Designing An Effective Survey Gateway Module Designing An Effective Survey

Objective: Design a survey that relates to the project Use the survey to interview a number of people Teacher evaluates / approves the survey Design a spreadsheet to keep track of and analyze the data

Where to Start: Working in groups plan your survey on paper Think about the response that you want from the surveys Consider the wording of your questions This can make a difference in the responses you receive Peer edit your surveys by having others in your class critique your survey Tables work well in a survey because each question may have a variety of choices

Survey Design Establish clear goals Short meaningful title Clear and concise instructions Clear and concise questions/sentences Simple Direct Language Decide how you intend to use the information Ask only questions that directly address the study goals Keep your survey short

Most important information should be at the beginning Vary the question format to retain interest Questions must be non-threatening Good questions only ask for one “bit” of information Accommodate all possible responses Anonymous surveys tend to get better responses

Survey Questions

One Answer with Bullets: Which grade was your favorite? K-2 3-5 6-8 9-12

Multiple Answers with Bullets What are your favorite things to do in your spare time? Watch TV Shopping Playing Video Games Talking/Texting with Friends Helping around the house

Rating Scales – One Answer How comfortable are you using PowerPoint? Poor Fair Good Excellent

Rating Scale - Matrix What is your favorite class? Math Science French 1(Most Preferred) 2(Somewhat Preferred) 3(Preferred) 4(Not Preferred) 5(Least Preferred) Math Science French

Ranking Question Please rank in order of preference. 1 2 3 4 Math 1 2 3 4 Math English Science History

Yes/No Do you like Surveys? Yes No

Sample Questions??? Would you like to have a Grade 10 Grad Ceremony? Yes No Do you think this would be good for the Grade 9’s?