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

100

Professors

323

Assignments

1,399

Chat Topics

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 3603 (37%)

👍 Good 4124 (43%)

😐 It's OK 1434 (15%)

👎 Not a fan 354 (4%)

💩 Hated it 150 (2%)

mean = 1.10 (95% confidence interval: 1.09–1.12)

The skills I practiced here will be useful in my conversations outside of Sway

Strongly agree 713 (39%)

Agree 755 (41%)

Neutral 279 (15%)

Disagree 53 (3%)

Strongly disagree 20 (1%)

mean = 1.15 (95% confidence interval: 1.11–1.19)

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

Strongly agree 1849 (42%)

Agree 1815 (41%)

Neutral 655 (15%)

Disagree 73 (2%)

Strongly disagree 37 (1%)

mean = 1.21 (95% confidence interval: 1.19–1.24)

I felt comfortable sharing my honest opinions with my partner

Strongly agree 2425 (54%)

Agree 1670 (37%)

Neutral 321 (7%)

Disagree 35 (1%)

Strongly disagree 19 (0%)

mean = 1.44 (95% confidence interval: 1.42–1.46)

I was not offended by my partner’s perspective

Strongly agree 2759 (64%)

Agree 1127 (26%)

Neutral 310 (7%)

Disagree 58 (1%)

Strongly disagree 51 (1%)

mean = 1.51 (95% confidence interval: 1.48–1.53)

My partner was respectful

Strongly agree 2868 (66%)

Agree 1138 (26%)

Neutral 258 (6%)

Disagree 40 (1%)

Strongly disagree 22 (1%)

mean = 1.57 (95% confidence interval: 1.55–1.59)

My partner was genuinely trying to understand my perspective

Strongly agree 1988 (48%)

Agree 1403 (34%)

Neutral 546 (13%)

Disagree 155 (4%)

Strongly disagree 64 (2%)

mean = 1.23 (95% confidence interval: 1.20–1.25)

My partner had better reasons for their views than I expected

Strongly agree 1096 (24%)

Agree 1511 (34%)

Neutral 1329 (30%)

Disagree 396 (9%)

Strongly disagree 148 (3%)

mean = 0.67 (95% confidence interval: 0.64–0.70)

This discussion improved my perception of my partner

Strongly agree 757 (36%)

Agree 775 (37%)

Neutral 480 (23%)

Disagree 67 (3%)

Strongly disagree 42 (2%)

mean = 1.01 (95% confidence interval: 0.97–1.05)

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

Strongly agree 500 (15%)

Agree 879 (26%)

Neutral 978 (29%)

Disagree 673 (20%)

Strongly disagree 315 (9%)

mean = 0.17 (95% confidence interval: 0.13–0.21)

Guide’s contributions improved the discussion

Strongly agree 2788 (38%)

Agree 2919 (39%)

Neutral 1281 (17%)

Disagree 255 (3%)

Strongly disagree 152 (2%)

mean = 1.07 (95% confidence interval: 1.05–1.09)

Guide treated me and my partner with equal respect

Strongly agree 1946 (51%)

Agree 1356 (35%)

Neutral 412 (11%)

Disagree 71 (2%)

Strongly disagree 35 (1%)

mean = 1.34 (95% confidence interval: 1.31–1.36)

Guide contributed the right amount

Agree 6872 (72%)

Neutral 2160 (23%)

Disagree 505 (5%)

mean = 0.67 (95% confidence interval: 0.66–0.68)

Sway helped me articulate my thoughts/feelings better

Strongly agree 1181 (32%)

Agree 1448 (39%)

Neutral 831 (22%)

Disagree 164 (4%)

Strongly disagree 84 (2%)

mean = 0.94 (95% confidence interval: 0.91–0.97)

It would be good if more students and classes used Sway

Strongly agree 1364 (31%)

Agree 1512 (34%)

Neutral 1180 (27%)

Disagree 218 (5%)

Strongly disagree 136 (3%)

mean = 0.85 (95% confidence interval: 0.82–0.88)