Chapter Title: Preface
Chapter Author(s): Regina Egetenmeyer
Book Title: Needs Analysis and Programme Planning in Adult Education
Book Author(s): Simona Sava
Published by: Verlag Barbara Budrich
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.com/stable/j.ctvbkjvs2.3
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Preface
Needs analysis and programme planning are among the central responsibili-
ties of full-time staff working in adult education institutions. In contrast to
the school sector, adult education for the most part does not work with long-
term fixed curricula. Rather, programmes are being planned and revised on
an ongoing basis, and geared towards the needs of different groups. As adult
education is – at least in principle – characterised by voluntary participation,
it is essential to investigate the interests of potential participants. But adult
education is not limited to individual needs and interests. Rather, adult educa-
tion programmes are positioned in the context of the needs and interests for-
mulated by national and international educational policies, research findings,
the institutional mission of adult education providers, and, in some cases, the
interests of institutional clients. Besides formulating needs and interests, it is
the specific task of needs assessors to identify latent needs in society.
Within this context of different needs, it is obvious that needs analysis
struggles with a lot of conflict areas, contradictions, and antinomies. While it
is a challenge to identify needs in the first place, it is just as much of a chal-
lenge to find ways of addressing these needs. Adult education has to balance
educational and economic goals. It has to deal with individual interests and
the interests of society. Discrepancies may arise, for example, between the
formulated needs of an institutional client and the perceived needs of the par-
ticipants that institutional clients select for a course. All of these needs are
present when adult educators are engaged in programme planning.
There are various ways to do needs analysis and to serve the needs that
have been identified. In this volume, Simona Sava provides an introduction
to needs analysis and programme planning in adult education. Hence the
book is written not only for students but also for practitioners in the field of
adult education. Therefore, Simona Sava introduces her readers to the discus-
sion on needs and needs analysis in educational contexts, referring to both the
European and the Anglo-Saxon discussion. Practitioners learn how needs
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analysis can be done in their daily work in adult education, and how they can
use their results for programme planning. Readers of this study guide will no-
tice that Simona Sava’s perspective on adult education is informed by both
theory and practice. As a professor at the West University of Timisoara, she
is scientist. But she is also doing essential developmental work in adult edu-
cation as director of the Romanian Institute of Adult Education. As a result,
she combines theoretical and practical perspectives, serving as an expert not
only in Romania but throughout Europe.
Simona Sava is devoted to the topic of needs analysis and programme
planning within the European Master in Adult Education. She first taught this
course in Germany during her stay at the Faculty of Educational Sciences at
the University of Duisburg-Essen as a DAAD-guest professor in spring 2009.
Since then, she has returned to Germany each year to teach this course. It is
also among the courses she teaches at the West University of Timisoara, ena-
bling her to evaluate her study guide with different groups of international
students. A warm thank you goes to Simona Sava for contributing this vol-
ume to the Study Guides in Adult Education series.
Regina Egetenmeyer
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