Painless Way to Collect Needs Assessments

You know the dreaded time has come to collect Needs Assessments. It’s eventually going to happen! And for good reason, because Needs Assessments are very valuable for the way you adjust your counseling program.

They are just a PAIN to carry out, collect and evaluate the results!

I ended up coming into a counseling position my first year, which was, of course, Needs Assessment year! I followed the previous counselor’s footsteps and did what was always done…

PAPER SURVEYS

Sure, I could send them off in the end and get them all scored (for an unreasonable amount of money… out of my budget).

For the most part, the pain lies in handing them all out, collecting for months, sending them in and getting a 10-page report with a bunch of numbers that made NO SENSE!

For that reason, I was done! It was not worth my time and resources to get a jumbled mess of numbers, that for sure, was not helping my counseling program.

I took matters into my own hands and made Three Easy-Peasy Needs Assessments to use instead.

I was looking for simple, automatic, and just plain easy.

So, you can probably guess, I used Google Forms!

If you have not used Google Forms, you should start! It makes my counseling life a whole lot easier and painless! If you need info on how to start using Google Forms you can click here!

As for the Needs Assessments, I made a Student, Staff and Parent Version so we can get relevant information from all the stakeholders involved in our program.

Parents get an emailed version through SIS (Student Information System). Also, administrators, teachers, and other personnel receive the Staff survey through email.

As for the students, I do this in the first couple of weeks of school, during a mini-classroom lesson. I usually start by introducing myself and the counseling program. I explain the referral process and then go into explaining the purpose of the survey.

We are a one-to-one technology school, so our students are very familiar with using the computer and taking a survey on Google Forms. However, I do have a Kindergarten and 1st Grade that I like to use old-fashioned paper and pencil!

So, if your kiddos are not used to computers or you like to do a mix (like me), I have you covered!

In my Three Easy-Peasy Needs Assessments, I have a link to a shared Google Doc folder holding all three Needs Assessment Surveys PLUS all three surveys in paper format as well!

Just a little side note… you WILL need a Google Drive Account and you WILL need to copy the Needs Assessment folder in order to make your own adjustments and send it out to your families.

The good news is, my TPT file has all the Easy-Peasy directions for you to follow!

So there you have it… totally PAINLESS!

Be sure to check out my TPT Store and my Three Easy-Peasy Needs Assessments!

Also, I want to hear how you collect Needs Assessments and what is your biggest struggle?