Questionnaires

Overview

A new roller-coaster ride is about to open at Blackpool Pleasure Beach and Ben and Katie set out to find out just how much the public would be prepared to pay for the experience. Having tested, on an unsuspecting public, their own initial attempts at designing a questionnaire, they realise that they need advice, and turn to BMRB, one of the country’s leading market-research organisations. They find out how large-scale surveys are conducted, and commission one themselves. The results are analysed and they return to Blackpool with good news for the ride’s owners — and Ben gets another thrilling ride. We see how to:

• identify a subject for a survey
• construct an appropriate question
• use a pilot survey to test questions and identify problems
• construct a data-capture sheet to record responses
• select a representative sample
• carry out a survey using a questionnaire
• criticise and amend questions and recognise bias
• analyse the results of a survey and draw conclusions

The programme aims to highlight the types of difficulties and the common pitfalls that students are likely to encounter when carrying out their own surveys. It also shows how questionnaires are frequently used in the commercial world to gather a wide variety of information. It shows students why the techniques they learn at GCSE are necessary and how these can be extended.

The programme uses a real-life survey, on a subject that students should find appealing, in order to engage their interest and to demonstrate the commercial importance of constructing a good questionnaire.

The programme is self-contained and it could be used to support and enrich other work on data handling. It should be particularly helpful to students preparing to undertake their own surveys using questionnaires, especially those who wish to submit a survey as a piece of GCSE coursework. The content is linked to the requirements of GCSE and Standard Grade Intermediate Mathematics syllabuses.