ABSTRACT
This study presents the construction and validation of a scale evaluating student perceptions regarding their behavioral engagement in school. The questionnaire was administered to 1089 students attending the 6th, 7th, 9th and 10th grades (median age = 13 years) in Continental Portugal, from which two samples were randomly selected. One of the samples was submitted to exploratory factor analysis; the second sample was submitted to confirmatory factor analysis. Two dimensions emerged: involvement in academic work and class participation. The first scale presented acceptable internal consistency, and is useful and appropriate to evaluate students’ perceptions regarding their behavioral engagement in school. The second dimension requires further research and development.
Keywords:
students; student characteristics; academic achievement; structural equation modeling
