Exploring Organizational Climate for Teaching in Postsecondary Settings: The Development and Validation of the Survey of Climate for Instructional Improvement

• In Event: 32.035 - Exploring Connections Between Climate, Context, Pedagogy, Diversity, and Outcomes

Abstract

This paper examines the development and validation of the Survey of Climate for Instructional Improvement (SCII). SCII has 30-item Likert-scale items with 1 open response question and is designed to measure five aspects of organizational climate in postsecondary settings. The goal of this paper is to describe: (a) our development process, (b) steps in validation, and (c) patterns in data from 713 instructors in 57 departments at four universities in the United States. The instrument is reliable and has the potential to differentiate among institutions, departments, and demographic groups. The organizational climate constructs measured are leadership, collegiality, resources, respect for teaching, and organizational support. We see the instrument as relevant to faculty developers, higher education researchers, and discipline-based education researchers.

Authors

• Emily Marie Walter, California State University - Fresno

• Andrea L. Beach, Western Michigan University

• Cody Tyler Williams, Western Michigan University

• Charles R. Henderson, Western Michigan University

• Ivan Ceballos Madrigal, California State University - Fresno