RIDE Launches 2026 SurveyWorks, Rhode Island’s Annual Education Survey

RIDE Launches 2026 SurveyWorks, Rhode Island's Annual Education Survey

Published on Thursday, January 29, 2026

PROVIDENCE, RI - Commissioner Angélica Infante-Green and the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) today announced the launch of the 2026 administration of SurveyWorks, RIDE's annual statewide education survey.

RIDE works in partnership with schools across the state to ensure that students and families have a meaningful voice in Rhode Island's education system. Since 2017, every year, all students in grades 3-12 and their families, as well as every educator and administrator in Rhode Island public schools, have had the opportunity to provide anonymous feedback and data directly to RIDE.

SurveyWorks asks students and educators about their learning and teaching experiences in school, as well as questions about the support they need to be successful.

"Through SurveyWorks, Rhode Island students, educators, and families have the opportunity to provide their own school communities firsthand insight into what is working, what feels challenging, and where more support is needed," said Commissioner Angélica Infante-Green. "When educators and leaders actively listen to student voices, we gain a clearer understanding of classroom climate, engagement, and belonging, and are better positioned to make informed, responsive decisions on behalf of students."

In 2025, RIDE received a record 132,000 responses to SurveyWorks, including 82,121 responses from students, 37,315 responses from families, and 13,022 responses from educators and administrators.

In addition to English, students and families can also complete the survey in other languages, including Spanish, Portuguese, Khmer/Cambodian, Swahili, Creole/Haitian, Pashto, Arabic, and Quiché, thanks to a partnership with the Providence Public School District.

"SurveyWorks empowers young people, giving them a platform to share their experiences and share ideas to build more effective learning environments," said Governor Dan McKee. "Hearing directly from students, teachers, and families is essential to creating schools that truly meet the needs of our students, which is why completing SurveyWorks is so important and valuable."

In response to SurveyWorks feedback from students and educators in prior years, RIDE has expanded access to mental health supports for Rhode Island students and educators and made once-in-a-generation investments in school facilities to create healthier, more effective learning environments.

Following consistent feedback from administrators and educators on the need for additional professional development, RIDE has implemented a series of improvements and investments to increase professional learning access on topics including high-quality curriculum and the Science of Reading for teachers across the state.

RIDE's multi-year focus on successfully reducing student chronic absenteeism was informed by feedback received from students sharing their own experiences through SurveyWorks. Schools can see data specific to their students and implement strategies to support young people who are working through obstacles that make it difficult to attend school consistently.

According to the 2025 survey results, only 30% of students in grades 6-12 believed that missing 18 days of school would have a significant impact on their likelihood of graduating high school, compared with 58% of families, 68% of educators, and 84% of administrators. In response, RIDE launched the Attendance Matters RI Student Video Contest to raise awareness and engage students in sharing the message about the importance of daily attendance.

SurveyWorks continues to inform Rhode Island's efforts to increase support for Caregiving Youth through RIDE's Readiness-Based Graduation Requirements. The 2025 results continue to demonstrate that roughly 1 in every 3 students in grades 6-12 provides ongoing care for a member of their family, and that 11% of students reported missing school to take care of someone else.

With SurveyWorks, educators across the state have access to Playbook, a free online tool that allows them to access hundreds of educator-approved lesson plans and activities based on their school's results and aligned with multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) tiers.

All surveys are accessible online and can be taken using any mobile device. The survey remains open through April 10, 2026. To learn more about SurveyWorks, access promotional resources, or view SurveyWorks results from 2025, visit https://www.ride.ri.gov/surveyworks.

Families are encouraged to contact their school directly with any questions about SurveyWorks or contact RIDE at [email protected].

Use the hashtag #SurveyWorks to join the conversation.