3 Surveys for Student Feedback to Improve Instruction

During the summer break, or at the end of a quarter, trimester or semester, teachers have the opportunity to reflect on their lessons. Teacher reflections can be improved when student feedback is included, and collecting student feedback is easy if teachers use surveys such as the three described below.

Research Supports the Use of Student Feedback

A three-year study, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, titled The Measures of Effective Teaching (MET) project, was designed to determine how to best identify and promote great teaching. The MET project has "demonstrated that it is possible to identify great teaching by combining three types of measures: classroom observations, student surveys, and student achievement gains." 

The MET project collected information by surveying students about their "perceptions of their classroom environment." This information provided "concrete feedback that can help teachers improve." 

The "Seven Cs" for Feedback:

The MET project focused on the "seven Cs" in their student surveys; each question represents one of the qualities teachers could use as a focus for improvement:

1. Caring about students (Encouragement and Support)
   Survey Question: "The teacher in this class encourages me to do my best.” 
2. Captivating students (Learning Seems Interesting and Relevant)
   Survey Question:“This class keeps my attention – I don't get bored.”
3. Conferring with students (Students Sense their Ideas are Respected)
   Survey Question:“My teacher gives us time to explain our ideas.”
4. Controlling behavior (Culture of Cooperation and Peer Support)
   Survey Question: “Our class stays busy and doesn’t waste time.”
5. Clarifying lessons (Success Seems Feasible)
   Survey Question: “When I am confused, my teacher knows how to help me understand.”
6. Challenging students (Press for Effort, Perseverance, and Rigor)
   Survey Question: “My teacher wants us to use our thinking skills, not just memorize things.”
7. Consolidating knowledge (Ideas get Connected and Integrated)
   Survey Question: “My teacher takes the time to summarize what we learn each day.”

The results of the MET project were released in 2013. One of the major findings included the critical role of using a student survey in predicting achievement:

"Combining observation scores, student feedback, and student achievement gains was better than graduate degrees or years of teaching experience at predicting a teacher’s student achievement gains with another group of students on the state tests".

What Kinds of Surveys Should Teachers Use?

There are many different ways to get feedback from students. Depending on a teacher's proficiency with technology, each of the three different options outlined below can collect valuable feedback from students on lessons, activities, and what can be done to improve instruction in the coming school year.

Survey questions can be designed as open-ended or closed, and these two types of questions are used for distinct purposes that require the evaluator to analyze and interpret data in distinct ways. Many types of surveys can be created for free on Google Form, Survey Monkey, or Kwiksurvey

For example, students can answer on a Likert Scale, they can respond to open-ended questions, or they can write a letter to an incoming student. The difference in determining which survey form to use because the format and the types of questions teachers use will influence the types of answers and the insights that can be gained. 

Teachers should also be aware that while survey responses may sometimes be negative, there should be no surprises. Teachers should pay attention to the wording of survey questions should be crafted to receive critical information for improving -such as the examples below-rather than unwarranted or unwanted criticism. 

Students may want to hand in results anonymously. Some teachers will ask students not to write their names on their papers. If students feel uncomfortable handwriting their responses, they can type it or dictate their responses to someone else.