Frequently Asked Questions

• What kind of computer system is required to access the Voices and Choices: Planning for School Health on-line tools?

• How long does it take to complete the Student Needs Assessment Questionnaire?

• On what theoretical foundation is the Student Needs Assessment Questionnaire based?

• Must every student complete the Student Needs Assessment Questionnaire?

Q: What kind of computer system is required to access the Voices and Choices: Planning for School Health on-line tools?

A: The ideal computer system for accessing the Voices and Choices on-line tools:

• Uses a 266+Mhz (PC or IBM compatible) machine
• Runs Microsoft Windows 95, 98, ME, 2000 or XP;
• Has 128+MB of RAM;
• Has a high-speed Internet connection (DSL or Cable); and
• Uses Internet Explorer 4+ as a web browser.

The first two components are essential. However, the Voices and Choices on-line tools will also work on a computer system with 64MB of RAM, a 52K Internet connection and Netscape 4+ as a web browser. This computer system will likely slow your access to the Voices and Choices on-line tools; however, there are a few things that you can do to compensate.

• Less RAM may affect your viewing of the School Health Profile, as this activity requires a significant amount of working memory to produce each page of the report. With less RAM, it is recommended that you close down all other applications before accessing the Voices and Choices Database to view your report (e.g. any e-mail or word processing applications that you may have running).

• A slower Internet connection may affect the uploading of your data file(s). With a slower Internet connection, it is recommended that you keep your data file(s) relatively small (i.e. less than 500KB). How to do this: Once your data file reaches 500KB, upload it into the Voices and Choices Database. Once you have successfully completed the upload, save the data file to a diskette. Once saved to a diskette, delete the data file from your computer. The computer will automatically start a new data file once the old one has been removed from its memory. Please note: It is recommended that you do not completely delete the first data file. Saving all of your data file(s) to diskette is considered a best practice.

• Using Netscape 4+ instead of Internet Explorer 4+ may affect your printing of the School Health Profile, but in no way prevents you from accessing the Voices and Choices on-line tools.

Q: How long does it take to complete the Student Needs Assessment Questionnaire?

A: It takes on average 50 to 60 minutes to complete. However, there may be some students for whom it will take longer due to reading and comprehension difficulties. It is important not to exclude these students. You need to include all sub-groups of your student population in your needs assessment to ensure that your results are truly representative of the diversity within your school community. As a result, you may need to put in place a plan to support these students in completing the questionnaire (e.g. by having extra monitors in place to answer questions, or by having a teacher read the questions aloud to these students). 

Q: On what theoretical foundation is the Student Needs Assessment Questionnaire based?

A: The Student Needs Assessment Questionnaire was developed using the adult questionnaire employed in the Corporate Health Model of the Workplace Health System and questions from the World Health Organization (WHO) cross-national Health Behaviours in School-Aged Children Survey. It is based on scientific literature regarding specific influences on the health of young people and has undergone three separate rounds of pilot testing.  A Structural Equation Model was also developed. Please see the Background section of this web site for more information on the historical development of Voices and Choices: Planning for School Health.

Q: My school is very large, with over 1,000 students. Must every student complete the Student Needs Assessment Questionnaire?

A: No, in large schools, with more than 100 students per grade, a census (i.e. 100% student participation) is not required. However, it is very important that you use a representative sample of your student population. Chapter III of the Guide to Implementation explains how to do this. It is also recommended that you consult with the Head of your Math department.

In a small school, where the population is less than 100 students per grade level across most grades, the Student Needs Assessment Questionnaire should be administered as a census. This is recommended because it is more difficult to protect the anonymity of students and keep their personal information confidential in a small school.