A Needs Assessment for a Digital-Age Student Support System in Schools of Chiang Muan District, Phayao Primary Educational Service Area Office 2, Thailand.

Abstract

The objectives of this research: 1) to investigate the needs for the operation of the student care and support system in the digital age for schools in Chiang Muan District, under the Phayao Primary Educational Service Area Office 2; and 2) to explore recommendations for the operation of this system. The target group consisted of 107 school administrators and teachers from 12 schools in Chiang Muan District, along with 3 experts. The research instrument was a three-part questionnaire with a Content Validity (IOC) of 1.00 and a total reliability of 0.98. Data were collected through online questionnaires and analyzed using frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, and the Modified Priority Needs Index (PNI_modified), as well as content analysis for the open-ended recommendations.  The research findings revealed that: 1) regarding the priority needs for student support systems in the digital era, the overall current state was at a moderate level (μ = 3.58), while the desirable state was at a high level (μ = 4.95). Ranking the priority needs using (PNI_modified) showed that the area with the highest urgency was Information Technology Usage (PNI_modified = 0.47), followed by Monitoring and Evaluation of Assistance (PNI_modified = 0.40), and the Organization of Student Support Systems (PNI_modified = 0.38), respectively. 2) Key recommendations for the implementation included: (2.1) developing a real-time monitoring system to enable teachers and administrators to track assistance progress promptly; (2.2) supporting the use of cloud-based databases to integrate individual student data and reduce documentation redundancy; and (2.3) providing continuous digital skill development training for teachers to enhance proficiency in using online tools and applications.