student survey data

We present post-chat survey data from 77 colleges and universities where instructors have used Sway to give their students guided, hands-on practice with constructive disagreement. These institutions span Ivy League universities, community colleges, and technical schools. Students tackled everything from international conflicts, immigration, and income inequality to conservation biology, social work, and occupational therapy. Check out students' written feedback on our feedback page.

Institutions

217

Assignments

527

Chat Topics

Aggregated survey responses from 217 assignments (6426 survey responses). Scale: –2 = Strongly disagree, 0 = Neutral, +2 = Strongly agree. Post-chat surveys sample a subset of the total survey items, so response counts vary across some items.

How was your chat?

🔥 Awesome 2354 (37%)

👍 Good 2656 (42%)

😐 It's OK 980 (16%)

👎 Not a fan 229 (4%)

💩 Hated it 95 (2%)

mean = 1.10 (95% confidence interval: 1.08–1.12)

I felt comfortable sharing my honest opinions with my partner

Strongly agree 1730 (55%)

Agree 1159 (37%)

Neutral 228 (7%)

Disagree 20 (1%)

Strongly disagree 14 (0%)

mean = 1.45 (95% confidence interval: 1.43–1.47)

It was valuable to chat with a student who did not share my perspective

Strongly agree 1281 (41%)

Agree 1296 (41%)

Neutral 488 (15%)

Disagree 54 (2%)

Strongly disagree 30 (1%)

mean = 1.19 (95% confidence interval: 1.16–1.22)

Guide's contributions improved the discussion

Strongly agree 2107 (39%)

Agree 2092 (38%)

Neutral 952 (17%)

Disagree 187 (3%)

Strongly disagree 130 (2%)

mean = 1.07 (95% confidence interval: 1.05–1.10)

Guide treated me and my partner with equal respect

Strongly agree 1400 (51%)

Agree 973 (35%)

Neutral 299 (11%)

Disagree 51 (2%)

Strongly disagree 32 (1%)

mean = 1.33 (95% confidence interval: 1.30–1.36)

My partner was respectful

Strongly agree 2005 (68%)

Agree 763 (26%)

Neutral 162 (5%)

Disagree 20 (1%)

Strongly disagree 18 (1%)

mean = 1.59 (95% confidence interval: 1.56–1.61)

My partner was genuinely trying to understand my perspective

Strongly agree 1389 (49%)

Agree 938 (33%)

Neutral 347 (12%)

Disagree 107 (4%)

Strongly disagree 34 (1%)

mean = 1.26 (95% confidence interval: 1.22–1.29)

My partner had better reasons for their views than I expected

Strongly agree 807 (25%)

Agree 1059 (33%)

Neutral 935 (30%)

Disagree 268 (8%)

Strongly disagree 98 (3%)

mean = 0.70 (95% confidence interval: 0.66–0.73)

I was not offended by my partner's perspective

Strongly agree 1908 (65%)

Agree 744 (25%)

Neutral 219 (7%)

Disagree 29 (1%)

Strongly disagree 33 (1%)

mean = 1.52 (95% confidence interval: 1.49–1.55)

This discussion improved my perception of my partner

Strongly agree 269 (41%)

Agree 233 (35%)

Neutral 130 (20%)

Disagree 20 (3%)

Strongly disagree 11 (2%)

mean = 1.10 (95% confidence interval: 1.03–1.17)

This discussion led me to change my mind about something related to the topic

Strongly agree 101 (15%)

Agree 183 (28%)

Neutral 171 (26%)

Disagree 136 (21%)

Strongly disagree 64 (10%)

mean = 0.18 (95% confidence interval: 0.09–0.28)

Sway helped me articulate my thoughts/feelings better

Strongly agree 763 (33%)

Agree 886 (38%)

Neutral 511 (22%)

Disagree 109 (5%)

Strongly disagree 57 (2%)

mean = 0.94 (95% confidence interval: 0.90–0.98)

Guide supported both sides of the discussion equally

Strongly agree 1057 (38%)

Agree 1042 (38%)

Neutral 482 (18%)

Disagree 122 (4%)

Strongly disagree 48 (2%)

mean = 1.07 (95% confidence interval: 1.03–1.10)

Guide contributed the right amount

Agree 4410 (71%)

Neutral 1474 (24%)

Disagree 317 (5%)

mean = 0.66 (95% confidence interval: 0.65–0.67)

It would be good if more students and classes used Sway

Strongly agree 941 (30%)

Agree 1064 (34%)

Neutral 830 (27%)

Disagree 160 (5%)

Strongly disagree 116 (4%)

mean = 0.82 (95% confidence interval: 0.78–0.86)