How to conduct effective teacher evaluation surveys (with examples)

Getting honest, high-quality student feedback is an effective way to boost your teaching and a great opportunity to “walk the walk” of a growth mindset. Teacher evaluation surveys don't just measure student performance—they help teachers improve their instruction and close learning gaps.

Let’s look at what a teacher evaluation survey looks like, including why it’s important to get it right. You’ll also learn how teacher evaluation forms can help you improve educational outcomes (and advance your career).

Teacher evaluation is how you measure teacher performance and effectiveness.

Teacher evaluations can be observational, like when an administrator or peer watches a teacher in their classroom. To complement these observations, teachers and administrators use teacher evaluation surveys to measure and track teacher performance.

For example, a high school principal might regularly send surveys to students asking for their feedback.

You can’t improve teaching quality without first understanding what needs improvement.  The goal of teacher evaluations, particularly teacher evaluation questions for students, is to collect insights that can be used to take action. 

Teacher evaluation assesses the effectiveness of your instruction so you can repeat successful strategies and rework those that don’t resonate with students. 

In fact, a Stanford study found that teacher effectiveness improved during a school year and for years after when they were evaluated. 

Of course, evaluations can help with more than student success. The data you collect can provide evidence of growth and advance teacher careers. For example, positive student outcomes and teacher evaluations can help teachers achieve promotions and tenure.

Identify gaps in tools, support, and funding to improve student comprehension and engagement in the classroom. While test scores are considered powerful indicators of student performance, they don’t always reveal teaching effectiveness. Teacher evaluations can fill in gaps.  

For example, imagine a situation where students scored high in a specific course, but when asked, “How well do you understand the class material?” they mostly answered, “Not so well.” The instructor learns that while they’ve done an excellent job preparing students for testing, they need a deeper understanding of the material. 

The instructor may need to spend more time and energy helping students fully grasp concepts and less on rote memorization. 

Teacher evaluations clarify professional growth needs so you can seek out the right training or resources that fuel your teaching. For example, a school administrator may find that student surveys reveal classroom materials aren’t always accessible to students with disabilities. Teachers may need extra training to prepare materials that accommodate student needs.

Note: Continuing education for teachers is invaluable, and it's required in most states and schools. Many teachers must complete a certain number of continuing education units within a five-year period to maintain and renew their teaching licenses.

Need some teacher evaluation examples? Here are the top sample questions for teacher evaluation surveys.

Note: Questions 12-14 are open-ended, meaning students write in their answers.

These are questions like, "How clearly did your instructor explain the course material?” and “How well did your instructor answer students’ questions?” Use the answers to these questions to determine how effective your classroom instruction and coursework were in imparting information. 

If your evaluation isn’t anonymous, then you may want to track student grades and attendance along with their survey answers. Are students with frequent absences answering teacher effectiveness questions poorly? In these cases, encouraging attendance or providing more out-of-class resources may be a simple solution. 

Questions assessing how much and how well students learned in your class can give insight into student development. These include questions like:

Consider asking questions about accommodations as well. Students with learning differences, an Individualized Education Program, or activities that pull them out of class may require different accommodations to keep up with their peers. 

Determining how well an instructor manages a classroom requires asking questions like “What does this teacher do to make this class engaging? [open-ended]” and “Was the speed with which your instructor presented the course material too fast, too slow, or about right?”

Proper classroom management creates an environment in which students can learn and grow. However, effective classroom management can also improve teacher retention rates. 

According to a RAND study, “Stress [is] the most common reason for leaving public school teaching early.” A well-managed classroom is efficient and calm, reducing stress for students and teachers alike.

The survey responses to these questions help teachers take a step back and reflect on their management skills, assessing how they feel in the classroom. 

Teacher evaluations aren’t a perfect solution. They have some weaknesses that can require workarounds. Here are some common issues to keep in mind–and tips on how to fix them. 

Some students simply won’t participate in teacher evaluations. They may:

Even making a survey a requirement for the course may backfire. Some students will fill out the survey randomly to get a completion, and some will resent being forced to participate, giving more critical answers than they would otherwise. We recommend accounting for incomplete participation and encouraging students to complete the survey on their own terms. 

You must choose between anonymous and named surveys. Both options have their own challenges and perks. A named survey may limit the likelihood that a student will answer honestly. Some students may fear judgment or not wish to be contacted for a follow-up. 

A fully anonymous survey may yield more candid responses and even result in increased student participation. This possible increase in honest data can make anonymous surveys a better option. 

However, remember that while a fully anonymous survey may deliver more accurate results, it won’t allow you to identify outliers. For example, you can’t remove responses from students who required disciplinary action or had poor attendance.

Comprehensive surveys are designed to capture detailed and actionable feedback, but they may lead to student fatigue. When faced with a long list of questions, students may rush their answers, provide incorrect responses, or abandon the survey. This can significantly harm the quality and effectiveness of your data. 

To combat this, design your evaluations with grade level, competency, and goals in mind. For example, a 10th grader has a shorter attention span than a graduate student. Keep your question length and content appropriate for age and ability. 

That said, shorter, more focused surveys targeting key teaching practices can encourage more thoughtful and meaningful responses, regardless of age. Ask questions about the areas of your teaching methods that you are most looking to improve or evaluate. Finally, always prioritize clear and simple question design. 

Some institutions don’t conduct teacher evaluations as consistently or regularly as they should. This makes tracking a teacher’s progress and development challenging over time. 

Ideally, you should conduct evaluations for every class session. The evaluations also need to be consistent from semester to semester. If the teacher evaluation questions are changed too much, it becomes difficult to compare performances and identify trends or areas of growth.

According to Inside Higher Education, teacher evaluations may “face concerns about gender bias, including in student evaluations of female professors.” Evaluations may suffer other forms of bias, including:

To reduce bias, a study published in the Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education recommends using a combination of independent evaluators, interviews with students, teaching observations by experts, and peer review of instructional materials and survey scores. 

The best way to find out what students think about your teaching and your course is to ask—and the easiest way to do that is with a teacher feedback form. 

Sending an evaluation survey to students gives them a voice and can help you identify trends and issues that need your attention. 

Ready to start? Here are four steps you can take to gather student feedback through teacher evaluation surveys.

Take the time to discuss why you’re sending this survey to your students. Explain how you’ll look at the data, how you’ll act on it, and why you value students’ honesty. 

Make sure to expand on your personal teacher goals for evaluation. For example, your desire to improve and help your students improve, too. Be upfront about whether students have the option to answer the survey anonymously and whether anyone else, like your department head or fellow teachers, can see the results. 

The Center for Teaching at Vanderbilt University also suggests mentioning student feedback in your syllabus. This emphasizes that feedback is a component of your course and may help students pay closer attention to their experience in your classroom. It also prepares them to fully answer the teacher feedback survey questions when the time comes. 

How do you know what questions will spark valuable student feedback? Start by considering what you want from your teacher evaluation survey. 

Consider what you need to know to enhance your teaching and relationship with your students. To get the most out of your questions, vary your question types and make sure your survey includes some open-ended questions with text boxes for unstructured responses.

For example, our instructor evaluation template asks a series of multiple-choice questions. Students are prompted to write in their answer to the last question: Any areas where your instructor did particularly well? Any areas of improvement for your instructor?

When you ask students to answer in their own words, you’re giving them an opportunity to address anything your survey may have missed. That said, make sure most of your questions are closed-ended. Writing answers takes time and effort, and you don’t want to deter busy students from taking your survey.

Assessing student feedback can be challenging, so it’s important to approach it with an open mind and monitor for patterns that point to needed improvements. 

For example, if the data show that 80% of your students had difficulty with a particular assignment, you should consider whether the instructions, requirements, or introductory lesson needs an overhaul.

Make your teacher evaluation survey a habit. Send it regularly at the end of a course, and consider sending it mid-semester. That way, you can address any issues before the course ends and compare the first set of results with the last. That comparison is important, as it allows you to track your development and set teacher goals for further evaluation.

A survey is a great way to complement a comprehensive teacher evaluation. It’s important to remember that teacher evaluations go the other way too. For example, the teacher evaluation common app is how teachers assess their students for college or university readiness and admission.

Need help getting started on your teacher evaluation survey? Check out our education surveys for additional teacher surveys, as well as these helpful educator resource templates:

Check out all of our customizable education survey templates to get started today. Or learn how SurveyMonkey can help you develop a teacher evaluation rubric, collect student feedback, and improve your classroom.