2020-21 Student Survey Results

A Place Where You Belong

Last year, we surveyed students Grades 6 - 12 in the fall and spring to measure their sense of motivation and engagement at School. The survey instrument, developed by SAIS, tracks these traits:

- Autonomy: How well can I do the things that I want to do and have some choice over my experiences?

- Belonging: Do I feel heard, and do I feel like I am really a part of this community?

- Competence: Am I well prepared to do the things that I want to do?

The results of the first survey in fall 2020 were reported in a previous Autumn Views. With thanks to St. Anne's alumnus and Executive Director of MISBO Damian Kavanagh '93, Ed.S., CAE, who helped develop the survey in a former role with SAIS, we are able to report the these findings from the spring 2021 survey.

Autonomy

Scale: 1-5 | Benchmark: 3.66 | Our Students: 3.7

We want prepare students to become exemplary citizens. Having age-appropriate freedom around your learning, knowing your opinions count, and knowing your actions contribute to a community are important contributors to that mission. Our students credit our teachers for providing chances to make choices, come up with their own projects, and giving opportunities for independence.

It's the lengths to which teachers are willing to go to make sure I succeed.

Belonging

Scale: 1-5 | Benchmark: 3.99 | Our Students: 4.2

We know that students will truly meet their potential when they feel heard and when they feel part of a community. Overall, students feel a deep, meaningful connection to the School, especially their peers and teachers. There do not appear to be significant differences between genders, grades, and race/ethnicity identities, in students' sense of Autonomy, Belonging, or Competence, but we are especially pleased not to see major differences along these dimensions in Belonging.

The teachers genuinely care about you. They ask about what you're doing out of school and how you're doing. I also have good friends that make me feel part of the community.

Competence

Scale: 1-5 | Benchmark: 3.91 | Our Students: 4.0

More than grades and test scores, Competence measures if our students feel they have the resources and support they need to complete challenging work, and if they believe hard effort will have rewards. Based on national data, we would expect to see differences among gender, older students, and students of color in how they rate their capability to do good work. We did not observe any differences in these groups in this survey.

We are given a lot of time and opportunities to improve our work. Once I finally finish my work, I feel satisfied, because I know it's the best I could do.