Performance-Focused Learner Surveys: Using Distinctive Questioning to Get Actionable Data and Guide Learning Effectiveness

The Book

Performance-Focused Learner Surveys provides a research-inspired approach to surveying learners, gathering meaningful data, and reporting results with clarity. Based on years of practical experience, this second-edition expands on the original classic. It shows how to achieve three goals in evaluation: (1) measuring learning effectiveness, (2) producing actionable results, and (3) sending messages that nudge action.

The Second Edition

The second edition includes improved question wording, double the number of candidate questions, and additional chapters on comment questions, stealth messaging, improving survey response rates, tailoring questions and more.

The Benefits

Based on wisdom from the science of learning, Dr. Will Thalheimer has created the first book on surveying learners that aligns learner surveys to the learning research. With optimism, humor, and great writing, Thalheimer provides a complete and rigorous guide for surveying learners. This second edition will help trainers, instructional designers, teachers, professors, elearning developers, and chief learning officers build virtuous cycles of continuous improvement-while convincing organizational stakeholders of the benefits of improved survey methods. Evaluation and survey experts will benefit as well by considering the practical benefits of Thalheimer's distinctive questioning approach.

Questions Answered

The book answers the following questions:

• Why are traditional smile sheets virtually uncorrelated with learning results?
• How can we support learners in making good learner-survey decisions?
• How can we use learner surveys to go beyond satisfaction and focus on learning effectiveness?
• How can we get learners to actually engage and complete our learner surveys?
• What learner-survey response rates are acceptable?
• How can we slow learners down and get them to make better learner-survey decisions?
• Should we use the same questions on every course or should we tailor them?
• How can we persuade our stakeholders that numeric and Likert-like questions are problematic?
• How can we provide our trainers and learning designers the feedback they need?
• Why should we be skeptical of simply asking our learners what they think?
• How can we nudge behavior change by the way we write our questions?

Will Thalheimer, PhD, MBA, Principal at TiER1 Performance. Will is a world-renowned speaker, writer, researcher, consultant focused on research-based best practices for learning design, learning evaluation, and presentation design. At TiER1, Will works with multi-capability teams helping organizations activate their business, operational, and learning strategies-through their people. Prior to TiER1, Will founded and ran Work-Learning Research for 22 years, where his research reviews are still available. Will wrote the award-winning book Performance-Focused Learner Surveys (second edition 2022); created LTEM, the Learning-Transfer Evaluation Model and the Presentation Science Workshop. Will co-created The Learning Development Accelerator, and the eLearning Manifesto.