Strategy: Student Interest Survey

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Use this strategy to improve these areas:
Connection to the Curriculum
Reflective Thinking
Effective Communication
Sensitivity to Students’ Culture
Strategy Overview
How To
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Overview

What if a student needs a topic for a project but can’t think of one or the teacher wants to develop authentic relationships by learning more about their students? An interest survey can be very helpful!

Interest surveys allow teachers to learn things about students that may not typically come to their attention. Besides providing insights into the kinds of things students may want to study in depth, the survey can help motivate reluctant learners. Raymond Wlodkowski, an educational psychologist and expert on motivation, has found that one of the quickest ways to motivate students is to discover what they are interested in outside of school, then spend a short time each day talking with them about their interests. You may wish to survey all of your students at the beginning of the school year, but interest surveys can be used at any time as a way to engage your students.

Purpose
There are multiple purposes for using interest surveys with students. The student information gleaned from interest surveys can help you develop more authentic relationships by providing you with conversation starters. It can also help you bring student interests into the classroom. For example, you might include the name of a student’s favorite super hero in a mathematics word problem or you can suggest a topic that you know a student is interested in when she has trouble deciding on a topic for an assigned project.
How Student Interest Surveys Connect to CARES
Remember that authentic relationships refers to the genuine respect and care that a teacher demonstrates for each one of their students. This encompasses how well a teacher knows each student personally and academically. Interest surveys allow teachers to enhance a positive relationship or strengthen a challenging relationship by learning more about a student’s likes and dislikes beyond just academics.
Some key elements for effectively using student interest surveys:
1) It is important to create or find an interest survey that is relevant, developmentally appropriate, and engaging. Students should enjoy completing the interest survey, as they are able to write about their likes and dislikes.
2) Planning how and when the students will complete the survey is also important. If they are completing it in class, make sure they have enough time. Also consider when it would be most effective to use the survey. Some teachers like to use it at the beginning of the school year, but you can use it to gather information and build rapport at any point during the school year. You may also assign it as a low-stress homework assignment for older students to complete independently. Parents can help younger children complete it at home.
3) Review the interest surveys and note patterns in students’ likes and dislikes as you think about how to incorporate them into the classroom. Mention students’ interests during informal contexts such as lunch or recess and in more formal contexts as appropriate. When a relationship feels challenging, revisit the survey for help connecting or reconnecting with a student based on their self-identified interests.

How To

How to Use Student Interest Surveys

There are many different ways interest surveys can be used.

1) Pick or create an interest survey based on your desired outcomes and students’ developmental level (see example below). You may want to know about students’ favorite foods and games if you want to make celebrations and flexible time in the classroom more fun. If you want to make classroom content more engaging, you might ask about students’ favorite books, subjects, etc. Younger students may need to draw their responses or circle yes/no or smiley face/sad face response options. Older students can write out their responses.

2) Administer the survey in class or assign it as homework.

3) Review the responses and use the information in conversations with students and while delivering instruction.

Example Interest Survey:

Note: This sample interest survey is aimed at collecting a lot of information from each student. You may want to just choose a portion of the questions to first provide to your students. You can always edit and modify interest surveys so that they make sense to you, and you can always provide them to students more than just one time during the year.

INTEREST SURVEY
  1. What kind of books to you like to read?
  2. How do you get the news? What parts of the newspaper do you look at regularly?
  3. What are your favorite magazines or Web sites?
  4. What types of TV programs do you prefer? Why?
  5. What is your favorite activity or subject at school? Your least favorite? Why?
  6. What is your first choice about what to do when you have free time at home?
  7. What kinds of things have you collected? What do you do with things you collect?
  8. If you could talk to any person currently living, who would it be? Why? Think of 3 questions you would ask the person.
  9. If you could talk to any person from history, who would it be? Why? Think of 3 questions you would ask the person.
  10. What are your hobbies? How much time do you spend on your hobbies?
  11. If you could have anything you want, regardless of money or natural ability, what would you choose? Why?
  12. What careers(s) do you think might be suitable for you when you are an adult?
  13. If you could spend a week job-shadowing any adult in any career, which would you choose and why?
  14. Tell about your favorite games.
  15. What kind of movies do you prefer? Why?
  16. Imagine that someday you will write a book. What do you think it will be about?
  17. Describe 10 things that would be present in a perfect world. Describe an invention you would create to make the world a better place.
  18. What places in the world would you most like to visit? Why? Tell about your favorite vacation—one you’ve taken or wish you could take.
  19. Imagine that you’re going to take a trip to another planet or solar system. You’ll be gone for 15 years. List 10 things you will take with you to do in your spare time.
  20. What questions do you think should be on this survey that are not already on it?
Source: Teaching Gifted Kids in the Regular Classroom by Susan Winebrenner. Free Spirit Publishing, Inc.

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