College and Career Readiness for Transition (CCR4T)

Abstract

The College and Career Readiness for Transition (CCR4T; Lombardi et al., 2023) is a questionnaire designed to assess academic and nonacademic skills crucial for adult life. It is applicable to all students, both with and without disabilities. The development of the scale was guided by a five-domain assessment framework (Lombardi et al., 2020), an expert review process, and subsequent field testing. The final CCR4T comprises 64 items and was evaluated using a sample of youth, including those with and without disabilities, from five high schools across three U.S. states. The evaluation included analyses of factor structure, item response theory, reliability, and validity.

Keywords

College and Career Readiness, Transition, Disabilities, Ownership of Learning, Interpersonal Engagement, Career Development, Academic Engagement and Processes.

Authors

Lombardi, Allison R.; Rifenbark, Graham G.; Rogers, H. Jane; Swaminathan, Hariharan; Taconet, Ashley; Mazzotti, Valerie L.; Morningstar, Mary E.; Wu, Rongxiu; Langdon, Shannon

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Purpose

The CCR4T questionnaire serves to advance research and practical applications in the domain of college and career readiness. A key focus is on facilitating transition service delivery through the implementation of multi-tiered systems of support.

Validity

Content Validity: Content validity was established through a review of the items by experts in the field.

Item Response Theory: After evaluating item fit based on IRT model fit statistics, a total of 64 items were retained.

Construct Validity: The results from the factor analysis provided support for the construct validity of this measure.

Convergent Validity: Significant correlations were observed between domain scores and measures of achievement, college admission exam scores, and attendance.

Reliability

Internal Consistency:
For the Academic Engagement subscale, item-total correlations ranged from .34 to .76, with the lowest correlation associated with the reverse-scored item “I am often late for class.” For Interpersonal Engagement, item-total correlations varied from .19 to .75; notably, each of the four reverse-scored items showed item-total correlations of .4 or less. Based on these findings, all five reverse-scored items were subsequently removed by the authors. For Ownership of Learning, item-total correlations ranged from .59 to .76. For Process-Oriented Skills, estimates ranged from .51 to .76. Lastly, for Transition Competencies, estimates ranged from .49 to .79.

Factor Analysis

Exploratory Factor Analysis: The authors determined that a four-factor solution was optimal. This decision was based on the solution conforming to a simple structure and yielding factor loadings of 0.40 or greater for each of the four factors, in line with McCoach et al. (2013). Regarding model fit, the RMSEA was estimated at 0.043, and the SRMR at 0.028, while the CFI and TLI were estimated at 0.867 and 0.855, respectively.

Confirmatory Factor Analysis: After fitting the model using the robust maximum likelihood estimator, with χ2 (1,948, N = 1,955) = 9,690.77, acceptable global model fit was observed. The RMSEA was estimated at 0.045, and the SRMR at 0.058.

Instrument: CCR4T

Test Type: Original Inventory/Questionnaire.

Format: Students are asked to rate statements using a 6-point Likert scale. The response options range from 1 (totally not like me) to 6 (totally like me), with intermediate options including 2 (mostly not like me), 3 (not like me), 4 (like me), and 5 (mostly like me).

Language Available: English.

Population Group: Human, Male, Female.

Age Group: Adolescence (13-17 years).

Population Details: The respondents were high school students, encompassing both those with and without disabilities, located in the United States.

Test Methodology: The methodology involved various psychometric evaluations, including Test Validity (Construct Validity, Content Validity, Convergent Validity), Test Reliability (Internal Consistency), Factor Analysis (Confirmatory Factor Analysis, Exploratory Factor Analysis), and Item Response Theory.

Keywords

College and Career Readiness, Transition, Disabilities, Ownership of Learning, Interpersonal Engagement, Career Development, Academic Engagement and Processes.

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Authors

Lombardi, Allison R.

• Author ORCID Identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7254-8820

• Affiliation: University of Connecticut

• Email Address: [email protected]

• Correspondence Address: University of Connecticut, 249 Glenbrook Road Unit 3064, Storrs, Connecticut, United States, 06269

Rifenbark, Graham G.

• Affiliation: University of Connecticut

Rogers, H. Jane

• Affiliation: University of Connecticut

Swaminathan, Hariharan

• Affiliation: University of Connecticut

Taconet, Ashley

• Author ORCID Identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2407-5114

• Affiliation: University of Connecticut

Mazzotti, Valerie L.

• Author ORCID Identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2616-8859

• Affiliation: University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Morningstar, Mary E.

• Affiliation: Portland State University

Wu, Rongxiu

• Affiliation: University of Connecticut

Langdon, Shannon

• Affiliation: University of Connecticut

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

Commercial: No
Fee: No
Test Year: 2023

References

Lombardi, A. R., Rifenbark, G. G., Rogers, H. J., Swaminathan, H., Taconet, A., Mazzotti, V. L., Morningstar, M. E., Wu, R., & Langdon, S. (2023). Establishing construct validity of a measure of adolescent perceptions of college and career readiness. Career Development and Transition for Exceptional Individuals, 46(1), 4–14. https://doi.org/10.1177/21651434221081229

Items of the CCR4T

The CCR4T consists of 64 items. No data is Available regarding the specific items themselves.

Factors and Subscales: The measure includes the following subscales:

• Ownership of Learning

• Academic Engagement and Processes

• Interpersonal Engagement

• Career Development