Whether you’re a teacher looking to enhance your teaching methods or an administrator looking to improve your survey process, the impact of survey questions can’t be overstated.
In this post, we’ll explore several different student survey questions meant to discover different aspects of students’ experiences. These questions are meant to extract actionable feedback and empower you to make informed decisions based on genuine student input. Let’s get started!
What are good survey questions for students?
It depends on your student survey topics
There are many different types of student surveys, each serving a distinct purpose.
Course evaluation surveys give instructors feedback on their teaching methods. Student experience surveys gather insights about overall student life and the school environment. Career readiness surveys can help schools tailor their programs to match industry demands. Health and well-being surveys shed light on students' physical and mental wellness.
Creating effective survey questions means aligning the content with your objectives. Tailoring questions to the topic of your survey means you’ll receive meaningful results.
It also depends on the grade level of students
Elementary, middle, and high school students have varying needs and perspectives.
Surveys for elementary school students should be simple and use age-appropriate language. Questions should focus on the classroom, teacher interactions, and learning experiences. More often than not, younger students love to share their opinion, so give them the chance to with open-ended questions!
As students get older, though, you can introduce more complex questions, like academic interests and future goals. These students will also have the knowledge to provide better, more detailed feedback. However, remember that these age groups often struggle to share their feelings and opinions.
By adjusting your questions to suit the cognitive development and interests of each grade level, you can capture relevant feedback and enhance the efficacy of your surveys.
Make the questions fun and accessible
The fact is that if your questions are boring, the results will be, too. Engaging students through a lighthearted and relatable approach will significantly improve survey participation and yield more genuine responses.
For example, visual aids, such as images or smiley faces, can make the survey more engaging and understandable for students. Also, mixing up the question types and offering different ways for students to answer will help those that struggle to answer a particular question.
The goal is to create a positive and inclusive atmosphere where all students feel comfortable expressing their thoughts. It’s also critical to make the survey easily accessible to boost engagement. One way of doing this is to use a widely known and easy-to-use platform like Google Forms for your survey. Another benefit of this is being able to use add-ons like Form Publisher and Advanced Summary to improve your survey process.
Best survey questions examples for students
Now that all of that is covered, let’s start diving into some example questions!
Question 1
“On a scale of 1-5, how would you rate your relationship with your teacher, with 1 being ‘not great’ and 5 being ‘super’?”
The student-teacher relationship is one of the most critical aspects of learning. No matter the subject, the interaction with the teacher alone can significantly impact the learning outcome. This is why it’s one of the most crucial questions on a student survey.
Depending on the grade, the question can be simplified or made more inquiring. For example, the question could be rephrased for elementary students as “Do you like your teacher [Yes/No]?”
The same aspect could also be explored with the following questions:
- How approachable do you find your teachers when you have questions?
- Do you feel comfortable asking your teacher for help when you need it?
This is example of the Likert scale, a.k.a. linear scale. Learn how to add linear scale to Google Forms to include this question in your survey.
Question 2
“Do you feel like your teacher is providing enough instruction and/or explanation of the course material? [Yes/No]”
Adequate instruction and explanation of the course material directly affect students’ understanding and overall course success. This aspect also applies to all topics in a classroom learning environment, whether it’s in the online or offline format.
Also, this question is best used in the binary format, i.e., yes/no. A few simpler forms of the same questions may be:
- Does your teacher explain the topic well? [Yes/No]
- Do you understand what the teacher explains in the class? [Yes/No]
Question 3
“Which subjects or topics do you find most interesting? [Select all that apply]”
This is an important question that gives direct feedback regarding a course or curriculum’s design and structure.
The same question may be phrased in the following way:
- Are there any particular topics you would like to explore in more detail?
- How well do you think the syllabus aligns with the learning objectives stated?
Question 4
“Which subjects or topics do you find most challenging? [Select all that apply]”
Just as it’s essential to know what’s working for your students, it’s also vital to find out what’s not. With this, teachers and course coordinators can make appropriate changes and offer additional help.
The same aspect may be explored with the following questions:
- Are there any additional resources you think would enhance your understanding of the course content?
- Which specific concepts do you find most difficult to grasp?
- Are there any topics that you feel require more time and attention for better understanding?
Question 5
“On average, how many hours per week do you dedicate to completing assignments?”
These questions help gauge students' perspectives on homework assignments and projects. It can also clue teachers in on their student’s time management skills and the overall impact of homework on their learning experience.
These questions can also be phrased as:
- Do you feel that you’re comfortably able to manage the amount of homework assigned? [Yes/No]
- Are there specific assignments that tend to take up more of your time?
- What strategies do you use to manage your time effectively and meet homework deadlines?
Question 6
“On a scale of 1 to 10, how satisfied are you with your learning experience in this course?”
Lastly, you should always include an overall satisfaction question on your student survey. While alone this doesn’t offer much insight, it can help you get a bigger picture when paired together with the other questions.
Some other ways to phrase general satisfaction questions can be:
- Do you feel that the course has met your expectations? [Yes/No]
- How well do you think the course addresses your academic needs and goals?
That’s it! Take these examples and run with them to see how you can improve your student surveys. And if you have trouble organizing responses and sharing them with those involved, stick around to hear about Form Publisher!
Create automated, personalized response documents from Google Forms
So, there you have it! Best questions covering all aspects of a student survey. Now that you have your questions, get other aspects of your survey sorted with Form Publisher!
Form Publisher is a simple yet effective Google Forms add-on that lets you create individual response documents from your Google Form responses. You can choose a naming convention and storage destination of your preference for these documents in your Google Drive. You can even choose to route these response documents through fellow teachers or collaborators!With Form Publisher, your student survey analysis just got better and more streamlined! Does it sound like something you need? Explore Form Publisher!