How To Design An Effective Online Questionnaire For eLearning Course Evaluation
The marketing industry has been using online questionnaires for years to collect valuable feedback from consumers. And for good reason. A well-written questionnaire helps you step inside the mind of your target audience. You can learn about their preferences, backgrounds, and personal interests. All of this data gives you the power to create amazing eLearning experiences. Here are 9 tips to develop online questionnaires for your eLearning course.
1. Know The Desired Outcome In Advance
Learning objectives and desired outcomes serve as a guide for your online questionnaires. They allow you to focus your efforts on key aspects of your eLearning course, such as learning pain points. Meet with your eLearning team to discuss the overall goals. What do you hope to achieve by conducting the online questionnaire? What data do you need and why? Every question you include hinges on these all-important factors.
2. Make It Short And To-The-Point
The data your online questionnaire yields may be crucial for your organization. However, it usually isn't high on the list of priorities for your online learners. Not to mention, they don't have a lot of time to complete the online questionnaire. For this reason, you should keep your online questionnaire short and succinct. If there's a lot of ground to cover, you may need to create separate online questionnaires for each objective. As an example, your customer service staff may receive a different version than your sales team. This is due to the fact that their online training involves different skills, objectives, and desired outcomes.
3. Jettison The Jargon
Online learners shouldn't have to refer to a dictionary in order to complete the online questionnaire. As such, you should leave out the technical jargon and keep your wording simple and straightforward. This involves audience research, as you must know the backgrounds and experience levels of your online learners. Learners who have been in the industry for years are already familiar with industry lingo. Therefore, you can use more complex vocabulary in your online questionnaire for the sake of clarity.
4. Leave No Room For Ambiguity
Speaking of clarity. Your questions should be clear and concise. There's no room for ambiguity. You don't want to create any confusion, as this can lead to frustration. And frustration decreases your participation rates. Not to mention, you don't get accurate results. As an example, online learners who don't understand what is being asked aren't able to give an honest answer. This also applies to questions with multiple parts. Stick to the golden rule of questionnaire design: one topic per question.
5. Persuasion Has No Place In Online Questionnaires
You're passionate about your eLearning course. It's only natural. You’ve worked hard to create the perfect conditions for your online learners. This makes it difficult to stay neutral and not have a bias. But you have to resist the urge when creating your eLearning questionnaire. Avoid persuasive or leading questions that steer online learners in a certain direction. Remember, the purpose of your questionnaire is to collect their honest feedback. This means you have to omit your personal biases, opinions, and beliefs so that online learners can openly share their ideas.
6. Measurability Is Essential
One of the benefits of eLearning questionnaires is that they provide quantifiable data. However, this requires measurable questions that are based on common criteria. For instance, a number scale that asks online learners to rate their responses from 1 to 10, or on the good, fair, or poor spectrum. This allows you to track the results through your Learning Management System. As such, you can view charts and graphs to visualize the data and see emerging patterns. Big Data is only useful if it offers valuable insight. Trends and patterns help you determine what's working, what's not, and how you can remedy the issue.
7. Avoid Emotionally Charged Questions
Try to steer clear of controversial questions or those that are emotionally charged. The goal is not to pull at their heartstrings. Instead, you need to collect their feedback and use it to enrich the eLearning experience. You should also avoid questions that contain assumptions. For example, "what was most enjoyable about the eLearning course?" This implies that the online learner found the eLearning course enjoyable, which may not be their honest opinion.
8. Omit Open-Ended Questions
There's a time and place for open-ended questions. Such as qualitative assessments that gauge how well an online learner knows the topic and if they can apply their knowledge. However, questionnaires call for closed-ended questions that are easy to answer. For example, true/false questions or sliding scale inquiries. You can always leave room at the end of the questionnaire for more detailed explanations. Online learners who have the time to provide additional feedback can do so.
9. Include Instructions
You shouldn't automatically assume that eLearning course participants know how to fill out the online questionnaire. Those who aren't tech-savvy may need help using the platform. While others might not know what's expected of them. Therefore, it's wise to include explicit instructions for participants and offer additional assistance. This may be in the form of FAQs, online forums, or email contacts.
Online questionnaires can help you identify weak points in your eLearning course and enhance the benefits for your audience. These valuable online feedback tools also allow you to allocate your resources more effectively. As such, you have the opportunity to maximize your ROI and achieve the desired outcomes.
Online questionnaires may be an effective feedback method, but it's just one of many. Read the article 7 Tips To Create An Effective Constructive Feedback System For eLearning to discover some useful tips to create a successful constructive feedback system for eLearning.