Gathering survey data

STEP 6. Administer the survey

Notify students before administering the survey to explain why it is being administered and to discuss confidentiality and anonymity so they understand the conditions for participation.

Unless the objective is to compare survey results across mediums (e.g., electronic surveys versus paper surveys), use only one medium. If you survey multiple classes or sections, use the same survey at approximately the same time point (i.e., beginning, middle, or the end of semester) if you want to combine or compare the data. Finally, be sure to give the same set of instructions to all students.

Sampling

When the population is too large for you to survey all members, using random sampling or systematic sampling  increases the representativeness of results. [more]

Response rates

High survey response rates  help to ensure that survey results are representative of the population. Response rates will vary depending on how you administer your survey. In general, face-to-face and in-class surveys will yield higher response rates than online, phone, or mail surveys. [more]