Personal background• 36 years teaching at secondary level• work in boys, girls and and co-ed schools• last 4 years at MGSE in teacher education• interest in student perceptions dating back many years• not impressed with some current practice

• For example, end-of-course SES surveys at Melbourne University• Some of the questions in ‘official’ surveys• (along with most people) “Rate My Teacher…”

Student perspectives on their learning in my class ?

Syd Boydell August 2015 MGSE

Introduction…• What do we want to know from students?• What do they know?• What don’t they know?• What can we do with the information?• What are the dangers of surveying students?• Why do many teachers find these surveys threatening or

uncomfortable?• What happens if we don’t seek feedback from students?• What do we do with the feedback?

Some opinions• John Hattie: Visible Learning … when teachers see learning

through the eyes of students and help them become their own teachers

• Alexis Wiggins: Regular, authentic feedback is one of the best forms of professional development… free, easy, not time consuming and pays big dividends

• Gates Foundation brief: (the MET project finds that) student surveys produce more consistent results than classroom observations or achievement gain measures

Sourced from:http://kidculture.org/2011/07/07/pamplonas-running-of-the-bulls/

Bon courage!We assess students’ work and behaviour every day.

We are professional feedback-givers, dispensing grades, advice, support, and red ink with frequency and aplomb.

We believe that substantive, high-quality feedback will make them proficient readers, better writers, more intuitive mathematicians. In short, we believe in the power of feedback to communicate what students are doing well and how they can do better.

So why is it that we teachers shy away from opportunities for feedback on our own work?

(Alexis Wiggins; http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2010/10/20/08wiggins.h30.html)

Why gather student feedback?• We cannot ‘see’ learning, only infer from evidence

• Students have the key perspective on their learning

• Their perspectives are essential (the centrepiece?)

aren’t we always gathering feedback?

• yes - many formal and informal ways- observing body language- student-student interactions- participation; questions- submitted work- informal conversations inside and outside class- formal diagnostic instruments- other staff observations- parent conversations

‘Student learning feedback’ surveys

• Questions focused on their perspectives on their learning

• Questions that they know the answers to

• Questions about them, not their teacher

• Seek answers that inform pedagogical practice• Questions that enable action

• Beware junk questions• My teacher is nice• The class has a lot of energy• We should be able to use SnapChat in class

Pitfalls…

Surveys that:• are too long (10 – 14 questions should be enough)• are too complicated• are unclear• force students to identify themselves• have more than one ‘free response’• are used for supervision or control of teacher behaviour• ask students about teacher behaviour• have too many Likert scale choices (eg scores from 1 to 10)• try to gather very detailed information• ‘junk’ surveys (eg Rate My Teacher; ‘what did you like this

semester?’…)

One possible example….

Results:

Can be in the form, for each question:

I find the work interesting.

(school-wide averages can help inform consideration of these numbers)

Notes on the statements…

• Statements should be school specific; fit the culture, ‘road-tested-• Can add subject-specific questions, e.g

- the practical work we do helps me understand the subject (Science)

- Use of the target language in class strengthens my learning (Languages)

- Design work helps me produce better work (Design Technology)• No negative statements• Don’t ask about curriculum – focus on learning

Timing?

Alexis Wiggins again:“I started …’midterm’ evaluations … years ago, promoting them …as a chance for students to have a say … this feedback infinitely more honest, detailed, and helpful than the end-of-course reviews, which come at a time when students have less incentive to be constructive in their criticism.”

Many students sum us up within two weeks (or even less); delaying the feedback just reduces student ownership/agency and diminishes useful feedback from students

MORAL: Do them early!•

Why online? Why anonymous?• Even the most confident student hesitates to criticise a

teacher to their face• Guaranteed anonymity is essential• Online and anonymous goes some way:• No handwriting recognition• Students will generally type more than they will write longhand• Results can be accessed within minutes of completion

Results belong to the teacher• Focus on professional learning, not on assessment of teacher• Surveys do not provide reliable information • anonymous (students may multi-complete)• students may collude (for ‘fun’)

• Surveys can protect teachers from ‘corridor/parent gossip’• Emphasis is on gaining useful information to better shape your

teaching• Only one piece of information; see in context• Suggest Principals and VPs do not use the results as a basis for an

‘interview’• unless mutually agreed beforehand – but even this can be dangerous

Teacher responses:• There is often anxiety involved• Essential that teachers own the survey results• Remind that these are student perspectives, they are not

• professional judgements• instructions on ‘what to do’

• But they are (essential) information for professional use• Ensure results cannot ‘leak’ (to colleagues, Principal,…)• They are one measure, at one point in time

Student response to process?• Do all student welcome the chance to give this feedback?

• Worried about anonymity?• Reflecting on one’s learning is actually a high level task• We want thoughtful responses• Easier to be bland or ‘nice’?• Perhaps worried that the class will ‘suffer’?

• Hence a need to ‘sell’ the process• To encourage and welcome thoughtful responses• To share the results with the class?

• How is the program best introduced to the students?

Parent responses?• Comments?

How to use the results?• Reflection essential

• Why did he/she say that?• I thought that they were interested, but…• I thought that they were working well in class, but…• Why the lack of confidence?

• Discuss with supportive/critical colleague(s)• Particularly colleagues who teach the same class (if possible)

• Make areas of concern a focus for classroom observation• Bring results back to the class and get more feedback

• can e.g. form small focus groups to explore issues further

• Be more alert in interactions in class/out of class• Draw on the strengths of others for ideas• Sometimes all that is needed is clearer communication• Emphasise professional responsibility

• Don’t ignore results• Don’t blame the students• Robust support for colleagues

Results can be used ‘school-wide’

• Remove names from surveys• Summarise ‘scores’ across school, year level, departments

What about the ‘free responses’?Alexis Wiggins again:

I’ve never had a negative experience—no student taking advantage of anonymity to rail against me in a hurtful way. That may still happen, but I’m willing to take the risk because the quality of the feedback is so much better when the comments are anonymous. I actually learn from it, where before I …… dismissed it out of hand as axe-grinding. Now, I take the feedback (back to the class)… and say, “A lot of you felt this way; …let’s see if we can change that aspect of the course.”• In two schools over past 6 years, out of 1300 - 1800 responses:- 60% positive; 20% constructive criticism; 20 % ‘random, <0.2%

‘rude’• often the most useful (and often heart-warming) comments from free responses

Online survey tools• SurveyMonkey• Zoomerang• SurveyGizmo• PollDaddy• Quia• Googledocs (free)• School LMS?• others