Need Assessment: a Critique of Philosophical Assumptions

Abstract

Building upon a previously published review of "needs" literature, this article demonstrates the function and necessity of philosophical reflection in the field of adult education. A philosophical analysis of the literature of "need" reveals the overly technical preoccupation of adult educational theory and the general lack of attention to other modes of valuing such as the political and the ethical. These lacunae become evident when approaches to educational planning based on needs are compared to Paulo Freire's "pedagogy of the oppressed." In terms of practical implications, it is suggested that the postulation of a hierarchy of basic values serve as the core of program development. On the level of practice, it is recommended that educators initiate planning with a critical examination of the causes of felt needs and that they explicitly model values and value options. For those concerned with educational theorizing, an alternative to the predominant need-assessment rationale for educational program development is suggested.