Student Satisfaction Survey
Student Satisfaction Survey/Questionnaire
Name
Institution
Date
Student Satisfaction Survey
SANFORD UNIVERSITY: School of Education Introduction
The study was conducted at School of Education, Stanford University. The research targeted students undertaking education courses at different capacities. A total of 100 students were involved in the study. Education Research and Policy was the course that was settled on.
The primary aims of this study were:
To establish the reasons why Stanford University students take specific courses
To identity students’ year of study
To establish whether the technicality and difficulty of the course was in line with the students’ expectation
To gather information of the students’ level of satisfaction with the professor instructing the course
To know how many students would recommend the course to other students
Methodology
This research was conducted at Stanford School of Education, Sanford University. The research involved 100 respondents from school of education. The respondents were students taking Education course at different years of study. The students were randomly selected during the research and questionnaire distributed to them in order to gauge their response on specific variables of research interest. Random sampling was preferred because it accords equally probability to the entire population to form part of the study size. The data collected through primary means (questionnaires) were analyzed and presented using descriptive analysis, percentiles, graphs, charts, bars, and frequency tables. In addition, measures of central tendency were also used in analyzing the spread and variations.
Research Findings1. Which of the following best describes your reason for taking the course?
Reason for Taking the Course Frequency Percentage (%)
Major/Minor Requirement 42 42
Major Elective Course 23 23
General Education 21 21
University Elective 14 14
Average 25 25
The students (respondents) had different reasons for taking the course. Some of the common reasons were major/minor, major elective, general education, or university elective. From the study, it was established that 42 percent of the student respondents took the course because it was a major/minor for completing the degree program. 23 percent of the students opted for the course because it was a major elective to them. 21 percent of the students choose the course because for general education purpose, while only 14% of the respondents choose the course given that is a university elective course. For those taking the course as a major, Education Research and Policy is offered at rigorous academic level in order to prepare these students to be able to respond to life and professional challenges in an informed and thoughtful way. On the other hand, students opting for minor or university elective, their goal are to develop proper understanding of key issues in education and policy making. 2. What year of school are you in?
Year of Study Frequency Percentage (%)
Freshman 38 38
Sophomore 27 27
Junior 25 25
Senior 8 8
Graduate Student 2 2
With respect to year of study, it was revealed that majority of the respondents (38%) were freshman, 27% were sophomore, 25% were junior level students, 8% were senior students, and only 2% of the respondent students were graduate students. This is a likely indication that the lower level of studies have a broader student base compared to the higher academic years with a narrow student base.
3. Was the difficulty of the course in line with your expectations?
Course difficulty and Expectations Frequency Percentage (%)
Yes 62 62
No 33 33
Maybe 5 5
Mean/Average 33.33333 33.33333
The students were also engaged in a research aimed at determing the course expectations and difficulty. This study found that out of 100 students that were questioned, 62 (62%) showed that the difficulty of the course was in line with their expectation. This majority group expected the course to the challeneging and difficult and indeed it was. So to them, this was expected and they had, therefore, psychologically prepared themselves for the difficult tasks ahead. On the other hand, 33 percent of the students (respondents) did not expect Education Research and Policy course to be any difficult. The difficulty of the course therefore was unexpected. Only 5% of the student neither expected the course to be difficulty or easy, therefore, they were neutral. 4. Would you recommend this course to other students?
Recommending the course to other students Frequency Percentage (%)
Yes 71 71
No 29 29
Nearly three-quarters of the students (71%) indicated that they would recommend Education Policy and Research course to other students. Only 29% of the respondents would not recommend the course to others. On average, majority of the students would recommend this course to others. 5. If no, why not?To the minority student who revealed that they would not recommend Education Research and Policy course to others gave different reasons in support of their positions. According to majority of this group, the course was technical and demanding, hence, taking the course would likely imply low grades in final exams. To some, the course instructor was not as friendly as they expected. Therefore, they would prefer other students to consider taking other courses at the expense of Education Research and Policy. Another group considered this course as not very relevant to their professional requirement and would therefore not recommend it to others students taking Educational Technology related courses. 6. Would you take another course taught by this professor?
Taking another course tough by the same Professor Frequency Percentage (%)
Yes 56 56
No 21 21
Maybe 23 23
When students were asked whether or not they would take another course instructed by the same professor, 56% of the student strongly agreed that they would take another course instructed by the same professor teaching Education Research and Policy. According to this group of student, they liked the manner in which the professor tough the course and they were, therefore, satisfied with the instructor. On the contrary, 21% of the students said that they would prefer not to take another course tought by the same professor, while 23% of the student were undecided whether or not they would take another professor’s course. In the view of the 21% who would not take another course instructed by the same professor, the professor was very harsh. They described the professor as a sadist, who minded least about the students’ welfare. 7. In what ways could this course be improved?The following recommendations were made by the students on approaches of improving Education Research and Policy:
Reducing the class size to a maximum of 25 students
Involving field works and academic trips to policy making institutions to enable the students gather practical field and professional experience
Assigning two professors (instructors) to handle Education Research and Policy on rotational basis
Arranging to inter-university exchange programmes 8. What is your gender?
Gender of the Student Frequency Percentage (%)
Male 47 47
Female 53 53
In terms of gender, majority of the respondents were female students at 53%. Male respondents, on the other hand, accounted for the remaining 47%. Although nearly balanced, slightly more female students were involved in the study as compared to males. Recommendation and Conclusion
From this study, it was established that majority of the students choose Education Research and Policy as a major/minor course requirement in education. More female than male were doing this course, with many of them at the freshman level of study. Although the course proved difficult and challenging, most students has anticipated such difficulty and had, therefore, psychologically prepared for the tasks. A good number of the students were exited with the course and preferred recommending the course to other students. Although majority of the students were satisfied with how the course was instructed and taught, a few students showed their dissatisfaction with the lecturer and the way he/she handled the course. This group, therefore, preferred not to take another course instructed by the same professor.
Recommendations
As a way of improving the course (Education Research and Policy) the following recommendations were proposed by the students:
The class size should be reduced to accommodate a maximum of 25 students from the current 35 students.
The number of field works and academic trips to policy making institutions should be increased to enable the students gather practical field and professional experience.
The course should be assigned to two professors (instructors) in order to bring diversity in course coverage and accommodate all students.
The department should arrange for inter-university exchange programmes for Education Research and Policy students.
Reference
ASTM Committee E-11 on Quality and Statistics., American Society for Testing and Materials., & ASTM International. (2002). Manual on presentation of data and control chart analysis. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM International.
