OfS: National Student Survey will drop ‘satisfaction’ question

To have an annual census is valid; however it can often be an outlet for those with an axe to grind, as with any anonymised process, and there might almost be an obligation to pander to them in order to gain high scores, which might impact on grading. Thus, there appears to be a sense of fear around the survey as so much weight is given to it. However, the range of questions target different aspects of institutions and the burden of gaining high scores tends to rest on front line staff, yet they can have little influence on some of the aspects considered in the survey. When a particular area of an institution appears to have weaker satisfaction scores the pressure exerted and investigative examination can be counter-productive, as there is a lack of reading between the lines. It is also not helped by the idea that a neutral score is a negative score, as many who are unsure will plumb for the middle ground. Can there be a review of the survey to minimise the need to read between the lines, and removal of the neutral is negative aspect to scoring?

The problem for the government is that the emotional reactions of students is not a good way to measure value for money for the government. Most students are not paying themselves, the government is the funder and therefore the customer. What is needed is a clear statement of what the government wants from higher education and then find a way of measuring how well those objectives are being achieved, rather than some ideology driven push for Students are consumers.