KidsMatter Surveys: Information for Action TeamsKidsMatter Surveys are a FREE service available to schools implementing KidsMatter – those that have attended Getting Started. The surveys are an important ‘tool for schools’ to facilitate the consultation process with your school community. These surveys are permanently available and allow your school to administer them when and to whom you wish. You are provided with real-time online access to your school’s collated data through secure interactive reports.

This document outlines everything you need to know about using the KidsMatter surveys and reports. Visit the KidsMatter website for other supporting documents.

Before you survey.....................................................................................................................................2Why should we use the surveys?What should be considered?

Running the survey..................................................................................................................................3When should we run the survey?Administering online surveysAdministering paper-based surveys

The survey reports...................................................................................................................................4The Full Report (Overview)The Mental Health Map (Question Group Report)

Interpreting survey results.......................................................................................................................8What’s the difference between the Staff and Parent surveys?How representative is our data?Comparing results from different occasionsWhat if the results suggest things are not improving?Comparing results between KidsMatter Staff and Parent surveys

Transferring and translating KidsMatter survey data into the Component plans.................................10

KidsMatter survey data privacy and usage...........................................................................................11Can individuals who provide data be identified?Can schools be identified and is any data reported publicly?

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Attend Getting Started

Identify your School Survey Administrator

Receive your school’s report logins via email

Contact your KidsMatter project officer or frontdesk@kidsmatter.edu.au if you have misplaced the email or there has been a change in survey administrator

To get started, your school needs to:

How is the data securely stored?Who has access to the survey data?

Before you surveyFinding out what your school’s staff and parent community think about whole-school mental health promotion and student wellbeing is a powerful way of engaging community voice in the consultation and planning process.

Why should we use the surveys?KidsMatter encourages schools to reflect on how they are doing things - what they are doing well already and also what they can improve upon to promote student’s mental health and wellbeing. So whether you’re a school new to KidsMatter or a school committed to ongoing KidsMatter cycles to enhance school practice and respond to the regularly changing school community, monitoring your staff and parent views on a regular basis from the outset can provide important information. This information will inform Action Team planning and also provide one way of assessing change. It’s also a way of demonstrating whole-school engagement with KidsMatter and the results can be used as evidence should your school wish to apply for KidsMatter School Recognition.

What should be considered?KidsMatter recommends that schools consider the following questions during the planning phase:

1. Will the survey provide information that we want but don’t already have?

2. Are participants adequately informed about KidsMatter? If not, this will need to happen prior to the survey or include information with the survey.

3. Will participants understand the survey questions and why they are being asked?

4. What proportion of participants are likely to complete the survey? How representative might they be? For example, will you target selected classes or do a random sample of parents?

5. Online, paper-based or both? It's your choice, but will depend on a number of factors like staff or parent access to the internet and the number of surveys you'd like to administer.

6. Could you encourage greater numbers and diversity of completed surveys through translation, gatherings/meetings, personal approaches or providing staff who can assist?

7. How will the information gathered from the survey be used?

8. How will your school community be informed about the results and any actions arising?

Also consider that the use of a survey may or may not be the most appropriate way to monitor your school community or you may already have other methods in place. Once these considerations have been worked through, the school Action Team is then in a position to make an informed decision about how to distribute surveys and use the data it provides.

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Baseline: Survey staff and parents

Re administer Component 1 survey to staff

Re administer Component 2 survey to staff

Re administer Component 3 survey to staff and the Parent survey to parents and carers

Re administer Component 4 survey to staffRe administer Staff and Parent surveys annually to monitor progress

Running the survey

When should we run the survey?Survey reports can be filtered by quarter so it is best if you set your administration period to fall within a calendar quarter (eg. Q1: Jan – Mar). Administering a survey at the beginning of a quarter will give you three months to collect data within that quarter. This is useful when you want to meaningfully compare your baseline data, collected in one quarter, with post-training results collected in a later quarter. Accordingly, we advise against collecting pre- and post-training data in the same quarter.

Commencing mode: As a new KidsMatter school, do all surveys to provide a baseline snapshot. This important information will inform Action Team planning.

Implementing mode: If your school has commenced whole-staff Component training, invite staff to complete the appropriate Component survey soon after the training.

Sustainability mode: If your school is in a cycle of continuous improvement, run the surveys in your school once a year to monitor school community views.

The following figure suggests when to run your surveys with your staff and parent community.

Administering online surveysFor online administration (recommended), use your normal school communication processes to invite people. Include the relevant survey link and instruct them to complete the KidsMatter Survey by a specified date. Here are the links to the Staff or Parent Survey that you include in your invitation:

Staff Surveys: www.kidsmatter.edu.au/primary/other-resources/school-surveys/staff-survey Parent Survey: www.kidsmatter.edu.au/primary/other-resources/school-surveys/parent-survey Student Survey: Coming soon

Administering paper-based surveysFor paper-based administration, print copies and distribute to your participants with a cover letter (eg. KidsMatter Parent Survey: Information for parents and carers). Once all surveys have been collected, they will need to be hand-entered into the appropriate online survey (above) to collate the data and access your results.

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The survey reportsThere are two types of reports for each survey:

The Full Report – overviews the results for all items and open text comments The Mental Health Map – presents the combined or question group results of items that align

with the KidsMatter four components

KidsMatter recommends that both reports are used to inform the planning process. Schools are provided with the unique links and a password for each report via the email. These reports show data in real-time and are permanently available – they never close.

Schools can monitor the number of responses and decide if a reminder needs to be sent out or the administration period extended.

The Full Report (Overview)Key features of the Full Report are captured below. Schools initially see all of their data but are able to filter their responses by Quarter if multiple occasions have been administered. Each item in the entire survey is presented and schools may like to consider the results for each item separately.

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Report name and Survey name

Export the report

Number of response

Date filters

Locked to school

Section header

Survey item and response choices

Collated results and statistical summaries

At the end of each section, a summary graph can be created by clicking on the icon,

selecting chart type, and click on .

This Matrix Chart is useful for comparing the overall results of individual items.

Open text comments are viewed by clicking on the icon.

The responses are listed and can be exported to excel or presented as a word-cloud.

The Staff Survey also includes a Strengths and Challenges summary, which by default, lists the top five most highly rated items and the bottom five least highly rated items. Schools can alter the number of items displayed.

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The Mental Health Map (Question Group Report)The additional key features of the Mental Health Map are captured below. Items are grouped according to their alignment to the four KidsMatter Components. In the case of Staff Surveys, shown below, each point assesses a component target area (eg. C1-TA1 is Component 1, Target Area 1).

Schools should consider each outcome and use the School Mental Health Map Summaries sheet with these reports so that the Action Team can brainstorm ideas about what the results might mean for school planning and action.

In the Group section, schools can click on each group to see the items that comprise them.

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National average

School’s results

Component areas

National average

School’s average

Schools can filter their data and select which Quarter they want to view.

They can also compare different Quarters where multiple occasions are available. Note that with each additional comparison, an additional line is added to the graph when you Re-run report, increasing the complexity of the graph and the interpretation.

In the following example, the school is above the National average in C3-TA3 and has improved from the pre-survey in 2012 to the post-survey in 2013.

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National average

School average

Pre survey

Post survey

Interpreting survey results

What’s the difference between the Staff and Parent surveys?Staff surveys are designed to assess staff views about the specific target areas in each of the four KidsMatter components. The items in the Staff survey are arranged under each component and directly link to whole-school professional learning. Items are clustered around each Target Area to create a comprehensive School Mental Health Map of staff views.

The Parent survey asks parents and carers to consider what is important to them with regard to the school better supporting student’s mental health and wellbeing. Schools are able to find out what matters to their parent community, and then act upon this information. An additional set of items, similar to the Staff items, gauge parent and carer views about where the school is currently at in the four components. These items are clustered around the four components to create a general School Mental Health Map of parent views.

How representative is our data?When considering any results, please be mindful of the response rate and how unrepresentative the results may be if the response rate is low. The minimum standard that guides research undertaken in the social sciences and education is 75%. This means that a good response rate, and one in which you could have reasonable confidence about it providing a representative view, would be 75 completed surveys for every 100 invited participants.

Comparing results from different occasionsCollecting baseline data from your staff and parent community, as one of the first steps along the implementation journey, informs you about where your school is starting from and where improvements can be made. You then might consider readministering the Component 1 section of the Staff Survey to your staff after the whole-school Component 1 training and implementation of actions. Comparison of baseline or pre-training results with post-training results may provide one form of evidence of change in your staff and school in this area.

What if the results suggest things are not improving?It is not uncommon for your second survey results to go down for a number of reasons. However, this does not necessarily mean that positive change is not occurring in your school.

Firstly, people have a predisposition to positively respond to questions – simply put, we like to be agreeable.

Secondly, people may respond to an item but don’t really understand the depth of what’s being asked. Once they’ve had training and are more knowledgeable about the area, they are better able to critically respond more accurately. This is known as the Dunning–Kruger effect (see Wikipedia).

Thirdly, and most importantly, don’t consider the results in isolation. Discuss and investigate the results with your staff to explain them. The apparently negative results may be a measure of increased understanding, which is not a negative thing at all.

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Comparing results between KidsMatter Staff and Parent surveysThe items in the Staff and Parent surveys are carefully designed to assess core processes and outcomes under the four KidsMatter components. Some Staff and Parent items closely match each other. For example, if a teacher strongly agreed that ‘making the time to get to know students is a priority for me’, then a parent of a child in that teacher’s class may be more likely to ‘ feel that my child’s teacher cares about my child’.

It may be interesting to compare the results between Staff and Parent surveys in order to see if staff perceptions and parent perceptions are similar on similar items. The table below presents some items from the Staff Survey that loosely match items from the Parent survey.

Parent items have also been broadly aligned to the Target Areas and you might like to include the summary statements from your Parent Survey along side the statements from your Staff Survey in you school’s Component Action Plan.

Staff Survey items Parent Survey itemsComponent 1: A positive school communityTarget Area 1 – A school

community that promotes mental health and wellbeing

1. Supporting students' mental health and wellbeing is a central part of my role

5. Making the time to get to know students is a priority for me

5. I feel welcome when visiting my child’s school

6. I feel that my child's teacher cares about my child

Target Area 2 – Respectful relationships, belonging and inclusion

9. Relationships between staff and families are respectful and responsive

11. Our school has specific policies and practices that promote inclusion and a safe environment

12. Our school communicates in a variety of ways to meet the diverse needs of our students and families

15. Our school provides opportunities for all members of the school community to share their views and contribute to school decisions

1. The school respects and values my family's beliefs and wishes

7. I am comfortable talking to my child’s teacher about my child

2. The school provides a safe and caring environment for my child

4. I am satisfied with the way the school communicates with me

3. I feel that I can participate in decisions that affect my child at school

Component 2: Social and emotional learning for studentsTarget Area 1 – Effective social

and emotional learning curriculum for all students

7. Social and emotional skills are taught formally and integrated as part of the regular curriculum at our school

10. The school sets clear, high expectations for student behaviour

Target Area 2 – Opportunities for students to practise and transfer their social and emotional skills

10. I actively support students in developing social and emotional skills through daily interactions

9. I am satisfied with how my child is progressing socially, emotionally and behaviourally

Component 3: Working with parents and carersTarget Area 2 – Support for

parenting6. I always communicate effectively with parents

and carers about their child11. I feel comfortable asking staff about

parenting and child developmentTarget Area 3 – Parent and

carer support networks11. Our school facilitates access for parents and

carers to community groups that provide support for families

12. School staff are supportive of parents who may be experiencing particular challenges in their life

Component 4: Helping children experiencing mental health difficultiesTarget Area 1 – Understanding

mental health difficulties and improving help-seeking

5. Our school community has specific policies and practices that support students and families experiencing mental health difficulties to seek appropriate help

14. Children at the school have someone they can talk to if they need help or advice

Target Area 2 – Responding to students experiencing mental health difficulties

10. Within the limits of my role, I am able to support a student who may be experiencing mental health difficulties

12. Our school has effective working relationships and clear referral pathways with local mental health services and supports

13. School staff are respectful and sensitive to children experiencing social, emotional and behavioural difficulties

15. The school makes use of outside support services to assist children who are experiencing difficulties

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families to access these services

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Transferring and translating KidsMatter survey data into the Component plansIt is important to set aside sufficient time, at least a day, to undertake this process. It is best to make the time where Action team members are not distracted by other commitments and interruptions. Find a place where you are not disturbed and can freely focus and apply yourselves to the task.

1. Write summary statements. Using your school’s Mental Health Map Reports and the Summaries sheet, identify what general trends in each Target Area (made up of the averaged responses across a group of questions) the majority of responses agree or disagree with. Write a note to this effect in the space provided. For example, All staff understand their school community.

2. Consider the broader spectrum of views. If the majority of respondents agree with the question but there are some people who strongly disagree, then perhaps the strong views of a minority also need to be considered in your summary statement. For example, The majority of staff understand their school community, however one quarter of staff strongly disagree with this.

3. Also consider the individual questions. Refer back to the Full Overview Report or the individual questions grouped within the Mental Health Map Report to consider differences. Are some questions rated much lower than others? While the overall response to a Target Area may be positive, a low rated question may identify an issue that needs to be noted. For example, 30% of staff did not see supporting student mental health as a core part of their role.

4. Transfer your summary statements onto the Component plan for each Target Area (column two).

5. Develop school specific goals by filling out the third column on the Component plan to address each summary statement. The goal specifies what you are aiming for or hoping to see in relation to this issue. Remember goals need to SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely).

6. Address the remaining steps for the first Target Area by working across the columns in the Component plan. Then go to the next goal related to Target Area 2 and work across. Do this for each of the Target Areas and goals until all of your summary statements have actions.

7. Highlight any areas that require urgent attention in the implementation timeframe column. Perhaps colour-code this red. Refer these items to school leadership for immediate action. Colour completed strategies in green and if the issue needs annual action then use blue.

8. Feedback to staff. As each whole-staff professional learning session occurs in each component, feed back to staff the results of the survey for that component and the suggested goals and strategies your Action team has proposed. Goals and strategies can then be added to and refined.

9. Family and student views. Consider how you might include parent and student views in these Component plan goals and strategies. The voice of students, families and staff is essential in developing a whole school approach to addressing mental health and wellbeing.

10. Create your School Mental Health and Wellbeing strategic plan. Once the four component plans are completed, join them together with the survey reports and summary sheets and add a cover page. Share this with the leadership team, school board and staff, and celebrate this milestone.

11. Meet once per term. Your Action team can meet once per term to oversee the implementation of the strategic plan. This document is not static and can be refined to reflect changing needs in your school community. Remember to keep leadership informed of progress and version changes.

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KidsMatter survey data privacy and usageThe national roll out of KidsMatter is a significant undertaking in the Australian education community. As KidsMatter continues to expand, providing schools with efficient access to their survey data is only possible through efficient and secure data monitoring and management.

KidsMatter provides schools with surveys for the purpose of a whole school approach to engaging community voice in the consultation and planning process. It is completely at the schools’ discretion to administer the surveys online or paper-based, and to decide how often and to whom. Schools have real-time access to their own aggregated results.

Can individuals who provide data be identified?No. The data collected by KidsMatter Surveys is anonymous and individuals can not be identified. Any reporting of data, for internal or public purposes is reported in aggregate form so that individuals can not be identified.

Can schools be identified and is any data reported publicly?Yes. Schools need to be identified so that the survey data they submit can be accessed by the school in aggregated reports. All other reporting is conducted on nationally aggregated data and no individual schools are identifiable.

How is the data securely stored?KidsMatter data is stored electronically in approved password protected databases on industry-standard secure servers in order to ensure that the information it holds is protected and safeguarded against loss, unauthorised access, use, modification, disclosure or any other misuse. Any personal details provided to KidsMatter are protected in line with the National Privacy Principles and the laws and regulations regarding such matters as are applicable in Australia, including but not limited to the Information Privacy Act 1988. The data may be transferred to secure data warehousing facilities for archival purposes.

Who has access to the survey data?The KidsMatter National Data Manager has unit-level access to the anonymous survey data. The nominated school survey administrator has password protected access to only their school’s aggregated survey results. KidsMatter state and territory staff do not have access to a school’s survey results unless the school provides written permission or includes it in their application for Recognition.

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Parent Survey: Information for Parents and Carers

What is KidsMatter Primary?

KidsMatter Primary is an Australian initiative that aims to improve children’s mental health and wellbeing. It recognises the important role that parents and carers play in the lives of their children and encourages effective working relationships between school staff, parents and carers as well as the broader community. For further information, including information sheets especially written for parents and carers, visit the KidsMatter Primary website: www.kidsmatter.edu.au/primary

What is the survey about and how long will it take?

The survey asks your perspectives on your child’s school and what you think is important for the school to consider in supporting children’s mental health and wellbeing. We expect that it will take you approximately 10 minutes to complete the survey.

Why are you being asked to complete this survey?

KidsMatter Primary encourages schools to reflect on how they are doing things - what they are doing well already and also what they can improve upon to promote children’s mental health and wellbeing. School staff are surveyed to hear their views and it has been recognised that including the voice of parents and carers will also add valuable information to assist the school with planning.

What choice do you have?

Completing this anonymous survey is entirely your choice. Whether or not you decide to participate, your decision will not disadvantage you or your child. However, we hope that you will contribute to helping us improve our school community. Please feel free to discuss any concerns you may have about completing this survey with any of the staff.

How is your privacy protected and what happens to the answers?

The answers provided by parents and carers are completely anonymous and it will not be possible to identify you or your child from your answers. Data is stored electronically by KidsMatter Primary in a password secured database. Only summarised results that align to the four components are used by the school to assist with school planning. KidsMatter Primary may also use data summarised at a state level to inform the national development of KidsMatter.

What do you need to do to participate?

Please read this Information Statement and be sure you understand its contents before you consent to participate. If there is anything you do not understand, or if you have questions, please talk to a staff person at your child’s school.

If you consent to participate, please complete the survey according to the instructions given by your school, which may be to, either fill out the paper-based survey and return it to the school, or complete the online survey at: www.kidsmatter.edu.au/primary/parentsurvey

Thank you for your support.

KidsMatter Surveys: School Mental Health Map Summaries

Use this sheet with your school’s Staff and Parent Survey Mental Health Map Reports. Quarter:

Component 1: A positive school community

Summary StatementsStaff Survey Parent Survey

Target Area 1 – A school community that promotes mental health and wellbeing

a) School staff understand the importance of mental health and wellbeing, its impact on learning, and the significant contributions schools can make to improving student mental health

Q1-Q5 Group score = Q1-Q8 Group score =

b) School staff have an understanding of their

school community

Target Area 2 – Respectful relationships, belonging and inclusion

a) School staff expect and model respectful and responsive relationships within the school community

Q6-Q15 Group score =

b) Belonging and inclusion for all school community members is specifically addressed in school strategic planning, policies and practices

c) The school environment and communication

reflects the diversity of the school community

d) School leadership and staff create opportunities for students, staff, families and the wider community to be involved in a range of school activities and contribute to school planning

What might these results mean for school planning and action?

Component 2: Social and emotional learning for students

Summary StatementsStaff Survey Parent Survey

Target Area 1 – Effective social and emotional learning (SEL) curriculum for all students

a) School staff understand the inter-relationship between social, emotional and academic learning

Q1-Q8 Group score = Q9-Q10 Group score =

b) Teachers understand the core social and emotional competencies of: Self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, responsible decision making

c) SEL curriculum is taught: That covers the core social and emotional competencies; hat has research evidence of effectiveness or is underpinned by a sound theoretical framework; Effectively, formally and regularly in a co-ordinated and supported way throughout the school

Target Area 2 – Opportunities for students to practise and transfer their social and emotional skills

a) School staff use their daily interactions with students to support the development of students’ SEL skills in and out of the classroom

Q9-Q13 Group score =

b) Students are provided with regular opportunities to practise and adapt their social and emotional skills to new situations in the classroom, school and wider community

c) School staff provide information to parents about the school’s social and emotional curriculum and work collaboratively with parents to assist students’ development of social and emotional skills

What might these results mean for school planning and action?

Component 3: Working with parents and carers

Summary StatementsStaff Survey Parent Survey

Target Area 1 – Collaborative working relationships with parents and carers

a) School planning, policies and practices support collaborative working relationships with parents and carers

Q1-Q3 Group score = Q11-Q12 Group score =

b) School staff implement strategies to proactively develop collaborative working relationships with parents and carers to promote children’s mental health, wellbeing and learning

Target Area 2 – Support for parenting

a) School staff have knowledge and skills to communicate effectively with parents about their children in areas related to child development, learning and mental health and wellbeing

Q4-Q8 Group score =

b) School staff communicate effectively with parents and carers about child development, learning, and mental health and wellbeing

c) The school has policies and practices to support staff to identify and, where appropriate, facilitate access for parents to resources and services that support parenting

Target Area 3 – Parent and carer support networks

a) The school provides opportunities for parents and carers to connect with each other and develop support networks, and actively seeks to minimise barriers to participation

Q9-Q11 Group score =

b) The school identifies and promotes community groups which may act as a source of support for parents and carers

What might these results mean for school planning and action?

Component 4: Helping children experiencing mental health difficulties

Summary StatementsStaff Survey Parent Survey

Target Area 1 – Understanding mental health difficulties and improving help-seeking

a) School staff have an understanding of childhood mental health difficulties including common signs and symptoms, its impact on children and families, and factors that put children at risk

Q1-Q5 Group score = Q13-Q15 Group score =

b) School staff understand that getting help and support early is important for students and families experiencing difficulties

c) The school provides an inclusive and accepting environment for community members who may be experiencing difficulties with their mental health

d) The school has policies and practices that support students and families to seek help for mental health difficulties

Target Area 2 – Responding to students experiencing mental health difficulties

a) School staff have a shared understanding of their role, and its boundaries, in addressing the needs of students experiencing mental health difficulties

Q6-Q13 Group score =

b) The school has protocols and processes for recognising and responding to students experiencing mental health difficulties, including helping students to remain engaged in their education

c) School staff have knowledge and skills for recognising and supporting students experiencing mental health difficulties, including how to access support and make appropriate referrals

d) The school has effective working relationships and clear referral pathways with services and supports families to access these services

e) The school works together with families and professionals who are involved in caring for their students’ mental health and learning

What might these results mean for school planning and action?