Program Development: On-Line Lesson
Chapter 5: Needs Identification and Assessment
What people need and what people want can vary greatly. Wants are related to what people already know about. The National Recreation and Parks Association has created and promoted a Benefits-Based Management program that is the new leisure service program delivery paradigm.
Benefits-Based Management (BBM): the on-going process by leisure service providers to identify desirable individual, social, economic, and environmental benefits derived from recreational experiences (Allen, 1998).
Benefits-Based Programs (BBP): the design and delivery of programs with the intent to address or incorporate "benefits", using a set of goals and objectives that can be measured and evaluated in an effort to validate specific individual, social, economic, or environmental attributes" (Allen, 1998).
Six Basic Terms for Developing Planning Strategies (definitions are italicized in the text)
needs: A physical, psychological or social imbalance. A discrepancy between the "ideal" state and an individual's current condition.
wants: Something perceived as being needed.
values: A principle, guideline, or standard of quality that an individual, community or society considers worthwhile.
attitudes: A feeling or state of mind. An individuals predisposition towards something.
needs identification: Taking inventory of an individual's leisure wants, needs, behaviors, values, attitudes and resources.
needs assessment: Determining the target group to be addressed and the resources necessary to deliver leisure services.
Assessment
Most needs assessments use a variety of methods to determine what leisure programs are necessary. These methods include: social indicators, social surveys and community group approaches.
validity: when an instrument gives an accurate measure of what it says it will measure
reliability: consistent measurements of the same phenomenon
Social Indicators: quantitative measures that establish the need for a service. Different authorities (city, state, federal and professional) or agencies have established standards for providing leisure services or facilities.
Social Surveys: Uses demographic information to collect individual and community preferences, opinions, and attitudes.
Community Group Approach: An opportunity for community members to express their opinions and be involved in the decision making and planning process. The most common approaches are:
 | community forums |
| focus groups |
| nominal group technique |
| Delphi technique |
| telephone interviews |
| direct-mail questionnaire |
Need Typologies
Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs pp 143-144 |
Nash's "Use of Leisure Time" |
| self actualization needs | creative participation |
| ego-esteem needs | active participation |
| social needs | emotional participation |
| safety/security needs | entertainment/amusement |
| physical/biological needs | injury/detrimental to self |
| acts performed against society |
Five Types of Needs
Chapter 6: Establishing Direction: Developing Goals and Objectives
Identifying a direction for an organization or an individual will create efficiency in the use of resources and bring focus to the marketing plan.
Organizational Culture: the prevailing norms, customs, values, and behaviors exhibited by its members.
Vision and Mission Statements: communicate the broad prime directive of an organization, i.e. what they do and why they exist.
Vision Statement: attempt to create a mental image of the future desired state of the organization.
| inspiring |
| challenging |
| flexible |
| core is stable with change at the edges |
| empower employees |
| implemented through details |
Mission Statement: define the primary work of the organization.
| short and direct |
| focus on specific types of services, markets and benefits |
| focus on quality and excellence |
| reflect organizational values |
| difficult to quantify because they are broadly written |
Program Goals and Objectives: allows the results of the services to be measured.
Three Areas to be Considered for Programs or Services
| program development: identifying the target market; services; resources; leadership; location; schedule; and duration |
| promotion and sales: identifying channels of promotion; types of promotional materials; and promotional schedule |
| financial strategies: identifying revenue potential; setting fees and charges; subsidy policies; revenue collection process |
Program Goals: Broad statements that define the leisure service to be produced.
Program Objectives: Specific statements that are measurable and have some dimension of time.
Common Characteristics of Program Goals and Objectives
| specific |
| measurable |
| realistic (pragmatic) |
| valuable (to agency and consumer) |
| related to needs of agency and consumer |
Writing Performance Objectives
Learning Domains: Performance objectives can be developed for each learning domain.
| Cognitive: acquiring knowledge, comprehension and understanding |
| Affective: involves feelings, values, and emotions. |
| Psychomotor: acquiring physical and neuromuscular (gross and fine motor) skills. |
Examples of Goals and Objectives
Cognitive Goal: Participants will increase their knowledge of kayaking. (Note: this goal is not measurable)
Cognitive Objective: Participants will correctly describe the six classifications of river difficulty by the end of the second class meeting. (Note this objective is measurable ie. describe the six classifications... AND it has a time frame ie. by the end of the second class.
Affective Goal: Participants will enjoy kayaking.
Affective Objective: Participants will sign-up for a second kayak class before the end of the current class.
Psychomotor Goal: Participants will improve their kayaking skills.
Psychomotor Objective: Participants will correctly demonstrate the Eskimo roll three out of five times by the end of the program.
Benefits-Based Programming Model:
| Phase 1. Target Issues - develop issues and target goals. |
| Phase 2. Activity Components - performance objectives; daily activities/procedures; process daily activities; monitor objectives. |
| Phase 3. Benefit Outcomes - evaluate overall outcomes as they relate to the target goals. |
| Phase 4. Benefits-Based Awareness - establish a comprehensive marketing effort that effectively communicates the success of the program. |
Chapter 7: Program Development
Program planning integrates the customer needs (from the needs assessment stage) and the goals and objectives that have been determined. The following factors are common to ALL program development situations:
1) Program Area: the way leisure programs are categorized. Programming should include a variety of program areas. There are several ways to do this.
| aquatics- |
| arts- |
| education- |
| fitness & wellness- |
| sports, games and athletics- |
| literary activities- |
| outdoor recreation- |
| performing arts- |
| social recreation- |
| travel & tourism- |
| volunteer services- |
2) Program Formats: the way an activity is organized and structured.
| class |
| competitive |
| drop-in |
| interest group |
| outreach |
| special event |
| workshop |
3) Program Content: the specific content that will be included in any given program/activity.
| long-range planning- general information, target market, time frame, general content of program. |
| short-range planning- focuses on the individual sessions in great detail. |
| Sample Program Content Card |
| Program Area: Program Format: Name of Program Target Market: Program Goal Program Objectives: Program Equipment Needed: Facilities Needed: Program Time Line: Content: By Week or Session: |
4) Time Factors:
A) Time Line: an outline of tasks to be carried out, including people to contact, facilities to reserve, materials to secure, and program promotion; all of which is designated with a specific time when the task should be completed (see page 177).
B) Scheduling: Patterns
| seasons/holidays: natural time blocks. |
| sessions: 8 to 10 week blocks. |
| weekly/monthly: |
| lifestyle of consumer: days divided into: |
early morning (5:00am to 8:00 am)
morning sessions (9:00am to 12:00pm)
noon hour (12:00pm to 1:00pm)
early afternoon (1:00pm to 3:00pm)
late afternoon (3:00pm to 5:00pm)
evening dinner hour (5:00pm to 7:00pm)
early evening ( 6:00pm to 8:00pm)
late evening (8:00pm to 12:00am)
Time deepening: undertaking an activity more quickly; undertaking more than one activity simultaneously; and using time more precisely.
5) Facilities: buildings and land areas.
Cleanliness; good lighting; comfortable temperatures; attractive colors; appropriate floor surface; window coverings; monitoring and prevention of vandalism. Promote positive facility use.
6) Setting:
| physical environment: physical space and feeling |
| social environment: more important than the physical setting. The interaction between the staff and participants; and between participants. |
7) Equipment and Supplies:
8) Staffing: the process of securing the human resources for program delivery. The level of knowledge, skill and ability needed by the activity leader as sometimes the age of the leaders need to be determined.
American Camping Association Staffing Ratios
Ages |
Ratio
|
| 4-5 | 1:6 |
| 6-8 | 1:8 |
| 9-14 | 1:10 |
| 15-18 | 1:12 |
| 19 + | 1:20 |
Three levels of leadership:
| administrative |
| supervisory |
| face-to-face |
9) Cost: a program budget is developed including all program expenditures and income. (sample budget)
A line item activity budget should include:
| Revenue. All income from class fees & charges. |
| Expenses. All expenses directly & indirectly required to offer the
activity or program. These may include: 1) staffing costs (instructor wages) |
10) Promotion: developing the proper promotional message and selecting the best medium for delivery the promotional message.
| sales promotion (sampling, coupons, contests, and demonstrations. |
| personal selling |
| public relations |
Different media include:
| newspapers |
| shopper's guides |
| news release |
| news feature |
| letters to the editor |
| newspaper advertisements |
| brochures |
| fliers 1) name of event 2) identify the target audience 3) location; date and time of event 4) sponsoring agency 5) contact information for more information (phone number, email or web address). |
| Newsletters |
| annual reports |
| web sites |
11) Activity Analysis: the procedure for breaking down and examining the inherent
characteristics of an activity. Learning domains (cognitive, affective, and psychomotor)
and social analysis:
| intra-individual: activity requiring no contact with another person or object (daydreaming). |
| extra-individual: activity involving interaction with an object in the environment, but no contact with another person (reading). |
| aggregate: activity with an object in the environment, while in the company of other people, but no contact or interaction is necessary (movie). |
| inter-individual: a competitive activity between two individuals (chess). |
| unilateral: a competitive activity between three or more people with one person being "it" (tag games). |
| multilateral: a competitive activity among a group of three or more persons (card games). |
| intragroup: a cooperative activity with two or more persons striving for a mutual goal (music group). |
| intergroup: a competitive activity between two or more intragroups (team sports). |
12) Risk Management: the anticipation of situations and the exercise of reasonable care and judgement as a precaution to reduce or eliminate hazards and risks.
Identify Risks
| tort |
| contract |
| fidelity |
| property loss |
Risk Evaluation
| frequency of loss |
| severity of loss |
Risk Treatment
| avoidance |
| reduction |
| retention |
| transference |
Risk Implementation
| policy |
| procedures |
Systematic Plan
| reporting and record keeping |
| facilities inspection |
| participant safety briefings and preparation |
| staff training |
| emergency procedures |
13) Special Considerations: Important strategies to be sought in the organization of leisure programs.
| inclusion |
| diversity |
Building a Framework for Service Delivery: (see Figure 7.18, pg. 207 in text)
| Drivers of Change |
| Our New Perspective |
| Service Themes |
| Delivery of Service |
Program Planning Worksheets: these provide guidance in the form of check lists or program planning worksheets to assist in the program development process to ensure that each of the steps are addressed.
Chapter 8: Program Areas
Classification of activities by:
| amount and kind of involvement passive/active; |
| physical, mental or social context; |
| high/low risk; |
| structured/unstructured; |
| planned/self-directed; |
| individual/group; |
| general environment indoor/outdoor; |
| seasonal; |
| facilities courts; rec. centers; |
| age, gender; |
| type of activities sports, performing arts etc |
1) When dividing groups by age they should be no more than 2-3 years in range (i.e. 10-13; 5-8)
2) Most sports emphasize team sports, but dual and individual sports have lifelong involvement.
3) Sports, games and athletics reach the widest variety of participants of any program area.
4) Outdoor Recreation divided into "resource-oriented" or "activity-oriented" programs.
5) Wellness an important trend for the future.
Emerging Areas - Youth and Family Programming: Social indicator suggest that youth have a great deal of time available and family dynamics have changed dramatically in the last several centuries.
Framework for Youth Programming
| academic enrichment |
| leisure activities |
| leadership development |
| service learning |
| outreach services |
| life skill building |
| health promotion |
| peer mentoring |
| vocational/career/employment |
| clubs/special interest groups |
Framework for Family Programming
| family life skills & development |
| family hobbies |
| family collections |
| family cultural activities |
| family literary activities |
| family trips & tours |
| family physical activities |
| family arts & crafts |
| family outdoor activities |
| family service activities |
| family time capsules |
| family social activities |
Chapter 9: Program Formats
Program Formats: the way in which experiences are sequenced and linked to one another in order to increase the likelihood that customers will achieve desired benefits.
Program Format Structure: refers to what form the leisure service experience takes.
| self-improvement; |
| competition; |
| social; |
| participant spectator; and |
| self-directed |
Formatting Programs
Competitive: a person's performance is judged in terms of established standards or another individual's performance.
| contest: |
| game: |
| meet: |
| league: |
| tournament: |
Types of Tournaments
| Single elimination tournament |
| Double elimination tournament |
| Consolation tournament |
| Ladder tournament |
| Challenge tournament |
| Pyramid tournament |
| Round-Robin tournament |
Drop-in: does not have to follow a specific schedule and requires minimal supervision or leadership.
Class: a highly structured teaching/learning situation. Each class requires the instructor to prepare a daily lesson plan which includes class objective: materials; teaching methods; and evaluation.
Club: a group organized for a specific interest or purpose. Clubs operate either formally or informally but use some form of organization to conduct its business such as Robert's Rules of Order.
Special Event: an unusual or extraordinary activity or event of importance.
Workshop/Conference: a program form with an intense content conducted over a relatively short period of time.
Interest Group: a group that has formed based on an activity, issue or program area.
Outreach: a program created to extend leisure services to individuals outside traditional modes of program delivery.
Types of Outreach
| mobile service |
| detached youth work |
| school based services |
| parents as partners |
| home based activities |
| free form programs |
| intergenerational or multigenerational programs |
| mentoring programs |
| internet outreach |
| information shops |
[Class] [return to Module Three]
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2001 Northern Arizona University, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED