In final week of SurveyWorks, R.I. education leaders make push for feedback on public schools

An annual survey on the state of public schools by the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) has collected more than 100,000 responses from students, families and educators in the past eight weeks.

Feedback collected each year from SurveyWorks helps in determining what is working well in schools and where improvements are needed. RIDE makes the data publicly available and uses it in the Report Card platform as a measure of school performance.

Test scores show R.I. students still recovering to pre-pandemic levels

Officials are hoping to exceed the high participation last year when RIDE saw over 122,000 responses. But it’s unclear if they are on target to do so this year with one week before the survey closes on Sunday, March 31. The survey opened on Jan. 26.

The 2023 SurveyWorks had record response rates from school administrators, educators and families, while the student response rate returned to pre-pandemic levels after declining in previous years.  

“It is wonderful to see momentum around SurveyWorks as we continue to encourage community members to participate,” Education Commissioner Angélica Infante-Green, said in a statement. “I am thrilled to see we have reached over 100,000 responses thus far and look forward to hearing from even more stakeholders. This survey is crucial as it allows us to hear directly from our students, families and educators.”  

First offered in the 2016-2017 school year, SurveyWorks is offered in several languages. In addition to Spanish and Portuguese, this year, the family survey is also available in Khmer/Cambodian, Swahili, Creole/Haitian, Pashto, Arabic and Quiche thanks to a partnership with Providence Public Schools.

Elementary students have 56 questions to answer, while high schoolers have 65. There are 94 questions for teachers. Questions cover a wide range of feelings about school, from peers and school environment to teacher attitudes and student interest. Most questions are ranked on a five-point scale that ranges from strong disagreement to strong agreement.  

Student questions include:

• “When you feel like giving up, how likely is it that your teachers will make you keep trying?”
• “When you are not in school, how often do you talk about ideas from your classes?”
• “If a student is bullied in school, how difficult is it for him/her to get help from an adult?”

Teachers, meanwhile, are asked about their classroom attitudes, strategies and opinions on student motivation:

• “How positive is the tone that building leaders set for the culture of the school?” 
• “How comfortable would you be using curricular materials that provide perspectives on cultures that are not your own?”
• “If your students fail to reach an important goal, how likely are they to try again?”

A series of 10 questions for teachers asks them “to reflect on different initiatives that RIDE is interested in learning more about” involving students’ mental health, dealing with harassment, and schools’ evaluation processes.  

The 2024 responses included approximately 68,000 students, 26,000 families, and 11,000 educators, according to a March 21 RIDE news release. Last year’s survey saw 9,296 teachers, 25,354 elementary students, 30,488 families, and 54,298 high school students.

Winman Middle School in Warwick had the state’s highest response rates among middle schools in the state thus far with 90% of students, 95% of families, and 84% of educators have providing feedback as of March 20.  

Also singled out were two Providence schools: William D’Abate Elementary School, where 96% of students, 100% of families, and 83% of educators responded to the survey; and West Broadway Middle School, where 92% of students and 60% of families responded.

At 360 High School in Providence, 100% of educators, 91% of students and 60% of families had responded. Last month, Providence Public Schools and RIDE announced plans to close the Thurbers Avenue high school and merge it with Juanita Sanchez High School, prompting a student walkout and outrage from parents, educators and community members who have expressed frustration about the lack of community engagement and transparency that went into this decision.

“The data that SurveyWorks provides each year is critical to our continued efforts in transforming Providence Public Schools,” said Providence Superintendent Dr. Javier Montañez in a statement. “Last year, we saw strong improvements in family engagement and learning outcomes. We hope to continue with these gains and encourage those who have not taken the survey to do so.”