As our world changes rapidly due to new technologies, globalization and breakthroughs in all fields of study, continuing education and training becomes an urgent priority.
At some point, most people will take some form of knowledge and skills training so they can quickly acquire the skills they need, whether for work, for family or for fun. If you’re in the training business, you know that all of these students will share a common goal: They want to learn a skill they can put to use effectively, as soon as possible. Training differs vastly from a traditional course of study, as participants and students expect to see improvements in their abilities almost immediately after a training session. A client in a physical fitness program, a student in a sales training course, or a participant in a Yoga program will discontinue their attendance if they do not see progress.
Questionnaires are an indispensable tool for training professionals, especially when you use them with models for assessing training effectiveness. You can apply the feedback you gather through surveys to evaluate training programs, course offerings and instructors; target specific skills development for individuals or groups; and plan focused training for any field or area of instruction.
How to use surveys to boost training effectiveness
Use surveys to explore what training to offer, the effectiveness of the training you’re delivering, and whether students feel they are acquiring the skills they desire.
Pre-training and post-training skills assessment
Take a snapshot of a student’s understanding and skill level before and after training with a pre-training survey and post-training survey. Survey students when they begin course or program, and give them the same survey at the end to show improvement.
Ongoing progress toward goals
Poll individuals at the outset of a longer training program to baseline where they are in relation to their goals. Chart their progress: Throughout training, ask students to assess their progress. Deliver your survey on mobile devices in the training environment for near real-time feedback or on social media to broadcast their achievements to their network.
Trainee satisfaction with course or program
Find out if the training you’re delivering is engaging and effective. Are you meeting the expectations of participants? Are they getting the instruction or information they thought they would? Use this feedback for continuous improvement.
Instructor or teacher effectiveness
Two trainers might deliver the same course material quite differently—and that diversity allows you to attract more students. Still, you want to know that all trainers are capably delivering training. Use surveys to gather students’ opinions of teacher effectiveness.
Career training and development
What do students or employees think of your organization’s job training and development programs? Do offerings support their career goals and ambitions? What education programs do they need to meet their objectives?
Training needs and opportunities
Could seniors in your community use a hands-on technology course? Are newbie parents interested in childbirth and parenting classes? Do members of your religious organization need any advanced spiritual training? Use surveys in your community, workplace, healthcare or fitness organization to plan classes and training that will benefit your residents, employees, patients or clients. Test potential offerings using SurveyMonkey Audience, which gives you access to millions of respondents similar to your target audiences.
3 quick tips to improve survey response rates
1. Be quick
If your survey is short and sweet, there’s a greater chance more respondents will complete it.
2. Provide an option for unstructured feedback
Give people the opportunity to give you additional thoughts and other feedback by choosing from the multiple question types including some open-ended questions with text boxes for unstructured responses.
3. Keep it casual
Don’t use corporate-speak or language that’s stuffy or highly technical. Keep your tone conversational.
Sample training templates (some content available only in English)
The list of potential training topics is endless. SurveyMonkey offers many surveys that can be used as-is or customized to cover many areas of training. Here are a few templates you might use with individuals, community residents, students and their parents, and employees.
Customer Satisfaction and Customer Service
What do your customers think of their experience with your business or customer service representatives? Use this feedback to explore potential areas of customer-service training for employees.
Learning Support and Parent Engagement
Find out how parents support students’ learning at home or engage with their children’s teachers. Use this feedback to develop training that helps parents guide their children to develop good study habits, handle problems or challenges at school, or achieve specific learning goals.
University Teaching Assistant Evaluation
Ask students for their feedback on a teaching assistant’s course. Use this information to develop general training for teaching assistants across the university, or specific training for those in a particular department or group.
Employee and Management Performance
Identify opportunities for improving both the hard and soft skillsets of employees and managers. Ask managers to assess key aspects of employee performance, and request employees’ feedback on the corporate management team. Use this feedback to shape your workplace training offerings.
Department Performance and Team Performance
Survey management teams about the key capabilities of their departments or teams to pinpoint areas for training to improve skill levels and professionalism, good communication, and positive client or customer interactions.
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