| name | student-feedback-form |
| description | Creates course evaluation forms with rating scales, open-ended questions, and improvement-focused categories for gathering actionable student feedback. |
| allowed-tools | Read Write Glob |
| metadata | {"author":"matthewhitcham","version":"1.0"} |
Student Feedback Form
When to Use This Skill
Use this skill when you need to:
- Create a course evaluation form to collect student or participant feedback
- Build feedback surveys with rating scales and open-ended questions
- Design improvement-focused evaluation forms for workshops, programs, or training
- Generate structured feedback instruments that produce actionable insights
DO NOT use this skill for customer satisfaction surveys, product feedback forms, or employee performance reviews. This is specifically for educational and training program evaluation.
Core Principle
EVERY FEEDBACK FORM MUST GENERATE ACTIONABLE DATA THAT DIRECTLY INFORMS COURSE IMPROVEMENTS — NOT JUST VANITY METRICS THAT CONFIRM WHAT YOU ALREADY BELIEVE.
Phase 1: Brief
Gather the inputs that shape the feedback form. No brief, no form.
Required Inputs
Ask the user for each of these. If they do not provide one, use the default.
| Input | What to Ask | Default |
|---|
| Course/program name | "What course or program is this feedback form for?" | No default — must be provided |
| Format | "Is this for a live workshop, online course, cohort program, or self-paced course?" | Online course |
| Duration | "How long is the program? (single session, multi-week, etc.)" | Multi-week |
| Key areas to evaluate | "What specific aspects do you want feedback on? (content, instructor, materials, pacing, etc.)" | Content quality, pacing, instructor effectiveness, materials, overall satisfaction |
| Response format | "Do you want a digital form, printable PDF, or both?" | Digital form |
Brief Template
Present this before moving forward:
## Feedback Form Brief
**Course:** [Name]
**Format:** Online course, 6 weeks
**Areas to evaluate:** Content relevance, pacing, instructor clarity, support quality, actionable takeaways
**Response format:** Digital form (Google Forms / Typeform compatible)
**Estimated completion time:** 5-7 minutes
GATE: Do not proceed to Phase 2 until the user confirms or adjusts the brief.
Phase 2: Structure
Design the form architecture with section flow and question types.
Form Structure Rules
- Welcome section — brief intro explaining purpose and estimated time (keep under 3 sentences)
- Rating sections — group related questions under clear category headers
- Open-ended sections — place after rating sections to capture qualitative insights
- Closing section — overall rating, testimonial permission, and follow-up opt-in
Question Type Guidelines
- Likert scales: Use 5-point scales (Strongly Disagree to Strongly Agree) for consistency
- Rating scales: Use 1-10 for overall satisfaction, 1-5 for specific attributes
- Multiple choice: Use for demographic or preference questions only
- Open-ended: Limit to 3-5 questions maximum to prevent survey fatigue
- Net Promoter Score: Include one NPS question for benchmarking
Section Template
## Section: [Category Name]
Questions: [count]
Type: [Likert / Rating / Open-ended / Mixed]
1. [Question text] — [Question type]
2. [Question text] — [Question type]
GATE: Present the form structure and wait for user approval before writing full questions.
Phase 3: Write
Build the complete feedback form with all questions, instructions, and response options.
Form Components
1. Welcome Message
- State the purpose (improving the course, not grading the student)
- Confirm anonymity if applicable
- State estimated completion time
2. Rating Sections (by category)
- Content Quality: relevance, depth, clarity, real-world applicability
- Instructor/Facilitator: knowledge, communication, responsiveness, engagement
- Materials and Resources: quality, accessibility, usefulness
- Pacing and Structure: speed, logical flow, workload balance
- Support and Community: peer interaction, Q&A access, technical support
3. Open-Ended Questions
- "What was the most valuable thing you learned?"
- "What would you change about this course?"
- "What topic deserved more time or depth?"
- "Would you recommend this course? Why or why not?"
4. Closing Section
- Overall satisfaction (1-10)
- NPS: "How likely are you to recommend this course?" (0-10)
- Permission to use feedback as testimonial
- Optional: name and email for follow-up
Formatting Rules
- Number every question sequentially across all sections
- Include clear response option labels (not just numbers)
- Add "N/A" option for questions that may not apply to all students
- Keep total form under 25 questions to maintain completion rates above 70%
Phase 4: Polish
1. Completion Rate Optimization
Review the form for survey fatigue risks:
- Total questions should not exceed 25
- Estimated completion time should stay under 8 minutes
- Required questions should be limited to rating scales only
- Open-ended questions should always be optional
2. Analysis Guide
Provide a brief guide for interpreting results:
## How to Use This Feedback
**Quantitative data:** Calculate averages per category. Flag any category scoring below 3.5/5.
**Qualitative data:** Code open-ended responses into themes. Look for patterns mentioned 3+ times.
**Action threshold:** Any item below 4.0 average or mentioned negatively 3+ times = immediate improvement priority.
**Testimonial mining:** Responses to "most valuable" question are your best source for marketing copy.
3. Distribution Recommendations
- Send within 24 hours of course completion
- Include a deadline (7 days) to maintain response quality
- Send one reminder at the midpoint
- Share a summary of changes made from feedback to close the loop
Example 1: 6-Week Online Course Evaluation
Rating section excerpt:
## Content Quality (1-5 scale)
1. The course content was relevant to my business needs
2. The material was presented at an appropriate depth
3. I can immediately apply what I learned
4. The examples and case studies were realistic and helpful
Open-ended excerpt:
15. What was the single most valuable takeaway from this course?
16. If you could change one thing about this course, what would it be?
Example 2: Live Workshop Feedback (Single Session)
Rating section excerpt:
## Workshop Experience (1-5 scale)
1. The workshop met my expectations based on the description
2. The facilitator was engaging and knowledgeable
3. The hands-on exercises were useful
4. The pacing allowed enough time for questions
Anti-Patterns
- Leading questions — "How amazing was the instructor?" biases responses. Use neutral phrasing.
- Double-barreled questions — "Was the content relevant and well-organized?" asks two things. Split them.
- Too many open-ended questions — more than 5 tanks completion rates. Be selective.
- No anonymity assurance — students give honest feedback only when they feel safe. State it upfront.
- Ignoring the data — collecting feedback you never act on destroys trust. Always close the loop.
- Vanity metrics only — "Did you enjoy this?" tells you nothing actionable. Ask what to improve.
Recovery
- User unsure what to evaluate: Default to the five standard categories (content, instructor, materials, pacing, support). These cover 90% of use cases.
- Form too long: Cut to 15 core questions. Prioritize rating scales over open-ended.
- User wants to grade students, not collect feedback: Redirect to the skill-assessment skill. This skill is for program improvement, not student evaluation.
- Low response rates on previous forms: Recommend shortening to under 10 questions, adding an incentive, and sending within 24 hours of completion.
