please see the World Campus Student Center website.


Disclaimer

Please note that the specifics of this Course Syllabus are subject to change, and you will be responsible for abiding by any such changes. Your instructor will notify you of any changes.

© 2009 The Pennsylvania State University