Parent Opinion Survey Frequently Asked Questions
Parent Opinion Survey - Frequently asked questions
How can I maximise the response rate?
To ensure that the data obtained from the survey provides an accurate picture of parent perceptions in your school, it is essential to get as many completed questionnaires as possible: that is, that you maximize the response rate. It is up to each school how they choose to do this, but generally speaking the best strategies to maximise the response rate will be the ones that are best tailored to the local school community.
The following suggestions for maximising response rates come from schools with varying characteristics (in terms of size, structure, demographics and location) which all achieved very high response rates to the 2006 Parent Opinion Survey:
Promote the survey - give parents sufficient and frequent notice that the survey is taking place. This notice could be via a section in the school newsletter, through a covering letter included with the questionnaire or perhaps a note added to other day-to-day correspondence which may be distributed to parents. This strategy also has the advantage of making it widely known that the survey is important to the school community. Many schools also promote the survey during the week it is conducted by displaying the response rate in the newsletter.
Emphasise the importance of the survey - where appropriate, seek staff support in stressing to students the importance of returning surveys.
Make it known to parents that the survey results will be acted upon - as is the case with any survey, people are more likely to engage with the process if they are confident that their opinions will be acknowledged and acted upon. Many schools use a notice in the newsletter to provide a summary of the action that has resulted from previous surveys to emphasise the fact that the opinions expressed through the survey have a visible effect on the school&rsquos operations.
Follow-up unreturned surveys - in some schools it may be appropriate for classroom teachers or home group teachers to hand out the surveys, keep a record of who has returned them and "chase-up" those who have not returned their envelope. This strategy has proven to be highly effective in some schools. Generally though, the more non-responses can be followed-up, the better the response rate will be. Some schools have used a process of sending two generic follow-up notices sent home with students, followed by a personally addressed note or a phone call if necessary.
Where appropriate, assist parents to complete the survey - although the survey has been translated into 26 languages, schools with high proportions of families from a non-English speaking background may encounter additional difficulties in achieving a high response rate. Last year, a number of schools used a multicultural aid to contact all non-English speaking families to see if they needed any assistance in completing the questionnaire. Other schools arranged small get-togethers at the school for parents to discuss the questions and complete their questionnaires in a less formal manner. Some schools had a parent who could speak English read out the questionnaire at the get-together.
Offer parents a number of options for returning the survey - Many parents will be happy to return the survey to the school with their child or to post it back if that is appropriate. Others, particularly in Primary Schools, may choose to return the survey in person. It is helpful to provide a number of options for returning the survey.
Can I add school-defined questions to the survey?
With the current survey it is not possible for schools to add their own questions. If you would like to ask school-specific questions, you will need to administer a separate survey.