Current Research
The Student Attitude Survey (SAS) is a questionnaire designed to capture how students feel about the subjects they study, rather than just how they perform in them
Specifically, it explores key factors such as how difficult or useful students find a subject, how anxious or motivated they feel about it, and whether they see a personal or career benefit in continuing to learn it. Because these attitudes can differ widely from one subject to another, the SAS results in a “hotspot” map of each student’s attitudes across all their subjects.
At Trinity College, staff use the SAS to:
- Identify where students feel less confident or more anxious;
- Spot strengths—where students may already be excited, competent or comfortable;
- Track changes in attitudes throughout the year and across different year levels;
- Create classroom activities and support strategies that respond to the specific needs revealed by the SAS data (for example, extra help in subjects students find difficult, or deeper challenges in subjects they enjoy);
- Look beyond simple test scores to understand how different teaching approaches or tools might shift students’ motivation, enjoyment and sense of purpose in each subject.
By combining SAS results with other data (like wellbeing surveys or student feedback), leaders at Trinity College gain a more complete picture of each student’s school experience and can tailor their teaching and care accordingly.
