2008 Guidelines for Administering USE Questionnaires

This questionnaire is designed for Unit of Study Evaluation. Data from this questionnaire provides an indication of the quality of teaching in units of study and more importantly, provides valuable feedback to assist staff in planning changes to improve the learning experiences of students in these units of study. The University is committed to ensuring the quality of units of study and to responding to student feedback. The questionnaire includes instructions for students explaining how to complete the forms.

Prior to the Scheduled day of the survey

  1. You will have been provided with the USE questionnaire. The ITL can only process the scannable forms so please do not use photocopied forms. You will also have been provided with this page of administration guidelines, addressed envelopes for return of the surveys to the ITL and student confidentiality seals.

  2. The Unit of Study Coordinator will have been provided with ONE BLUE Unit of Study Coordinator Seal. This seal should be used only after all completed packs of USE questionnaires for a single unit of study have been sealed in the envelopes by each class representative and returned to the Unit of Study Coordinator. If the BLUE SEAL is not attached the ITL cannot process questionnaires and return reports unless they are returned in this way.

On the day of the Survey

  1. Administer the questionnaire at the beginning of the class, the whole process should take less than 15 minutes.

  2. Please explain the following points to the students:
  • That you are asking them to complete a questionnaire about their teaching and learning experiences in this particular unit of study.
  • That the survey is voluntary and the students' responses are anonymous. Remind students not to write their name on the questionnaires.
  • That you will leave the class while they complete the surveys and the completed surveys will be sealed in the envelopes before you return.
  • That the written responses students include on the questionnaires can be very helpful to staff and that you are particularly keen for students to include these for each item.
  • That these comments will be returned to the unit of study coordinator along with the numerical results of the surveys.
  • Remind the students to fill in the name of the unit, the unit of study code, and the name of their degree, in the spaces on the top of the form. It is often helpful to write the unit of study details on the board for students to copy.
  • Ask for a student representative who will take responsibility for collecting the survey forms when everyone has finished.
  • The student representative will place the surveys in the return envelope, then fill in the details on the White Student Confidentiality Seal provided and use it to seal the envelope ready for return to the Unit of Study Coordinator. The ITL cannot process questionnaires and return reports if the White Student Confidentiality Seal is not present.
  1. Ensure the student representative understands the process:
  • Distribute the survey forms and check if there are any questions from the students about how to complete the forms.
  • Leave the room for 15 minutes while students complete the questionnaire.
  1. Return and collect the sealed envelope from the student representative.
  1. Important: After the class, the Unit of Study Coordinator should ensure all completed survey packs from the different classes are bundled together and that the single blue Unit of Study Coordinator Seal is completed and firmly affixed to the package before it is returned to the ITL for processing. A large envelope is provided for this purpose but please use tape or a box if this is insufficient.

After the survey

  1. Survey forms MUST be returned and received by the ITL by the end of the formal examination period
  • Any questionnaires not received by the ITL by the end of the formal examination period will not be processed until the following semester.
  • The ITL will normally process questionnaires and return USE electronic reports via email within two weeks of the completion of the formal exam period each semester.
  • The USE hardcopy questionnaire forms will be returned when final examination results have been submitted for all Units of Study.
  1. The Unit of Study Coordinator will receive an electronic report summarizing the numerical survey data along with the actual questionnaires containing the students' comments explaining their ratings for each item.
  1. Information about the ITL Unit of Study Evaluation system is available on the website at http://www.itl.usyd.edu.au/USE/