Activity 3. Needs Analysis
I have a delay on my activities since I
presented an initial idea to the staff of the Centro de Integración Juvenil
where I will carry out my Social Service and they asked me to change it.
Initially I was thinking on develop an English course for 6th. Grade
students from elementary school, and now my target are clients (secondary
school level) of the Centro de Integración Juvenil and their relatives who have
the necessity of improve their English language skills and consolidate basic
knowledge. Clients of the place are people in a process of rehabilitation from
alcohol or drug abuse. Some of them have problems to keep up with the school
demands; others have dropped from school. For them, English is a difficult
subject.
For the activity I
applied questionnaire and the Comprehensive Strengths and needs Matrix with the
following results:
The CIJ is a well
organized national institution with a variety of resources available for staff
and volunteers in regard to training to treat and prevent addictions. The staff
members understand and follow the institution policies and collaborative work,
but there is a lack of material and human resources, so they accept help from
volunteers.
The participation of
the family as part of the treatment is required, however the level of
commitment varies.
Given the
characteristics of the centre, it is difficult to have access to the clients.
They have different socio economic background and learning experiences, and
they are having personal troubles. The clients interested in the English course
had have different level of knowledge on the subject, and because of that I
decided to make a review of the basic information of general English, working
it in different social practices of the language to make it meaningful,
exposing students to a wide range of oral and written texts, and using English
must of the time during the class. Collaborative work, communicative approach,
experiential learning, action research, addressing all learning styles are part
of methodology preferred for the course.
Thanks for reading.
Hi Claudia, As I wrote to you before, this is a really interesting project and I’m sure it will be challenging! It’s good that you were able to get feedback from the staff at the Centre, and that they indicated an area that needed attention. I’m sure you will have to look for information on supporting learners with special circumstances in order to strengthen your teaching. If I find anything that might be of use to you, I’ll pass it your way.
ResponderEliminarHi Daisy,
EliminarYou are rigth! It will be very difficult for me, but it will be an opportunity to grow as a person and professional. The good news is that there is a mandatory training on this subject for each volunteer.
Thanks for your comments.
Good evening Claudia,
ResponderEliminarYour project sound very challenging! I never considered an institution with such characteristics. I am sure you are going to learn too many new things there. It is going to be highly rewarding for you working on this project. I wish you the best.
Thank you for your contribution.
Yours,
Sergio
Hi Sergio,
ResponderEliminarLet me tell you that one of the strengths of the cij is that it has resources to give volunteers strategies for working with the type of population served.Thanks for your comments and good wishes.
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ResponderEliminarAs I've said elsewhere, it's wonderful that this training is available! I look forward to you sharing what you learn with us.