1. Whiteboardmaths.com © 2007 All rights reserved 5 7 2 1

2. Before You Start Questionnaires and Surveys Before you start. Be clear about what it is that you want to find out. I want to find out which type of books people like. I want to find out how many hours year 8’s spend watching TV. I want to find out how students travel to school. I want to find out how often students have school dinners and how much they like them.

3. Introduction Questionnaires and Surveys Writing the Questionnaire Provide an introduction to your survey so that the person reading it understands its purpose. This survey is to find out about people’s TV viewing habits. Please answer all the questions below. Thank you for your time. This survey is to find out about students hobbies to help us decide whether we need more “after school” clubs. Please answer all questions below. Thank you for your time.

4. Short and Simple Questionnaires and Surveys Writing the Questionnaire Ask short simple questions. Which type of film do you prefer? FantasyHorror Comedy RomanceThriller None of these There are lots of different types of films that people like to watch such as Fantasy, Thriller, Romance, Horror, Comedy. Which of these do you like best or don’t you like any of them. 

5. Too vague Questionnaires and Surveys Writing the Questionnaire Avoid questions that are too vague. Do you go to the gym? sometimesoccasionallyoften How many hours do you spend at the gym each month? < 22 - 1011 - 19> 2820 - 28 

6. Biased Questionnaires and Surveys Writing the Questionnaire Make sure that you do not use leading (biased) questions.  Do you agree that ITV has the best sports coverage? YesNo Which channel do think gives the best sports coverage? BBC1BBC 2ITVCH 5CH 4

7. Too Personal Questionnaires and Surveys Writing the Questionnaire Avoid questions that are too personal. Do you have a criminal record? YesNo  Do you have any penalty points on your driving licence? YesNo 

8. Questions Questionnaires and Surveys Decide whether the following questions are: A. Too vague B. Too personal C. Biased 1. Can you confirm that you will be voting Conservative? YesNo 2. What was the weather like on your summer holiday? LousyNot badOK Too personal and biased. Too vague

9. Questionnaires and Surveys Decide whether the following questions are: A. Too vague B. Too personal C. Biased Biased Too vague 3. How close do you live to your place of work? CloseFairly close 4. You don’t like going to the cinema do you. YesNo Miles away

10. Questionnaires and Surveys Decide whether the following questions are: A. Too vague B. Too personal C. Biased 5. Have you ever cheated in an exam? YesNo 6. Do you agree that the recent floods are almost certainly caused by global warming? YesNoProbably Too personal Biased

11. Layouts Questionnaires and Surveys Snapshot of TV Viewing last week 1. Do you have a TV in your bedroom? 2. How did you mainly view your TV last week? SatelliteCableAerial Computer/Internet 3. Which station did you mainly watch last week? BBC 1BBC2ITVCH 4CH 5None of these 4. For how many hours did you watch TV last week? < 55 - 1213 - 20> 2721 - 27 YesNo We are doing a survey to help us get a snap shot of the viewing habits of the students at our school, over a 7 day period. Please the appropriate box. Thank you. This completed questionnaire shows: Yes and No answers. Single option response boxes. Answers organised by groups. Introduction to the survey

12. Questionnaires and Surveys Pets Survey 1. Are you male or Female? 3. How many pets do you have? 4. What is your favourite type of pet. Dog CatRabbitGuinea PigHorseNone of these MF We are doing a survey to help us find out about the number of pets owned by students of different ages. Please the appropriate box. Thank you for your help. This completed questionnaire shows: Gender response boxes Answers mostly with specific numerical values Single option non-numerical response boxes Introduction to the survey 01234>5 2. Which Year Group are you in? 7891110 Answers with specific numerical values

13. Pilot and Sample Questionnaires and Surveys Before starting the survey Test the questionnaire on a few people first to see if it works OK or needs amending. Pilot survey: Sample Size and Type: Decide on the size and type of sample that you intend to use. Will it be a simple random sample or a stratified random sample?

14. Ideas Questionnaires and Surveys Possible Ideas for a Survey Amount of pocket money received Different Hobbies Favourite Sports Types of Computer games Views on School Meals Favourite types of book Mode of transport and distance travelled to school/work Good Luck!

15. Worksheet 1. Can you confirm that you will be voting Conservative? YesNo 2. What was the weather like on your summer holiday? LousyNot badOK 3. How close do you live to your place of work? CloseFairly close 4. You don’t like going to the cinema do you. YesNo Miles away 5. Have you ever cheated in an exam? YesNo 6. Do you agree that the recent floods are almost certainly caused by global warming? YesNoProbably Decide whether the following questions are: A. Too vague B. Too personal C. Biased worksheet