Today you start a ten-week project with real answers from your school. You will pick a school-life question someone could act on, set up your portfolio folders, and build a short anonymous survey linked to a spreadsheet.
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
- Set up {{code:Digital_Portfolio}} and {{code:Digital_Spreadsheets}}
- Choose a school-life question and name who could act
- Build an anonymous linked survey of six to eight countable questions
- Get approval and collect a few classmates' answers
Warm-up
Name one school-life change you want, and who could make it.
One school survey runs through all 10 weeks. Each week adds something to your portfolio.
| Week | What you'll do | What lands in your portfolio |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (today) | Ask a question and build a linked survey | {{code:01_survey}} + {{code:01_survey_responses}} |
| 2 | Copy and clean answers; log each change | {{code:02_survey_analysis}} |
| 3 | Count and average by group with one formula | {{code:03_summary}} |
| 4 | Compare two groups with ranks and a colour scale | {{code:04_compare}} |
| 5 | Band answers and flag two conditions | {{code:05_bands}} |
| 6 | Build a results explorer with a choice list and XLOOKUP | {{code:06_explorer}} |
| 7 | Summarise two questions with a pivot table | {{code:07_pivot}} |
| 8 | Build two honest, labelled charts | {{code:08_charts}} |
| 9 | One protected, shareable dashboard | {{code:09_dashboard}} |
| 10 | Write findings and present them | {{code:10_findings}} |
By week 10, your data becomes findings someone can act on.
| Concept | Why it matters | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Question worth answering: a school-life question someone can act on | Findings only matter if a real person could change something | How students get to school, aimed at the principal or student council |
| Countable answers: choices, a 1 to 5 rating, or a number | You can total, compare and chart these later | Bus, Walk, Car, Cycle, Train; or minutes as a number |
| Anonymous survey: no names, emails or personal details | Classmates answer more honestly; the survey stays safe and fair | The getting-to-school survey asks how you travel, but never your name or email |
| Linked responses: every answer lands in a spreadsheet automatically | You never retype answers; cleaning starts from a live sheet | Forms for Excel or a Google Form linked to Sheets |
Weak: "Tell us about school", no audience, free text, nothing to count.
Strong: Audience = student council. Six countable items on getting to school:
- Class group (choice)
- Usual travel mode (choice)
- Journey minutes (number)
- Weekly travel cost in euro (number)
- Would cycle if you could? (choice)
- Rate the journey 1 to 5 (rating)
Reject free-text cores such as "Describe your morning." Save comments for one optional box at the end.
Set up your portfolio folders, then build the sample getting-to-school survey linked to a response spreadsheet. Follow your suite and use the sample questions below.
If a menu looks slightly different, use the Common Issues table next, or ask. A wrong folder is easy to fix. The survey must be anonymous and linked to a spreadsheet.
Sample questions to add
- Which class are you in? (multiple choice: TY1, TY2, TY3)
- How do you usually get to school? (multiple choice: Bus, Walk, Car, Cycle, Train)
- How many minutes does your journey usually take? (number)
- Roughly how much does travel cost you per week in euro? (number)
- Would you cycle to school if you could? (multiple choice: Yes, Maybe, No)
- Rate your journey from 1 (poor) to 5 (great). (rating or multiple choice 1–5)
Do not collect names or email addresses. Preview only; do not share yet.
Common Issues
| Issue | Solution |
|---|---|
| I cannot find Forms for Excel or Google Forms | Create it from inside {{code:Digital_Spreadsheets}} using New. If Forms is missing, tell your teacher. |
| The survey still asks for a name or email | Microsoft: gear → untick Record name. Google: Settings → Responses → Do not collect. Preview again. |
| My folder or form is in the wrong place | OneDrive: select the file → {{btn:Move to}} → {{code:Digital_Spreadsheets}}. Google Drive: {{menu:Right-click -> Move to}} → {{code:Digital_Spreadsheets}}. |
Independent Practice
- Open {{code:01_survey}} in {{code:Digital_Spreadsheets}}.
- Keep the six question shapes from the sample, and change the title, topic and options so they fit one school-life question you care about.
- In the form description, name who could act on the findings, for example the student council or the PE department.
- Keep to six to eight countable questions, and keep the survey anonymous.
- Show your teacher for a quick check while they go round.
- Once it is approved, copy the form link (or show the QR code if your suite offers one) and swap with two classmates, so each of you answers two surveys.
- Open {{code:01_survey_responses}} and check the new rows have appeared.
- {{code:Digital_Portfolio}}/{{code:Digital_Spreadsheets}} holds {{code:01_survey}} and {{code:01_survey_responses}}
- The survey has six to eight countable questions, no names or emails, and a named audience for the findings
- Your teacher has approved the questions before anyone else answers
- At least a few classmate answers show as new rows in the linked response spreadsheet
If you need a starting idea
Pick one: how students get to school; the canteen; study space; clubs and teams; the school bus. Who could act: student council, principal, PE department, or parents' association.
Think about
- Why might classmates answer more honestly when the survey cannot name them?
- How did naming who could act on the findings change the questions you chose?
What you covered
- Set up {{code:Digital_Portfolio}} and {{code:Digital_Spreadsheets}}
- Chose a school-life question and named who could act
- Built an anonymous countable survey linked to a spreadsheet
- Got approval and collected classmates' answers safely
Extension challenge
Add one optional comment question (still no name field) and name the audience in the form description.
That was a sample lesson from Digital Spreadsheets
Every lesson in the course is ready to teach like this one. See what else comes with it, and how to order it.
This lesson is copyright of Coding Ireland 2017 - 2026. Unauthorised use, copying or distribution is not allowed.