Deciding on how to phrase the questions for the survey information I wanted from the students was problematic. I wanted to know what they thought about learning but it needed to be presented so they could understand the questions being asked. I spent some time with different iterations of the questions and their potential responses. I have found in previous surveys that interpretation of a question is always individual and you need to carefully construct a survey in order to focus on the information you want.
I considered whether to rework the actual research questions to ensure the students understood what the questions were asking before they commented on them. In the end I decided to trust that they could comment effectively and that they would think carefully about their responses.
Students like to be asked to contribute to research or to assignments. They are interested in the idea that teachers want to know how students like to learn but, more importantly I think, it is a form of modelling to young people of the meaning of 'life-long learning'.
In hindsight I needed to consider the questions and potential responses more critically. This is an important lesson to learn. The composition of research questions is a skill that must be developed. In a survey it is very easy to have questions and choices that limit responses or that do not collect accurate information and therefore do not reflect the reality.
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