7 countries – 1 Scale : International Validation of a School Climate Survey – Belgium

This symposium will focus on the presentation of results of an international study in which researchers translated U.S. versions of psychometrically validated school climate surveys for use in diverse settings. Researchers from Belgium, Greece Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, and the UK will describe how the survey translation process aimed to preserve psychometric properties of the U.S. surveys, and evaluate the psychometrics. Structural equation modeling techniques will be used to examine construct validity (conceptual equivalence), measurement invariance, and educator perceptions of school climate across cultures. Data will illustrate how perceptions of climate vary based on contextual norms, educational practices, and cultural values.