The development of classroom environment perceptions scale for pre-service teachers

Abstract

The purpose of this research study was to develop a classroom environment instrument for assessing pre-service teachers’ classroom environment perceptions and investigate its validity and reliability. In this study, the instrument was developed according to constructivism, environment congruence theory and also the studies of Fraser and his colleagues. The pilot form of Classroom Environment Perceptions Scale of Pre-Service Teachers (CEPSPT) consisted of 60 items. It included Moos’ (1974) three dimensions of classroom environments. For the exploratory factor analysis (EFA) 520 pre-service teachers and for the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) 280 pre-service teachers participated in the study. By implementing EFA and CFA, the factor structure of CEPSPT was confirmed. The internal consistency of sub-scales changed from .72 to .85. As a result, the CEPSPT included 38 items and consisted of six subscales.