Because so much of schools’ focus tends to be on student learning, the quality of faculty/staff work environment often gets put on the back burner. However, feedback surveys can be a fantastic way to signal that the school cares, and to learn about what is going well or could be improved to ensure educators are feeling supported in their work.
The most important piece of building buy-in for the survey with your team is to acknowledge that the school/district both needs and values the staff's opinions. Schools need to know what is going well and what might be improved from the population that knows the school the best, teachers and staff. The survey provides an opportunity to have faculty and staff opinions gathered in a way that all voices are heard, not just the loudest voice at the faculty meeting.
Below you will find a list of strategies that our partner schools and districts have found most successful in building buy-in for teacher and staff surveys.
Before Taking Surveys
- Send early notifications about the survey: emails, announcements in meetings, and notes in other school-wide or individual communications can support your team in feeling informed and ready for the survey.
- Tip: Include a video like this one to give your staff an overview of Panorama's surveys.
- Communicate why the survey matters and how the results will be used. Sharing the impact of educators' feedback is an important step in ensuring you receive accurate and actionable feedback.
While Surveys Are Open
- Check your response rates and send reminders via the Panorama platform, email, or in-person announcements to make sure everyone is able to share their feedback
- Provide time to complete the survey during an existing meeting so that everyone feels they have dedicated time to provide feedback. feel.
After Surveys Are Completed
- Close the loop by sharing the survey results with all stakeholder groups. You can use these template slide decks to prepare a presentation.
- If you choose to share results with staff within the Panorama platform, we recommend supporting them by sharing this resource, which will help them interpret the data.
- Demonstrate how your school or district values feedback by communicating how you will take action on the survey results.