Student Survey

In addition to the Classroom Observation, NEE collects data from several other sources to create a clear view of teacher effectiveness. This allows the scores from the collected data to be triangulated and also allows teacher indicators that are not directly observable to be evaluated. The student survey was developed to gather feedback from students in grades 4 through 12 about the teacher's instruction.

Research has identified several advantages associated with the use of student surveys including that they are:

1. inexpensive to administer

2. accurate

   • Students have been estimated to be up to 96% accurate in determining teacher effectiveness when compared with other measures

3. highly reliable

   • Students see teachers every day of class across the school year.

   • The influence of different lessons is diminished so that one poor or exemplary lesson doesn't skew the results.

   • Results are averaged over many students with at least 6 student responses required for data to be reported, although 15 student responses is the recommended minimum to provide validity.

NEE incorporates the student survey results in each teacher's summative report. The student survey is recommended for use with all classroom teachers from grade 4 through 12 and may be used with specialists as well. Use of a student survey is not recommended for some teachers such as, special education teachers, counselors, speech language pathologists, and others who may not work with a large enough group of students to obtain valid results or who may not use conventional classroom instructional practices.

Some school districts have elected to survey students each semester in order to compare the two sets of results. This is more common in secondary schools and results in the teachers having a Detail Report for each survey. However, the scores that are fed to the summative report represent an average of the scores from the two surveys.

This level of specificity allows the teacher and administrator to compare the data from the different sources to form a well-rounded picture of the teacher's effectiveness. When a student survey has been closed, the results become available to teachers and administrators for review.

Review the activity below.

1. Student Survey

Be sure to consult Help and Resources on the NEE Data Tool to access:

• NEE Data Tool - Create, Start, End, and Delete Student Surveys

• NEE Data Tool - Student Survey Administration Instructions for the Proctor

• NEE Data Tool - Interpretation Guide for Student Survey

• Student Survey Items by Indicator