Overview of Handouts 11, 12, and 13

These three handouts provide snapshot descriptions of instruments, products, processes, and approaches that can be used to survey the labor force needs of a community, to assess the skills and education / training needs of the workforce, and to suggest appropriate instructional responses to the needs of the community and its workforce.

These handouts are by no means exhaustive lists of what is available; rather, they represent reviews of both the more traditional options available as well as other options discovered or recommended during the course of the research preceding the development of this guide.

Stakeholders in workforce development must collaboratively determine which if any of these instruments, products, processes, or approaches is appropriate for use in their communities. Historically, some have been misused, and without adequate training and preparation, none of them will necessarily improve the quality of a program. Each community's needs, capacity, and infrastructure must be taken into consideration when planning needs analyses, learner assessments, and programmatic responses.

Handout # 11: Needs Analysis describes eight instruments currently available for surveying the labor force needs of a community's employers or potential employers. Although not all equally appropriate for use with the targeted population, they have been included because a) they are owned and often favored by those familiar with them, and b) they have been examined for their appropriateness, strengths, and limitations. An asterisk * indicates that the instrument is recommended as a valuable resource. Matrix 1: Employers Surveys

Handout # 12: Assessment provides descriptions of some of the most popular instruments used to assess adult learners. While there are literally hundreds of locally developed assessment activities in use, most workforce and education service providers rely on one or more of these commercially prepared instruments to assess the language and literacy needs of limited English proficient adult learners. It is important to recognize the difficulty in measuring what adult learners know when they themselves cannot communicate their knowledge to us. For this reason, a multi-dimensional approach to assessment is recommended: one that includes the use of one of the instruments described here, combined with alternative forms of assessment such as learner portfolios, teacher observations, documented changes in a learner's behavior or performance, interviews, performance reviews, and testimonials by employers, supervisors, and the learners themselves. A multi-dimensional approach to assessment validates results and helps to ensure that programs are accurately identifying learners' needs and accomplishments. Matrix 2: Assessing Workers' Needs

Handout # 13: Instructional Responses provides a fairly extensive collection of instructional responses to the needs of Spanish-speaking dislocated workers faced with limited English language proficiency. These responses vary greatly in their scope and comprehensiveness. Some are clearly only partial responses to the educational needs of the targeted population, but would lend themselves well to a comprehensive framework of educational services. It is highly unlikely that any single one of these responses can address the diverse needs of all non-native speakers of English. Costs vary greatly, due to factors such as the use of technology, research, curriculum and materials development, and adaptability. The selection of one or more of these instructional responses for local program implementation is contingent upon the needs of the local community. Data gathered from the needs analysis (Handout # 11) and the assessment of learners' skills and education/training needs (Handout # 12) should provide the basis for any selection, with critical input from education service providers as well as the learners themselves. Matrix 3: Product, Processes, Approaches

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