Fostering a Vibrant School Climate: Validation of a New Measure

• In Event: AERA Poster Session 11
  In Poster Session: Leading to Improve School Climate Through Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Abstract

In 2018, a research team in the USA developed the Vibrant School Scale (VSS) (Clement, Tschannen-Moran & Erdogan, 2018), an aspirational measure of school climate intended to tap elements of schools largely lost through the constricted curriculum and fear-based rigors of the accountability movement. Exploratory factor analysis identified three dimensions: enlivened minds, emboldened voice, and playful learning. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the factor structure underlying the VSS in an Israeli context. Data from 803 teachers in 57 schools were used. Descriptive statistics, CFA and multilevel CFA were conducted on Mplus for construct validity using within and between models. Results indicated that fit indices and reliability coefficients were high. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
 

Authors

• Megan Tschannen-Moran, William & Mary School of Education

• Nitza Schwabsky, Gordon College of Education

• Ufuk Erdogan, Firat University