Understanding what motivates and excites students is at the heart of teaching. Whether it’s discovering their favorite hobbies, their goals, or the way they prefer to learn, gathering this kind of data helps educators tailor lessons that truly connect with their students. One of the best ways to gather this information is through student interest surveys.
With interest surveys for students, you can collect actionable information to use throughout the school year. You can make a student survey that is super simple and offers insights that can enhance classroom engagement, strengthen relationships, and support differentiated instruction, too.
What is a Student Interest Survey?
A student interest survey is a tool designed to gather information about students’ preferences, hobbies, goals, and ways they like to learn. These surveys help educators better understand what motivates their students. You can use the information you gather to connect with students on a personal level and create lessons that resonate.
For example:
- In an elementary classroom, surveys might ask about favorite books, hobbies, or after-school activities.
- In middle school, they might explore topics students are curious about within a subject area, like what parts of history or science excite them most.
- For high school students, surveys can include questions about career interests or their preferred methods of learning, such as videos, group work, or hands-on activities.
By tailoring the questions to the grade level and classroom context, you can design surveys that give you valuable insights about students.
Why is Making a Student Interest Survey Important?
Student interest surveys play a critical role in creating a positive and engaging learning environment.
Building Relationships
Surveys show students that their opinions and interests are valued. This can foster trust and create a more inclusive and welcoming classroom culture. For example, if a student shares their passion for basketball, incorporating that into lessons can help them feel seen and appreciated.
Enhancing Engagement
When lessons connect with students’ interests, their engagement can increase. A math problem involving sports statistics or a science experiment about underwater habitats can make abstract concepts more relatable and exciting.
If you’ve joined me for a webinar or workshop this year, you might have seen the example I often share about using a chatbot to generate activity ideas based on student interest. I often demo the prompt, “I’m teaching [topic] to [grade], and they love [interests]. Make a list of connections that can help them stay engaged and retain knowledge.”
Supporting Differentiation
Surveys can help educators adapt teaching strategies to address the different ways kids like to learn. For instance, if a student prefers independent work over group activities, you can use this information to guide project assignments or seating arrangements.
What to Include When Making a Student Interest Survey
A well-designed survey gathers a mix of personal, academic, and classroom-specific information. Here are a few things to include:
- General Information: Start with basics like name, class period, and favorite subjects.
- Personal Interests: Ask about hobbies, favorite books or movies, and extracurricular activities. Open-ended questions work well here, but younger students might benefit from multiple-choice options.
- Learning Preferences: Include questions about group work versus individual tasks, preferred classroom activities, and how students like to receive information (e.g., videos, reading, hands-on projects).
- Goals and Aspirations: These could range from short-term academic goals to long-term career interests. For example, high schoolers might share their dream jobs, while elementary students could talk about a skill they hope to master.
- Classroom-Specific Questions:
- Elementary: “What’s your favorite part of the school day?”
- Middle School: “If you could learn about anything, what would it be?”
- High School: “What skills do you hope to gain this year?”
- Optional Questions: Questions like “What’s something you wish your teacher knew about you?” can provide deeper insights and open doors for meaningful conversations.
Using Digital Tools for Efficiency
Digital tools make creating and analyzing surveys faster and more efficient. Platforms like Google Forms, Jotform, and Microsoft Forms offer features like multiple-choice questions, dropdowns, and Likert scales. All of these can simplify the data collection process. These tools, and others like them, also automatically organize responses (like a Google Sheet), saving time for educators.
For younger students, tools like Padlet can be used to gather video or audio responses. You might also ask students to make a collage of their favorite things.
4 Tips for Creating Effective Surveys
To make sure your surveys give you actionable information, here are a few best practices to take into consideration.
- Keep It Short: Limit surveys to 5–10 questions to avoid overwhelming students.
- Use Clear Language: Adapt the wording to the age group. For younger students, you might want to provide examples or visuals to clarify questions.
- Review the Data: Use visual charts or spreadsheets to identify trends and personalize your approach.
- Follow Up: Let students know how their input will be used. Share how their responses are shaping lessons, group projects, or classroom routines.
Making a Student Interest Survey
Student interest surveys are a powerful tool for building connections, fostering engagement, and personalizing learning. By taking the time to understand what excites and motivates your students, you can create a classroom environment where every learner feels valued and inspired.
Whether you’re designing your first survey or refining an existing one, remember that the ultimate goal is to use the insights gained to make meaningful changes. Start small, experiment with different formats, and, most importantly, show students that their voices matter!
Do you have a student interest survey success story? Reply to my weekly newsletter (sign up here) and let me know all about it.
