Sessions /
In-class surveys one question at a time #109

Teachers gather valuable information about students from in-class surveys often administered at the beginning or the end of a course. Responses may be quantitative or qualitative in nature, and they may assist teachers in action research designs to guide changes during the course or in a subsequent one. Questions may ask how well a lesson or some component is perceived as instructive, utile, or motivating, whether they are asked with ranking, choice, or open-essay format. Japanese university students are no stranger to feedback surveys; institutions require them at the end of courses to determine teacher and course effectiveness. But, students may face too many administrative surveys in a year. If they are required only to rank items, it is easy to become desensitized or demotivated and intentionally mark the answers inappropriately. Student anonymity is a prized feature of good surveys, but it may not always be practical to a teacher, especially if comparisons are desired between certain groups. This presentation will describe how weekly surveys of just one essay question each were delivered, and how the responses were compiled then presented back to students with insightful comments. Both teacher and students gained useful knowledge and perspective in the process.