When creating a survey, various additional properties are available within each question type. These properties allow for customization and provide enhanced functionality. This article provides a description of the available options and how they can be utilized.
The following is a video overview of Survey Builder:
Note: We have updated the user interface since the creation of the video. However, the information in the video remains relevant, and this article provides more information about the feature. |
Additional Properties Available
Below is a list of the additional properties that can be utilized (keep in mind that the available options may vary depending on the question type):
- Non-Numeric Option
- Comment Box
- Reverse Code Responses
- Required
- Question Display
- Do Not Calculate Mean and Standard Deviation
- Enable this question as
Non-Numeric Option
- Description: The Non-Numeric option allows you to add non-numeric choice options such as "Not Applicable" or "N/A." You can also customize the text in this option. This response will not receive a numeric value, so as to not distort any means or standard deviation scores within the reporting. On the survey, the student will see all response options, including the non-numeric option.
- Available for: Single Selection and Matrix question types. To learn more about question types, visit: Survey Builder: Types Of Survey Questions.
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Limitation: Once a survey has been deployed and response data is collected, this option becomes locked/grayed out and cannot be modified nor enabled.
Comment Box
- Description: The Comment Box option provides an open-ended text field that is tied directly to a Single Selection question type. This allows respondents to provide additional feedback. There is no character limit for the responses.
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Available for: Single Selection question type.
Reverse Code Responses
- Description: By default, responses to questions are coded in ascending order (e.g. 1, 2, 3, 4). If you prefer to reverse the order, you can select the "Reverse Code Responses" option. This will change the response scale to descending order (e.g. 4, 3, 2, 1).
- Available for: Single Selection, Multiple Selection, and Matrix question types.
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Limitation: Once a survey has been deployed and response data is collected, this option becomes locked/grayed out and cannot be modified nor enabled.
Required
- Description: The Required option ensures that respondents must answer a question before they can submit the survey. This is useful for collection crucial data that must be included in the survey responses.
- Available for: Single Selection, Multiple Selection, Matrix, Numeric Selection, and Write-in question types.
Question Display
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Description: The Question Display option determines how response choices are presented to respondents. There are three primary display formats:
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Vertical (default): Displays the response options in a vertical list format.
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Horizontal: Displays the response options in a horizontal format.
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Drop-down: Displays the response options in a drop-down list.
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Vertical (default): Displays the response options in a vertical list format.
- Available for: Single Selection question type.
Do Not Calculate Mean and Standard Deviation
- Description: Select this option if you DO NOT want to calculate mean and standard deviation for this question in reporting.
- Available for: Single Selection question type.
Enable this question as
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Description: This option controls how the question will be presented to a respondent and determines how data will be collected for the question:
- Non-Instructor/Non-TA question: This option is best for general course questions not specific to the instructor or teaching assistant. The question will not be repeated if the course has multiple instructors and/or teaching assistants.
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Enable as Instructor question (this will repeat question for each Instructor enrolled in a team-taught course): This option is best for questions specifically about the instructor. This question will automatically be repeated for each instructor enrolled in the course with each instructor’s name inserted along with the question. The question will not repeat if the course only has one instructor. This question will be presented even if there is no instructor enrolled in the course.
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Enable as Teaching Assistant question (this will repeat question for each teaching assistant enrolled in a course): This option is best for questions specifically about the teaching assistant. This question will automatically be repeated for each teaching assistant enrolled in the course with each teaching assistant’s name inserted along with the question. The question will not repeat if the course only has one teaching assistant. This question will NOT be presented if the course does not have a teaching assistant enrolled.
- Available for: Single Selection, Matrix, Numeric Selection, and Write-in question types.
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Limitation: Once a survey has been deployed and response data is collected, this option becomes locked/grayed out and cannot be modified, disabled nor enabled. Node Administrators do not have access to utilize and view the option "Enable as Teaching Assistant question."
To learn more about how to configure your survey for team-taught courses (courses with more than one instructor), visit: Team Taught Courses Configuration.
Making Edits to a Survey
If you need to make changes to survey questions after data has been collected, the recommended approach is to create a new version of the survey. This can be done by copying the existing survey making the necessary updates, and using the new version going forward. Be sure to name the new survey accordingly to make it intuitive.
The available additional properties provide flexible customization options for your survey. By selecting the right properties, you can ensure to gather accurate feedback. Keep in mind that some options may not be available depending on the question type or be locked/grayed out once data is collected, so it's best to make adjustments before launching your project.