School Climate of Educational Institutions: Design and Validation of a Diagnostic Scale


  •  Sandra Becerra    

Abstract

School climate is recognized as a relevant factor for the improvement of educative processes, favoring the administrative processes and optimum school performance. The present article is the result of a quantitative research model which had the objective of psychometrically designing and validating a scale to diagnose the organizational climate of educational institutions.

This study had the participation of 549 teachers and directors from 42 primary and secondary educational establishments of Chile. Diverse procedures were applied for the validation of content and psychometric validation in the various stages of the investigation, obtaining an instrument composed by seven factors and made up of conceptually and statistically consistent items. The complete scale and its sub-scales show adequate reliability, and likewise an appropriate validity, constituting it an instrument of wide use for supporting the process of education administration, and to promote coexistence climates of appreciation and respect among the educational participants.

The complete scale and its subscales permits the understanding that the organizational climate of the educational center is not reduced to the teacher-student relationship, but rather contemplates the dynamic relationships between diverse players, establishing the importance of the joint action between teachers, directives, students, and parents, as well as revealing the importance of some structural organization variables which influence the daily perception of school climate.



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