Four types of needs assessment are identified in the diagram. Box 1 represents assessing yourself as an adult educator. For novice adult educators, a thorough assessment of philosophical assumptions, experience, and skills is critical to future success. More experienced adult educators should include self- assessment as part of their ongoing professional development. Box 2 represents developing content knowledge, skills, and expertise. Box 3 focuses on assessing the needs of the adult learners. This is what many educators think of when needs assessment is discussed. Box 4 represents assessing the learning contexts: the social, political, and economic settings in which learning takes place. The purpose of the diagram is to emphasize that adult educators should perform needs assessments in all four areas prior to developing goals, objectives, learning activities, and evaluation. They must be aware, before beginning to develop the actual instructional plan, of themselves as adult educators, their content knowledge, the learners' needs, and the political, social, and economic situations that affect the learning process .