Teacher Version of the My Class Inventory-Short Form: An Accountability Tool for Elementary School Counselors

Abstract

This article reports on a psychometric study examining the validity and reliability of the My Class Inventory-Short Form for Teachers, an accountability measure for elementary school counselors to use as they evaluate aspects of their school counseling programs. As a companion inventory to the student version of the My Class Inventory–Short Form (Sink & Spencer, 2005), this instrument assesses teachers' perceptions of the classroom climate as they relate to five scales: overall student satisfaction with the learning experience, peer relations, difficulty level of classroom materials, student competitiveness, and school counselor impact on the learning environment. Implications for practice are included.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Adelman

H. S.

, & Taylor

(2002). School counselors and school reform: New directions. Professional School Counseling, 5, 235–248.

Adelman

H. S.

& Taylor

(2005). Classroom climate. In Lee

S. W.

(Eds.), Encyclopedia of school psychology (n.p.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Retrieved November 11, 2006, from http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/publications/46%20classroom%20climate.pdf

Akey

(2006). Student context, student attitudes and behavior, and academic achievement. An exploratory analysis. MDRC. Retrieved November 11, 2006, from http://www.mdrc.org/publications/419/full.pdf

American School Counselor Association. (2005). The ASCA national model: A framework for school counseling programs (2nd ed.). Alexandria, VA: Author.

Arbuckle

J. L.

, & Wothke

(1999). Amos 4.0 user's guide. Chicago: SPSS.

Astramovich

R. L.

, Coker

L.J.K.

, & Hoskins

W. J.

Training school counselors in program evaluation.

Professional School Counseling, 9, 49–54.

Baker

J. A.

, Dilly

L. J.

, Aupperlee

J. L.

, & Patil

S. A.

(2003). The developmental context of school satisfaction: Schools as psychologically healthy environments. School Psychology Quarterly, 18, 206–221.

Bemak

(2000). Transforming the role of the counselor to provide leadership in educational reform through collaboration. Professional School Counseling, 3, 323–331.

Borders

L.D.

, & Drury

S. M.

(1992). Comprehensive school counseling programs: A review for policy makers and practitioners. Journal of Counseling & Development, 70, 487–498.

10.

Brand

, Felner

, Shim

, Seitsinger

, & Dumas

(2003). Middle school improvement and reform: Development and validation of a school-level assessment of climate, cultural pluralism, and school safety. Journal of Educational Psychology, 95, 570–588.

11.

Brigman

, & Campbell

(2003). Helping students improve academic achievement and school success behavior. Professional School Counseling, 7, 91–98.

12.

Bleuer

(1984). Assessing school counselor performance. In brief: An information digest from ERIC/CAPS. Retrieved November 12, 2006, from http://www.ericdigests.org/pre-922/counselor.htm

13.

Brookover

W. B.

, Schweitzer

J. H.

, Schneider

J. M.

, Beady

C. H.

, Flood

P. K.

, & Wisenbaker

J. M.

(1978). Elementary school social climate and school achievement. American Educational Research Journal, 15, 301–318.

14.

Campbell

, & Brigman

(2005). Closing the achievement gap: A structured approach to group counseling. Journal for the Specialists in Group Work, 30, 67–82.

15.

Brown

, & Trusty

(2005). School counselors, comprehensive school counseling programs, and academic achievement: Are school counselors promising more than they can deliver? Professional School Counseling, 9, 1–8.

16.

Burnett

P. C.

(2002). Teacher praise and feedback and students' perceptions of the classroom environment. Educational Psychology, 22, 6–16.

17.

Byrne

B. M.

(2001). Structural equation modeling with Amos: Basic concepts, applications, and programming. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

18.

Dahir

C. A.

(2004). Supporting a nation of learners: The role of school counseling in educational reform. Journal of Counseling & Development, 82, 344–353.

19.

Dahir

, & Stone

(2003). Accountability: A M.E.A.S.U.R.E. of the impact school counselors have on student achievement. Professional School Counseling, 6, 214–221.

20.

Dahir

, & Stone

(2006). School counselor accountability: A MEASURE of student success. Saddle River, NJ: Merrill Prentice Hall.

21.

Deemer

S. A.

(2004). Classroom goal orientation in high school classrooms: Revealing links between teacher beliefs and classroom environments. Educational Research, 46, 73–90.

22.

Diamantes

(2002). Improving instruction in multicultural classes by using classroom learning environment. Journal of Instructional Psychology, 29, 277–282.

23.

Dowling

(2005). Young children's personal, social and emotional development. Thousand Oaks, CA: Paul Chapman/Sage.

24.

Dunn

R. J.

, & Harris

L. G.

(1998). Organizational dimensions of climate and the impact on school achievement. Journal of Instructional Psychology, 25, 100–115.

25.

Dykeman

, Wood

, Ingram

M. A.

, Pehrsson

, Mandsager

, & Herr

E. L.

(2003). The structure of school career development interventions: Implications for school counselors. Professional School Counseling, 6, 272–278.

26.

Ellison

C. M.

, Boykin

A. W.

, Tyler

K. M.

, & Dillihunt

M. L.

(2005). Examining classroom learning preferences among elementary school students. Social Behavior & Personality: An International Journal, 33, 699–708.

27.

Erford

B. T.

, House

, & Martin

(2007). Transforming the school counseling profession. In Erford

B. T.

(Ed.), Transforming the school counseling profession (2nd ed.; pp. 1–36). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill Prentice Hall.

28.

Fraser

B. J.

(1982a). Development of short forms of several classroom environment scales. Journal of Educational Measurement, 3, 221–227.

29.

Fraser

B. J.

(1982b). Differences between student and teacher perceptions of actual and preferred classroom learning environments. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 4, 511–519.

30.

Fraser

B. J.

(1989). Assessing and improving classroom environment. What research says to the science and mathematics teacher (Number 2). Perth, Australia: Curtin University of Technology, Key Centre for School Science and Mathematics.

31.

Fraser

B. J.

(1991). Two decades of classroom environment research. In Fraser

B. J.

& Walberg

H. J.

(Eds.), Educational environments: Evaluation, antecedents, and consequences (pp. 3–27). Oxford, UK: Pergamon Press.

32.

Fraser

B. J.

(1998). Classroom environment instruments: Development, validity, and applications. Learning Environments Research, 1, 7–33.

33.

Fraser

B. J.

, & Fischer

D. L.

(1982a). Effects of classroom psychosocial environment on student learning. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 52, 374–377.

34.

Fraser

B. J.

, & Fischer

D. L.

(1982b). Evaluation studies: Predictive validity of My Class Inventory. Studies in Educational Evaluation, 8, 129–140.

35.

Fraser

B. J.

, & Fisher

D. L.

(1986). Using short forms of classroom climate instruments to assess and improve classroom psychosocial environment. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 23, 387–413.

36.

Fraser

B. J.

, & O'Brien

(1985). Student and teacher perceptions of the environment of elementary-school environments. Elementary School Journal, 85, 567–580.

37.

Freiburg

J. H.

(Ed.). (1999). School climate: Measuring, improving and sustaining healthy learning environments. New York: RoutledgeFalmer.

38.

Gerler

E. R.

(1985). Elementary school counseling research and the classroom learning environment. Elementary School Guidance & Counseling, 20, 39–48.

39.

Goh

S. C.

, & Fraser

B. J.

(1997). Classroom climate and student outcomes in primary mathematics. Educational Research Journal, 12, 7–20.

40.

Gottfredson

G. D.

, Gottfredson

D. C.

, Payne

A. A.

, & Gottfredson

N. C.

(2005). School climate predictors of school disorder: Results from a national study of delinquency prevention in schools. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 42, 412–444.

41.

Gysbers

N. C.

(2004). Comprehensive guidance and counseling programs: The evolution of accountability. Professional School Counseling, 8, 1–14.

42.

Gysbers

N. C.

, & Henderson

(1988). Developing and managing your school guidance program. Alexandria, VA: American Association for Counseling and Development.

43.

Gysbers

N. C.

, & Henderson

(2005). Designing, implementing, and managing a comprehensive school guidance and counseling program. In Sink

C. A.

(Ed.), Contemporary school counseling: Theory, research, and practice (pp. 151–183). Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

44.

Gysbers

N. C.

, & Henderson

(2007). Developing and managing your school guidance program (4th ed.). Alexandria, VA: American Counseling Association.

45.

Gysbers

N. C.

, & Lapan

R. T.

(2003). The implementation and evaluation of comprehensive school guidance programs in the United States: Progress and prospects. Professional School Counseling, 6, 222–227.

46.

Hayden

, & Pohlmann

(1981). Accountability and evaluation: Necessary for the survival of guidance programs? NASSP Bulletin, 65, 60–63.

47.

Hayes

R. L.

, Nelson, J.-L., Tabin

, Pearson

, & Worthy

(2002). Using school-wide data to advocate for student success. Professional School Counseling, 6, 86–94.

48.

Haynes

N. M.

, Emmons

, & Ben-Avie

(1997). School climate as a factor in adjustment and achievement. Journal of Educational Psychological Consultation, 8, 321–329.

49.

Hernández

T. J.

, & Seem

S. R.

(2004). A safe school climate: A systemic approach and the school counselor. Professional School Counseling, 7, 256–262.

50.

Hoge

D. R.

, Smit

E. K.

, & Hanson

S. L.

(1990). School experiences predicting changes in self-esteem of sixth-and seventh-grade students. Journal of Educational Psychology, 82, 117–127.

51.

House

R. M.

, & Hayes

R. L.

(2002). School counselors becoming key players in school reform. Professional School Counseling, 5, 249–256.

52.

Hughes

D. K.

, & James

S. H.

(2001). Using accountability data to protect a school counseling program: One counselor's experience. Professional School Counseling, 4, 306–309.

53.

Isaacs

M. L.

(2003). Data-driven decision making: The engine of accountability. Professional School Counseling, 5, 235–248.

54.

Johnson

S. K.

, & Johnson

C. D.

(2003). Results-based guidance: A systems approach to student support programs. Professional School Counseling, 6, 180–184.

55.

Kaplan

L. S.

, & Geoffroy

K. E.

(1990). Enhancing the school climate: New opportunities for the counselor. The School Counselor, 38, 7–12.

56.

Lapan

R. T.

(2001). Results-based comprehensive guidance and counseling programs: A framework for planning and evaluation. Professional School Counseling, 4, 289–299.

57.

Lapan

R. T.

(2005). Evaluating school counseling programs. In Sink

C. A.

(Ed.), Contemporary school counseling: Theory, research, and practice (pp. 257–295). Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

58.

Lapan

R. T.

, Gysbers

N. C.

, Multon

K. D.

, & Pike

G. R.

(1997). Developing guidance competency self-efficacy scales for high school and middle school students. Measurement & Evaluation in Counseling and Development, 30, 4–16.

59.

Leff

S. S.

, Power

T. J.

, Costigan

T. E.

, & Manz

P. H.

(2003). Assessing the climate of playground and lunchroom: Implications for bully prevention program. School Psychology Review, 32, 418–430.

60.

Lehr

C. A.

, & Christenson

S. L.

(2002). Best practices in promoting a positive school climate. In Thomas

& Grimes

(Eds.), Best practices in school psychology IV (pp. 929–947). Bethesda, MD: National Association of School Psychologists.

61.

Linares

L. O.

, Rosbruch

, Stern

M. B.

, Edwards

M. E.

, Walker

, Abikoff

H. B.

, & Alvir

J. M. J.

(2005). Developing cognitive-social-emotional competencies to enhance academic learning. Psychology in the Schools, 42, 405–417.

62.

Martin

N. K.

, & Baldwin

(1996). Helping beginning teachers foster healthy classroom management: Implications for elementary school counselors. Elementary School Guidance & Counseling, 31, 106–113.

63.

McGannon

, Carey

, & Dimmitt

(2005, May). The current status of school counseling outcome research (Research Monograph No. 2). Amherst, MA: Center for School Counseling Outcome Research, School of Education, University of Massachusetts.

64.

Meyers

L. S.

, Guarino

A. J.

, & Gamst

(2006). Applied multivariate research: Design and interpretation. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

65.

Moos

R. H.

(1994). The social climate scales: A user's guide. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.

66.

Moos

R. H.

(1996). Understanding environments: The key to improving social processes and program outcomes. American Journal of Community Psychology, 24, 193–201.

67.

Moos

R. H.

, & Trickett

(1986). Classroom Environment Scale manual (2nd ed.). Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.

68.

Morrison

T. L.

(1979). Classroom structure, work involvement, and social climate in elementary school classrooms. Journal of Educational Psychology, 71, 471–477.

69.

Myrick

R. D.

(2003). Accountability: Counselors count. Professional School Counseling, 6, 174–179.

70.

No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, Pub. L., No. 107-110, Stat. 1425-2094, 2002. Retrieved May 15, 2006, from http://www.ed.gov/nclb/landing.jhtml

71.

Nunnally

J. C.

, & Bernstein

I. H.

(1994). Psychometric theory (3rd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.

72.

O'Connor

B. P.

(2000). SPSS and SAS programs for determining the number of components using parallel analysis and Velicer's MAP test. Behavior Research Methods, Instrumentation, and Computers, 32, 396–402.

73.

Paisley

P. O.

, & Hayes

R. L.

(2003). School counseling and the academic domain: Transformations in preparation and practice. Professional School Counseling, 6, 198–204.

74.

Pett

M. A.

, Lackey

N. R.

, & Sullivan

J. J.

(2003). Making sense of factor analysis. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

75.

Pressley

, Roehrig

A. D.

, et al. (2003). Teacher process in elementary and secondary education. In Reynolds

W. M.

& Miller

G. E.

(Eds.), Handbook of psychology. Volume 7 educational psychology (pp. 153–175). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley.

76.

Raviv

, Raviv

, & Reisel

(1990). Teacher and students: two different perspectives?! Measuring social climate in the classroom. American Educational Research Journal, 27, 141–157.

77.

Reeve

(2006). Teachers as facilitators: What autonomy-supportive teachers do and why their students benefit. Elementary School Journal, 106, 225–236.

78.

Reise

S. P.

, Waller

N. G.

, & Comrey

A. L.

(2000). Factor analysis and scale revision. Psychological Assessment, 12, 287–197.

79.

Shepherd Johnson

(2000). Promoting professional identity in an era of educational reform. Professional School Counselor, 4, 31–40.

80.

Sink

C. A.

(2003). My Class Inventory-Short Form for Teachers: A pilot study. Unpublished manuscript, Seattle Pacific University, WA.

81.

Sink

C. A.

(2005a). Comprehensive school counseling programs and academic achievement-A rejoinder to Brown and Trusty. Professional School Counseling, 9, 9–12.

82.

Sink

C. A.

(Ed.). (2005b). Contemporary school counseling: Theory, research, and practice. Boston: Houghton-Mifflin.

83.

Sink

C. A.

(2005c). Fostering academic development and learning: Implications and recommendations for middle school counselors. Professional School Counseling, 9, 128–135.

84.

Sink

C. A.

, & Spencer

L. R.

(2005). My Class Inventory-Short Form as an accountability tool for elementary school counselors to measure classroom climate. Professional School Counseling, 9, 37–48.

85.

Solomon

, Battistich

, Watson

, & Schaps

(1997). Caring school communities. Educational Psychologist, 32, 137–151.

86.

Studer

J. R.

, Oberman

A.H.

, & Womack

R. H.

(2006). Producing evidence to show counseling effectiveness in the schools. Professional School Counseling, 9, 385–391.

87.

Sutton

J. M.

, & Fall

(1995). The relationship of school climate factors to counselor self-efficacy. Journal of Counseling & Development, 73, 331–336.

88.

Tabachnick

B. G.

, & Fidell

L. S.

(2001). Using multivariate statistics (4th ed.). New York: Harper Collins.

89.

Thompson

(2004). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

90.

Thompson

D. W.

, Loesch

L. C.

, & Seraphine

A. E.

(2003). Development of an instrument to assess the counseling needs of elementary school students. Professional School Counseling, 7, 35–39.

91.

Trickett

E. J.

, & Moos

(1973). The social environments of junior high and high school classrooms. Journal of Educational Psychology, 65, 93–102.

92.

Trickett

E. J.

, Leone

P. E.

, Fink

C. M.

, & Braaten

S. L.

(1993). The perceived environment of special education classrooms for adolescents: A revision of the Classroom Environment Scale. Exceptional Children, 59, 411–420.