WWW.SURVEYMONKEY.COM
This online tool comes in a free or fee based format. It is available to anyone with online access.
Features
The user can set up questions in a variety of formats - multiple choice, open-ended, and multiple selections included. The questions can be randomized. If respondents are taking the survey as an assessment, if enough questions are written, each participant will receive a different list of questions to respond to resulting in less likelihood of cheating.
In an online environment, having students from different language backgrounds is not uncommon. SurveyMonkey allows the designer to set up the survey in a variety of different languages that will meet the needs of the participants. The user of SurveyMonkey can set up cut off dates, maximum number of participants, or require a password to take the survey.
SurveyMonkey is also 508 compliant meaning that it has met standards set by the U.S. government to allow users with disabilities to participate in surveys created in SurveyMonkey.
When analyzing the results, SurveyMonkey offers a variety of options:
1. If the survey is completed as a large group activity, it can post results in graphical and numerical form in real-time. Immediate remediation can take place if there is an obvious area that many are making incorrect responses to.
2. The responses of individuals can be mined. This allows easier assessment.
3. Results can be filtered based on responses to individual questions. This may allow the instructor the opportunity to see which groups of respondents responded in a particular manner to a certain response. It can lead to improved teaching and evaluation of grouping of students.
4. Results can be downloaded into spreadsheet or database format allowing for greater manipulation of the statistics. This would also allow the user to more easily user a program such as Excel as a grading tool.
Limitations
Pricing is relatively inexpensive at $19.95 per month for the monthly pro option r $200 per year for the annual pricing. There is also a free basic membership that has a more limited feature menu.
SurveyMonkey's free package would likely meet many of the requirements of the educator. However, it allows only 100 respondents per survey. In a situation like a teacher who teaches the same subject to multiple classes or in a large introductory class in a university, this could very well limit the usefulness of the free option.
Also, there is a limit of only 10 questions per survey for the free package. This option also does not allow the user to create surveys that will skip to the next question if enough correct or incorrect responses have been met. It will not download results into database or spreadsheet format. Responses cannot be filtered using custom criteria set by the developer in the free format.
Sample Survey
A sample survey is available here. The links on the page are not active.
Use in an Online Environment
Surveys are very useful in that it allows respondents the opportunity to post at their leisure. While there is a time frame, the respondent can thoughtfully reflect on the items.
In the area of compiling results, SurveyMonkey is a very powerful tool. It will do the "heavy lifting" for you.
Finally, there is no special software or hardware needed by either the creator or participants of the survey making it very user friendly.
References
SurveyMonkey.com - Powerful tool for creating web surveys. Online survey software made easy!
(2008). Retrieved July 15, 2008. http://www.surveymonkey.com/Home_Pricing.aspx.
SurveyMonkey.com - Powerful tool for creating web surveys. Online survey software made easy!How do I access cheap online surveys?
(2008). Retrieved July 15, 2008. http://www.surveymonkey.com/Home_FeaturesDesign.aspx.
Lopez-Pacheo, A. July 7, 2008. The Financial Post (Canada). Retrieved from http://ezproxy.lib.uwstout.edu:2066/us/lnacademic/results/docview/docview.do?docLinkInd=true&
risb=21_T4155880992&format=GNBFI&sort=RELEVANCE&startDocNo=1&resultsUrlKey=29_
T4155880997&cisb=22_T4155880996&treeMax=true&treeWidth=0&csi=10882&docNo=2.
2 comments:
Tom,
It's great that you have already worked on the survey assignment. But right now I am looking for a reflection on the midterm team process and a link to your project.
Could you please email me when this appears in your blog? Thanks.
Datta Kaur
You can also use http://obsurvey.com for surveys. You can even embed the survey directly in your blog. It's my spare time project so it's completely free to use and has no ads.
Post a Comment