Abstract
The Student Engagement Instrument (SEI) is a relatively new inventory designed to measure cognitive andaffective engagement in school for middle and high school students. We explored the reliability and validity ofthe SEI for 122 college students. Results provided evidence for adequate to good reliability andvalidity--indicating a good fit between the data and a 4-factor structure based on Teacher-Student Relationships,Peer Support at School, Future Aspirations and Goals, and Family Support for Learning. Two factorsrepresenting affective engagement (Peer Support at School and Teacher-Student Relationships) emerged asimportant predictors of career perceptions in our college student sample. Peer Support at School also predictedcollege GPA. Facilitating continuity in the operationalization and measurement of student engagement acrosssecondary and post-secondary settings, findings also highlight the potential importance of student engagement tocareer development.
Highlights
1.1 The ProblemEven though an increased number of high school graduates are being accepted into college, fewer than half are attaining a degree (The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, 2004)
The Career Decision Self-Efficacy Scale-Short Form (CDSE-SF) measures students’ level of career decision self-efficacy, and the Career Thoughts Inventory (CTI) measures their level of self-defeating career thoughts. Given that both student engagement and career decision self-efficacy have been linked to academic persistence and future aspirations and goals, we examined whether high levels of career decision self-efficacy were linked to high levels of engagement in school (Finn & Owings, 2006; Peterson 1993a; 1993b)
All Pearson r values of the Student Engagement Instrument (SEI) with the CDSE-SF were in the expected negative direction, and all Pearson r values of the SEI with the CTI were in the expected positive direction
Summary
Even though an increased number of high school graduates are being accepted into college, fewer than half are attaining a degree (The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, 2004). As the national unemployment rate approaches 10% (United States Department of Labor, 2009), keeping students in school and facilitating educational and career decision-making are imperative for institutions of higher education Both student engagement and career decision self-efficacy have been linked to persistence in college (Kuh, Cruce, Shoup, Kinzie, & Gonyea, 2008; Peterson, 1993a; 1993b). The notion of student engagement garners considerable interest at all levels of education, how the construct is operationalized and measured at postsecondary levels is typically different from how the construct is operationalized and measured at secondary levels To address this disconnect, we adapted the Student Engagement Instrument (SEI; a measure validated for use with students in grades 6-12) (see Betts, Appleton, Reschly, Christenson, & Huebner, 2010) for college students and explored the reliability and validity of the instrument. Vol 2, No 2; 2012 such as home, school, and peer groups and is a mediator between these contexts and important outcomes, such as high school completion (Christenson, Reschly, Appleton, Berman, Spanjers, & Varro, 2008a)
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