Educational Needs Assessment Report for the Pacific Region 1997

Abstract

To assess educational needs in the Pacific region, Pacific Resources for Education and Learning (PREL) identified 9 general education areas to be examined through 47 survey items. These items were presented as a questionnaire to educators in the region served by PREL, which includes American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Hawaii, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau. The gap between educators' ratings of perceived importance and perceived progress for each item was regarded as a measure of the magnitude of educational need. Systemic reform, professional development, and at-risk and gifted/talented youth were identified as the three most important areas for education in the Pacific region. Planning and accountability, curriculum and instruction, and system reform were the areas in which the most progress was perceived. Use of technology, early childhood education, and at-risk and gifted/talented youth were generally identified as the three areas of most need. An appendix contains the needs survey. (Contains 36 tables and 11 figures.) (SLD)