An Exploration on Enhancing the Teaching Performance of the Survey Research Methods Course through Practical Training to Undergraduate Students ()
1. Introduction
Practical training is an important part of deepening course teaching, an effective way to enhance students’ practical and innovative abilities, and a teaching method that conforms to the laws of talent growth in higher education and is conducive to comprehensively improving the quality of talent cultivation. Especially for the teaching of social science courses, which are closely related to social phenomena, it is necessary to focus on both theoretical teaching and practical teaching.
Through the combination of theory and practice, students’ ability to discover, analyze, and solve social problems can be further improved; through course training activities, students can master methods and techniques of understanding society, achieving the teaching goal of applying what they have learned and promoting learning through application. Only in this way can both “good teaching” and “good learning” be achieved.
In 2018, the Opinions on Accelerating the Construction of High-Quality Undergraduate Education and Comprehensively Enhancing the Capacity for Talent Cultivation issued by the Ministry of Education of China proposed to strengthen the construction of practical education platforms, which has promoted higher education institutions to explore practical education methods in courses. In accordance with the requirements for talent cultivation, some teachers have made attempts at practical training (Yuan, 2023; Cao, 2025). In 2025, the Outline for the Construction of an Education Power (2024-2035) issued by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council further proposed to expand the space and venues for practical education, which pointed out the direction for further deepening practical education in courses.
Practical training, as an important teaching approach, is rooted in the theories of experiential learning developed by Kolb (2015), which is a powerful educational method that emphasizes learning through direct experience, reflection, and application. Here, taking the Survey Research Methods course as an example, hereinafter referred to as SRMs course, the paper introduces some practices in training teaching as well as the teaching effects achieved, to provide some experience and references for carrying out innovative teaching of the course.
In order to achieve the talent cultivation goals of the course, combined with the course content, the course has systematically constructed a teaching model, which is “classroom teaching + practical training + scientific researching” three-in-one teaching model (see Figure 1).
In the above model, class teaching focused on knowledge teaching. Practical training and scientific researching are the ways of experiential learning. Practical training integrates practical experience with theoretical knowledge.
Through the educational approach of the research Methods course, the course help young students understand the methodology of scientific research, teach students to master specific methods and techniques of data collection and analysis, assist students in correctly understanding social and economic phenomena and conducting social scientific research work, thereby cultivating students’ ability to correctly understand society, systematically think about society, objectively analyze society, continuously enhance students’ higher-order thinking ability,
Figure 1. Three-in-one teaching model of SRMs course.
knowledge transfer ability, and the ability to combine theory with practice to achieve the main goals of curriculum construction and teacher teaching. Higher abilities mean the critical analysis of research designs, synthesis of disparate data and creative problem-solving, etc. In the past teaching process, the course has made some attempts in practical training and got the obvious the effectiveness of talent cultivation.
2. Objectives and Contents of SRMs Course Construction
2.1. Specify Teaching Objectives of SRMs Course
Course is the fundamental carrier of teaching and a platform for teachers to promote teaching ideas and achieve teaching objectives. The SRMs is a core course for undergraduate students majoring in Agricultural and Forestry Economics and Management at Renmin University of China, and is also open to students of other majors, which has been offered for over 20 years. Over the past two decades or so, the curriculum has been constantly updated to keep pace with the needs of talent cultivation. Especially in the new era, course construction is confronted with the task of cultivating talents needed for achieving modernization with Chinese characteristics. Based on the characteristics of the discipline of agricultural and forestry economic management, course construction shoulders the responsibility of cultivating talents for rural revitalization who understand the rural areas, agriculture and farmers. The SRMs is precisely a course that helps students master the skills to understand rural society.
As we all know, survey research is one of the important ways to understand society, and conducting practical training activities is an endogenous requirement for the construction of survey research methods courses. The cultivation of talents in social science disciplines must be rooted in society and practice. Without understanding social reality, students only possessing empty theories can hardly meet the society’s demand for talents. Therefore, teachers should not only impart knowledge in the classroom, but also root the classroom in farms, enterprises and the broader social context, purposefully design and carry out course practical training activities, continuously improve the teaching effect of the course and the quality of talent cultivation, so that the course truly becomes a carrier of value shaping, knowledge imparting and ability cultivation, and promotes the realization of course construction objectives.
2.2. Build Teaching Contents of SRMs Course
The SRMs course mainly consists of four contents. The first part of teaching contents is the basic theories of survey research. It mainly covers the concept and significance, the ethics and morality, the procedures and types, social measurement and other related theories and knowledge on survey research. The second part is survey methods and techniques. It mainly teaches the methods and techniques such as sampling and non-sampling, literature review, questionnaire design and survey, internet survey, observation and interview survey, expert survey and participatory survey. The third part is analytical methods and techniques. It mainly includes descriptive statistical analysis methods, statistical inference methods, and regression analysis methods, etc. The fourth part is the writing of survey research-related documents. It mainly introduces the writing methods and techniques of investigation reports, academic papers, summary reports and other documents.
From the perspective of content of the Survey Research Methods course, three-quarters of the contents are about specific methods and techniques of investigation and research, which provides a theoretical basis for carrying out practical training activities in the course and an innovative framework for arranging and designing operable and applicable practical teaching.
2.3. Eliminate Teaching Pain Points Ever Encountered
In the past teaching process, the course has made some attempts in practical training, but also encountered two pain points.
Firstly, the teaching hours were insufficient, making it difficult to implement practical training activities, and there was insufficient training in knowledge transfer and application. In addition to the hours occupied by imparting knowledge, the content and hours of practical training teaching have to be reduced. For example, when conducting practical training activities in the classroom, it is often necessary to make trade-offs based on time. When teaching questionnaire design, only one of the practical exercises on questionnaire diagnosis and questionnaire entry coding can be chosen. And the trade-offs are also made in the practical training of participatory survey methods. Obviously, these training activities play a positive role in enhancing students’ thinking and application abilities. Therefore, increasing the number of course hours is an objective condition for further improving teaching effectiveness.
Secondly, academic training is inadequate, making it difficult to complete systematic investigation and research work, and students’ scientific research capabilities are not fully explored. Under the constraints of insufficient classroom time and the rationality of students’ burdens, the depth and breadth of scientific research training are often compressed. For example, practical training activities related to scientific research need to cover the entire process from the design of research plan, collection, organization and analysis of data, to the composition of a research report. However, in reality, students are often only required to complete part of the training tasks, and it is impossible to complete the full-chain, closed-loop training of scientific research.
Therefore, in order to further enhance the teaching effect of the course, after demonstration by the Academic Committee of the School of Agricultural and Rural Development at Renmin University of China, starting from the 2020-2021 academic year, the teaching hours of the course were adjusted from 34 to 51 and the credits were adjusted from 2 to 3, which provides a broader time and space for the systematic practical training teaching of the course.
3. Design Activities of Practical Training for SRMs Course
The purpose of practical training is to promote the application and consolidation of knowledge, and to enhance students’ ability to transfer knowledge, analyze social problems, express and present, etc. To achieve these goals, the curriculum designs practical training methods in the classroom, off the classroom, and in combination with both, and creates activity projects such as classroom training and field training.
3.1. Design Practical Training Activities Carried Out in the Class
Practical training activities in the classroom refer to practical training activities carried out in the classroom in parallel with the knowledge imparted.
Activity 1: Training on the application of participatory research method
When teaching the chapter on “Participatory Survey Methods”, the teacher first spends one class period imparting what participatory survey methods are, the scenarios where they are applied, and the practical operation steps. Next, under the guidance of the knowledge already taught, conduct two hours of practical training in groups. To carry out this classroom practice activity. The specific approach is:
Step 1: Preparation. At this stage, organizers need to prepare: 1. Props. Organizers need to prepare large white and colored paper, tape, double-sided tape, scissors, pens of various colors, etc. 2 Students are grouped. The organizers will group the students into groups of about 10. 3. Activity arrangements. In each group, set up roles such as convener, recorder, speaker, timekeeper, and noise controller.
Step 2: Announce the survey topic and activity mode on the spot. The organizers announce the survey topic to the participants and introduce how the participatory survey will be conducted. In line with the major, the course has conducted various participatory research activities on different topics such as “application scenarios of smart agriculture”, “Impacts and responses to climate change”, and “Joys and Sorrows of college life”.
Step 3: Presentation and analysis of Results. Through participatory survey activities on the above questions, brainstorming discussions are conducted in groups within a limited time (usually 45 minutes); The group presents the results of the group discussion by drawing a chart, text, or picture; Then the group speaker reports the analysis results; teacher comments at the end. In the midst of laughter and joy, students have mastered theoretical knowledge, learned the application of methods, recognized social phenomena, enhanced analytical skills, and achieved the teaching goal of educating students in the classroom.
Activity 2: Training on questionnaire diagnosis
When it comes to the chapter on “Questionnaire Survey Methods”, students are required to master the techniques and methods of questionnaire design. For this purpose, in order to enhance students’ skills in questionnaire design, the course has designed a practical training project of “Questionnaire Diagnosis”. The specific approach is as follows:
Firstly, the teacher provides a questionnaire as a case for diagnosis. Secondly, in accordance with the design requirements of the questionnaire, students need to conduct a logical review, content review, and objective review of the overall situation of the questionnaire. Again, review each aspect of the expression of specific questions and the design of options in the questionnaire one by one. Finally, the teacher will comment on the diagnostic points of the case questionnaire. Through these training activities, the students’ ability to design questionnaires is enhanced, which further could provide technical support for conducting quantitative scientific research.
Activity 3: Training on questionnaire coding
When it comes to the chapter on “Data Collection, Organization and analysis”, students are required to master the technique of entering questionnaire survey data. For this purpose, the course designed a practical training project of “Questionnaire Entry coding”. In general, the teacher provides a questionnaire as the basis for coding. Next, students try to enter and code the case questionnaire according to the coding rules. In the end, the teacher made comments on the performance of students.
3.2. Design After-Class Practical Training Activities
After-class practical training refers to training tasks assigned to students in the form of after-class assignments, which students are required to complete independently within the prescribed time.
Activity 4: Literature reading and comprehension training
When it comes to the chapter on “Methods of Literature Research”, the course designs a practical training teaching method of “self-reading + note-taking + teacher-guiding”. By increasing the amount of reading, enhance self-learning ability and expand the breadth and depth of learning. By writing reading notes, improve the ability to understand problems, imitate and innovate, and express oneself in writing. The specific approach is as follows:
First of all, ask students to choose a scientific research paper on their own to read. The next is to complete the reading notes. The main content of the notes should include what the research question of the literature is, what its methods of data collection and analysis are, what the research conclusion is, and the comments on the strengths and weaknesses of the paper made by the student. Finally, the teacher reviews and comments on the notes written by the students and instructs them to further understand how to improve the application of methods and techniques. Through after-class reading and analysis of literature, students’ self-learning and comprehensive ability are enhanced, laying a good foundation for further improvement of students’ scientific research ability.
3.3. Design Integrated Practical Training Activities in and out of Class
In-class and out-of-class practical training refers to a training task that requires both the work done in the first classroom (in the school classroom) and the work done in the second classroom (outside the school classroom).
Activity 5: Field practical training to apply the methods
When teaching the content of “Interview Method” and “Observation Method”, the course designs a closed-loop field training activity, which is named “field teaching + method application + classroom presentation”.
In the classroom, the teachers teach the methods and techniques of interviews and observations. Outside the classroom, teachers organize the students to off-campus farms for on-site teaching and practical training activities, and require students to complete the pre-arranged practical training tasks on the investigation of operation and management of farms. After returning to the class, students are required to complete training reports on the farm survey in groups, then present and discuss them in class. The three key aspects of practical training design are as follows:
The first is that the curriculum should do a good job in designing the tasks for conducting field practical training of farm outside of classroom. Based on the teaching content, teachers focus on applying interview methods and observation methods for practical training, and arrange off-campus practical training sites in ecological farms near the suburbs. Usually, the field practical task is two items. One is that students in groups randomly interview two or three citizens, farm technicians, managers, etc., who work on the farm and form interview records. The other is that students are required to observe several facilities, plants or animals in the field, form observation records, and complete scientific understanding of the observed objects. The
The second is to organize group presentations of the results of the first classroom practice training. After the practical training activities are completed, students will spend 1 - 2 weeks organizing, analyzing and writing the practical training content and presenting the classroom results.
The third is that the teachers provide comments on the entire process of practical training activities. By adopting appropriate, effective and diverse teaching methods, the teaching effect was effectively enhanced and the teaching objectives were achieved.
4. Design of Research-Based Learning Activities in Groups
Research-based education is an advanced form of curriculum practice and training, a systematic training that applies the theoretical knowledge taught in the curriculum to the recognition and understanding of social phenomena. This is both a way to exercise students’ ability to transfer and apply knowledge and a channel to cultivate students’ scientific research literacy and ability, which can effectively achieve the teaching goal of applying what is learned and promoting learning through application.
Activity 6: Scientific research training in groups
This training activity emphasizes the participation of students as individuals or teams throughout the entire research process, which includes identifying research questions, reading literature, proposing research hypotheses, determining investigation types and methods, collecting, organizing and analyzing data, writing reports, as well as presenting, communicating and discussing, etc. This training requires students to integrate knowledge, methods and techniques learned from course together and apply them to the analysis of a social phenomenon or question. The practical activity aims to further expand the breadth and depth of the teaching effect of the course and cultivate students’ comprehensive ability to raise, analyze and solve complex problems, advanced thinking and innovation ability. At the same time the course teacher plays an important role in enhancing students’ ability of thinking, expression, debate and teamwork by the in-class comments and after-class guide. The process of implementing this activity is as follows:
First of all, the students voluntarily form different research team. The number of members in a group is generally no more than five.
Next, the students carry out scientific research activities in groups independently. The research training activity runs through the entire semester. The research activity encourages students to explore experience and challenge the knowledge that can only be obtained by jumping and reasonably increase the degree of challenge. And it also encourages students to choose to study social issues, take root in China to do academic research and contribute ideas to solve real-world problems. We hope that the above-mentioned training activities can further cultivate the spirit of patriotism, a sense of social responsibility and mission, and give full play to the positive role of the curriculum in the all-round development of individuals.
Finally, teachers should play the role of a guide. Throughout the research training, teachers keep an eye on students’ research needs and help them solve the difficulties they face. Undergraduates lack experience in conducting scientific research. Therefore, teachers allocate one-third of their class hours for research guidance and students’ self-study. Teachers usually require each research group to have at least one in-person guidance session in class, especially during the initial exploration and establishment of research questions, where teachers’ guidance is of great significance for the subsequent training of the research group. During the research training after class, students are allowed to consult questions through various means such as online WeChat groups, email, and teaching assistants, and receive research guidance and support in a timely manner. In general, teachers should be responsible and play an active role in helping students grasp the research direction, provide follow-up guidance, answer questions, supervise and inspect. In scientific research, students can not only experience the joy of academic research, but also improve their various abilities. This also achieves the educational goals of the course to improve the high-level nature of talent cultivation and highlight innovation.
5. Design of the Course Assessment and Evaluation System
Innovation in teaching methods and approaches has also put forward new requirements for the content and structure of course assessment and evaluation. The assessment of the investigation and Research Methods course consists of two parts: regular performance and final performance, which is the same as the general course assessment and evaluation system. However, as a course with a lot of practical training content and a large amount of regular work, the course has adjusted the assessment and evaluation structure to 70% of regular performance and 30% of final performance. Taking the course assessment and evaluation system for the 2024-2025 academic year as an example, the course design assessment and evaluation system is shown in Table 1.
Table 1. Composition of the course evaluation system.
Evaluation
structure |
Evaluation proportion |
Evaluation points |
Evaluation contents |
Process
evaluation (70%) |
50% |
Scientific research training |
submit one research paper give one presentation evaluate the quality of academic paper |
20% |
Literature review training |
submit two reading notes. evaluate the quality of reading notes |
20% |
Field practical training |
submit the assignment evaluate the quality of assignment oral presentation of assignment |
10% |
Class participation and
communication |
class attendance class training participation performance of interactive communication |
Final exam (30%) |
50% |
Basic knowledge test |
basic theories and methods of the course contents |
50% |
Knowledge transfer and
application ability test |
material analysis questions questionnaire diagnosis practical operation questions, such as sampling,
calculation, questionnaire coding, etc. |
Note: Total score = process evaluation + final exam = (a+b+c+d) * 70% + (e+f) * 30%.
The assessment of the regular performance of the course focuses on the evaluation of the learning process, and the evaluation focuses include four parts.
The first is the research-based report defense evaluation. In groups (1 to 5 people), submit one research paper, design one research project, give one presentation, and engage in a direct debate to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the scientific research process, presentation, and results. The evaluation is based on the final submitted report or paper by each research group. This part of the assessment accounts for 60% of the regular performance.
The second is the literature reading improvement assessment. Students submit reading notes of two academic papers individually. It mainly examines students’ comprehensive reading abilities such as literature research, summary and expression, writing skills, and deep thinking. This part of the assessment accounts for 20% of the regular performance.
The third is the evaluation on the performance of participation in the summary, expression and practical training. Review and evaluate students’ performance in on-site teaching and classroom presentations and reports. This part of the assessment accounts for 20% of the regular performance.
The Fourth is the evaluation of the classroom attendance, interaction, and communication. It mainly examines and evaluates students’ classroom attendance, survey participation, on-class performance, and interaction, and this part of the assessment accounts for 10% of the regular performance.
The final assessment will be conducted in an open-book format. The questions in the test paper focus on two aspects of students’ learning. One is the assessment of the mastery of basic knowledge. The questions in this section are all objective questions in the form of short-answer questions and calculation questions, focusing on assessing students’ mastery of the basic knowledge of investigation and research methods to achieve the goal of reviewing the old and learning the new. The second is the assessment of knowledge transfer and application ability. The test questions in this section are subjective questions in the form of material analysis questions and practical training questions, focusing on assessing students’ ability to transfer knowledge, apply methods and techniques, analyze problems, solve problems, etc.
6. The Effect of Innovative Teaching Methods of Course
According to the results of the quality assessment of undergraduate class teaching at Renmin University of China, the SRMs course has been widely recognized by students and the evaluation results given to the course by students over the years have been excellent. At Renmin University of China, quality assessment system of undergraduate course teaching consists of 10 indicators (see Table 2), which are generally evaluated online by students before the end of the course. The evaluation is anonymous and the teacher cannot view the evaluation results during the semester. Therefore, the results or process of the evaluation will not have any adverse effect on the students, and the evaluation results are objective and true. The instructor can only view the evaluation score until the beginning of the next semester.
Table 2. Evaluation indicators for quality of undergraduate course teaching at renmin university of China for the 2024-2025 academic year.
1 |
Teachers start and end classes on time |
2 |
Teachers clearly let us know the teaching objectives, teaching content and assessment methods of the course at the beginning of class |
3 |
The teacher’s lecture is clear, easy to understand. and inspiring |
4 |
The teachers highlight the key and difficult points of the course |
5 |
Teachers are able to connect theory with practice in teaching based on the course contents |
6 |
Teachers pay attention to foster students’ interest in learning and their self-study ability |
7 |
Teachers encourage students to question, ask and discuss |
8 |
Teachers reasonably arrange reading materials or assignments related to the course |
9 |
Teachers give feedback on our assignments |
10 |
Overall, teachers are responsible for teaching |
Taking the course teaching quality assessment results of 2024-2025 academic year as an example, the students gave the class a assessment score of 100, which shows that students were satisfied with the course teaching. In the teaching evaluation system, students left 13 positive comments. For example: “I learned a lot and can apply it directly after class”; “The course features theoretical explanations, case studies, and practical applications—it is very useful”; “The teacher explains things exceptionally well”; “Always manages to spark my interest”; “The course teaches us how to select research topics, how to conduct surveys, and how to analyze data—step by step, excellent”; “I like this course”. The above clearly shows that students accept and enjoy the innovative teaching and methods of SRMs course.
Another important course outcome is some of the academic research training works from the course have received supports from the Ministry of Education’s College Students Innovation Experiment Program to conduct more in-depth social research. Some research works have won Challenge Cup Awards for college students. When communicating with graduates, they generally said that the course had played an important role in their logical thinking training and research ability development.
7. Conclusion and Discussion
Overall, the paper illustrates the teaching objectives of course, the practical means of accomplishing them, evaluation system to students and assessment methods to course. Having been tested and proven through frontline teaching practice, the course has yielded remarkable educational effects and achieved the expected goals of innovative teaching and talent cultivation. Especially, the course has reached the integration goal of imparting knowledge, guiding thinking, and applying techniques. The undergraduate students master research theory knowledge, instill the correct research attitude, and are willing to conduct research grounded in practice.
There are two aspects of experience worth summarizing for the good results of teaching innovation in the curriculum. On the one hand, the innovation of teaching methods is carried out under the premise of following the laws of education and teaching, organizing teaching links in accordance with the progressive learning law of “theoretical knowledge - skill training - scientific research expansion”, not seeking quick success and instant benefits, laying a solid theoretical foundation for students through classroom lectures, and expanding students’ abilities through practical training and scientific research training. On the other hand, course teachers play an important guiding role in enhancing students’ abilities. In terms of research training, in the “project-based” research work carried out in student groups, teachers need to provide assistance to students in terms of topic guidance, process consultation, and answering questions in order to help students grow.
The paper elaborates on the practices and experiences of innovative teaching in the course, particularly the design plan for conducting practical training activities, which are referential, replicable and promotable.
The application of practical training in social science disciplines is extensive. For example, in the courses of sociology, field survey is a practical training, and usually used to help the students to understand the social behavior, social change and social issues. In Public Administration courses, practical training takes the form of social case analysis, simulations of government decision-making, and policy evaluation, aiming to develop students’ problem-solving skills. In conclusion, practical training methods differ across disciplines. Therefore, practical training activities should be designed to suit specific requirements by combining disciplinary characteristics with actual course conditions.
The study also has its limitations. For instance, the comparative research regarding teaching effectiveness is not sufficiently in-depth. Future studies could address this through more effective designs to conduct more rigorous quantitative analyses.
Acknowledgements
This finding is the phase outcome of Survey Research Methods course, which has been recognized as the National First-Class Undergraduate Course Project by Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China.