Best Practices

Improving Online Response Rates

Low student participation can invalidate your course evaluation results.  Take a comprehensive approach to setting policies and practices t0 improve online response rates.

Institution

  • Integrate evaluation links in course management software
  • ­Designate an institution-wide “evaluation week”
  • ­Display results to students who participation in evaluation process

College/Department

  • ­Reward faculty with high response rates (release time, hourly assistance)
  • ­Incorporate only high response rate evaluations in promotion tenure decisions
  • Communicate the importance of response rates in making cross-class comparisons

Faculty

  • ­Make students aware of the importance of course evaluations in terms of instructional improvements, and relevance to program accreditation and promotion and tenure decisions
  • ­Administer online course evaluations in class
  • ­Set an evaluation “open” period that fits in with the flow of the course
  • ­Include the evaluation schedule and link in the online syllabus
  • ­Notify students in advance of the upcoming evaluation period and follow up with in-class reminders

Learn more

  • Berk, R.A. (2012). Top 20 strategies to increase the online response rates of student rating scales. International Journal of Technology in Teaching and Learning, 8(2), 98-107.
  • Crews, T.B. and D.F. Curtis. (2011). Online course evaluations: faculty perspective and strategies for improved response rates. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 36(7), 865-878.
  • Norris, J. and C. Conn. (2005). Investigating strategies for increasing student response rates to online-delivered course evaluations. The Quarterly Review of Distance Education, 6(1), 13.29.
  • Ravenscroft, M. and C. Enyeart. (2009). Online Student Course Evaluations: strategies for increasing student participation rates. The Advisory Board Company, Washington, D.C.