Construct and Structural Equivalence of the English and Spanish versions of the Authoritative School Climate Survey

Abstract

This study evaluated the construct and structural equivalence of the English and Spanish versions of the authoritative school climate survey (ASCS). Measurement invariance was evaluated through increasingly restrictive tests on a sample of N = 6976 high school students, with focus on the three core ASCS scales: Students' Willingness to Seek Help, Teacher Respect for Students, and Disciplinary Structure. Results provided support for the configural, metric, and scalar invariance of these scales across versions. Because school climate is often measured through reports of student perceptions that are aggregated to the school level, these results provide an additional resource for schools looking to increase the diversity of their students’ voice through more equitable tools.