Needs Assessment and Individual Development Plans

A review of Strengths, Interests and Needs (SINs) uses a simple strengths based format and can be facilitated by a youth worker or alternative education provider.

The SINs Assessment leads to the creation of an individualised development plan (IDP) -a strategy for building on the strengths and interests of the student through targeted learning experiences, meeting developmental needs and working towards the achievement of NCEA credits.

The SINs Assessment and IDP format are integrated with Getting Started –an initial text book for students at AE centres. The book includes literacy and numeracy work, plus goal setting exercises, and discussion topics which help the provider to gather information for the SINs assessment.

• The SINs Assessment is a collaboration between a young person, their whanau and an education provider. The assessment is based on the Circle Courage model of youth development which emphasizes the importance of developing respectful communities around a young person which meet four basic developmental needs:
• the need to belong,
• the need to master skills and become competent
• the need to become independent and responsible
• the need to act generously towards others

The research indicates that when these needs are being met, youth are being developed into resilient people who will overcome the difficulties they face in life and contribute to their community. The SINs assessment will focus on six areas:

• Social skills
• Life skills
• Literacy and numeracy
• Identity and belonging
• Health and safety
• Employment skills

The process will aim to identify answers to three questions:

• What are they good at?
• What are they interested in?
• What needs can we begin working on?