Adaptation and psychometric properties of the school engagement and contextual factors questionnaires for Covid-19 and post Covid-19 context

Abstract

School engagement has been demonstrated to be a relevant aspect in promoting students’ successful trajectories, a commitment that in its turn is influenced by contextual factors (family, teachers, and peers). Having instruments to measure these constructs allows decisions to be made to improve student retention, especially relevant in the context of uncertainty caused by covid-19. The aim of the study was to adapt and analyze the psychometric properties of questionnaires used to measure school engagement and contextual factors in the context of the pandemic with elementary school students in Chile. After adaptation of the instruments, through expert evaluation and focus groups with students, they were administered to 579 students in seventh and eighth grade (mean age = 12.79, 52% were boys), and to 334 students in fifth and sixth grade (mean age = 11.35, 38% were boys) in Chile. Confirmatory factor analyses showed that the two versions of the school engagement measurement instrument had an adequate fit with the original model of three correlated factors, cognitive, affective, and behavioral commitment. Similarly, these two versions of the instrument measuring the contextual factors had a good fit with the original model of three correlated factors, family, teachers, and peers. In addition, both versions of both questionnaires presented appropriate levels of internal consistency.

School engagement profiles in Chilean secondary students

“…As shown, the degree of SE and CF is a critical element in students’ academic achievements, especially during secondary school, highlighting the need to generate scientific evidence from the Chilean context. Some practical implications of this study are that the measures of SE and CF ( Lara et al, 2022 ) allow taking decisions about strategies to promote school engagement according the different profiles. Results from our study corroborate that SE can contribute, as in other cultural contexts, to implement policies to promote it.…”

“…School Engagement Questionnaire: a self-report instrument composed of 29 items that measure three subdimensions of SE: affective (10 items, e.g., “I feel that the school cares about me”), cognitive (12 items, e.g., “for me it is important to understand the assignments and subjects well”), and behavioral [7 items, e.g., “I leave the classroom without asking permission (or I leave the online classes)”], with a response scale from 1 (never or almost never) to 5 (always or almost always). In this article, we use the version adapted and validated for the context of virtual, face-to-face, or hybrid classes in the Chilean educational system caused by the Covid-19 pandemic ( Lara et al, 2022 ), which maintains the same number of items as the same content and presents the same factorial structure of three correlated factors as the original version ( Lara et al, 2018 ). The results of the confirmatory factor analysis showed a good fit of the data to the three-factor (affective, behavioral, and cognitive) correlated model (χ 2 = 964.314; df = 374; RMSEA = 0.052/CI = 0.048–0.056; CFI = 0.925; TLI = 0.919) as well as reliability analyses showed adequate internal consistency of the entire scale (α = 0.907) and its component dimensions (α = 0.859 for affective dimension, α = 0.718 for behavioral dimension and α = 0.885 for cognitive dimension).…”

“…I talk to my family about what I do at school (or in online classes)”], teachers (8 items, e.g., “I get along with my teachers”), and peers (7 items, e.g., “My classmates support me and care about me”), with a response scale from 1 (never or almost never) to 5 (always or almost always). In this article, we use the version adapted and validated for the context of remote, face-to-face, or hybrid classes in the Chilean education system caused by covid-19 ( Lara et al, 2022 ), which maintains the same number of items with the same content and presents the same factorial structure of three correlated factors as the original version ( Navarro et al, 2021 ). The results of the confirmatory factor analysis showed a good fit of the data to the three-factor (family, teacher and peer support) correlated model (χ 2 = 414.047; df = 132; RMSEA = 0.061/CI = 0.054–0.067; CFI = 0.963; TLI = 0.957) as well as reliability analyses showed adequate internal consistency of the entire scale (α = 0.917) and its component dimensions (α = 0.753 for family dimension, α = 0.881 for teacher dimension and α = 0.898 for peer dimension).…”

Students engagement in remote‐learning during the Covid‐19 crisis: The role of the support provided to teachers and the parent–teacher relationship

“…Teachers reported significant difficulties in maintaining contact with their students, lower attendance rates in online classes, and lower completion of school assignments compared with routine (Lucas et al, 2020; Spitzer et al, 2021). Students with lower involvement in schoolwork during the pandemic were at higher risk for developing academic gaps and experiencing increased isolation and mental health problems (Lara et al, 2022; Li & Lerner, 2011). Identifying paths to motivating and engaging students in remote learning became a major pedagogical and scientific task.…”

“…School engagement refers to the quality and commitment of students' involvement in the educational process (Lara et al, 2022). It is considered an important predictor of students' academic progress, achievement, and well‐being (Li & Lerner, 2011) and a contributor to students' ability to cope with adversities (Martin et al, 2022).…”