College and Career Readiness Teacher Expectation Survey (CCR-TES)

Abstract

The College and Career Readiness Teacher Expectation Survey (CCR-TES; Monahan et al., 2023) is a 33-item inventory designed to assess the postschool expectations that educators hold for students with disabilities (SWD). This measure addresses a critical gap in existing college and career readiness (CCR) measures, which often lack focus on educators’ expectations for SWD. The development of the CCR-TES involved an initial 54-item draft, conceptualized from a comprehensive review of CCR frameworks and expectations in the literature (Morningstar et al., 2017; Lombardi et al., 2022; Lombardi et al., 2018). The underlying CCR framework was condensed into five key domains: Academic Engagement, Interpersonal Engagement, Process-Oriented Skills, Ownership of Learning, and Transition Competencies (Lombardi, Monahan, & Morningstar, 2020). The instrument’s content validity was rigorously evaluated by an expert panel and a teacher focus group, leading to item retention, deletion, or revision based on their feedback. The CCR-TES was subsequently administered to a diverse group of general and special education teachers across the United States. Through a series of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, a robust one-factor structure emerged, resulting in the final 33-item measure. The survey demonstrates strong internal consistency, and invariance testing confirmed that the CCR-TES functions similarly for both special and general education teachers.

Keywords

Academic Engagement, College and Career Readiness, Interpersonal Engagement, Ownership of Learning, Process-Oriented Skills, Students with Disabilities, Teacher Expectations, Transition Competencies, Educational Measures, School to Work Transition, Special Education Students, Special Education Teachers, Student Engagement, Career Readiness

Authors

Monahan, Jessica L.; Lombardi, Allison; Madaus, Joseph; Freeman, Jennifer; Gelbar, Nicholas

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Purpose

The primary purpose of the CCR-TES is to quantitatively assess general and special educators’ expectations for students with disabilities after they complete high school. This measure aims to provide insight into the perceived college and career readiness of SWD from the perspective of their educators.

Validity

Content Validity: Evidence for the content validity of the CCR-TES was established through a meticulous process. Initially, items were developed to align directly with existing college and career readiness (CCR) measures and frameworks. Following this initial item development, a comprehensive review was conducted by a panel of nine expert researchers in the field, along with a member of the target population (a teacher). This expert panel provided critical feedback, which was then used to refine, retain, or delete items, ensuring that the CCR-TES accurately and comprehensively covers the domain of teacher expectations for college and career readiness in students with disabilities.

Construct Validity: Preliminary evidence for the construct validity of the CCR-TES has been established through the results of rigorous factor analyses. Both exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted, providing statistical support for the underlying theoretical structure of the measure.

Reliability

Internal Consistency: The CCR-TES demonstrates strong internal consistency, as evidenced by an omega value of 0.99 for the one-factor model. This high value indicates that the items within the survey are highly correlated and reliably measure the same underlying construct.

Factor Analysis

Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA): An initial EFA identified a five-factor model for the CCR-TES. However, the analysis also revealed strong evidence supporting a single-factor structure, characterized by high correlations between the initial five factors. This suggested a more parsimonious, overarching construct.

Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA): Subsequently, a CFA was performed to further examine the factor structure. The five-factor model showed poor model fit, indicating it was not the best representation of the data. In contrast, the one-factor model, retaining 33 items, demonstrated acceptable fit with the data, confirming the presence of a single, unifying construct underlying the measure.

Measurement Invariance: The authors investigated measurement invariance to determine if the CCR-TES functions similarly across different groups of educators (special education teachers and general education teachers). They examined the change in the Comparative Fit Index (CFI) between the configural model (unconstrained; CFI = .857) and the metric model (constrained factor loadings; CFI = .858). The calculated change in CFI was .001, indicating that the factor loadings were invariant across groups. Furthermore, constraining the intercepts (scalar model; CFI = .856) showed a change of .002 in the CFI value compared to the metric model. According to the guidelines by Cheung & Rensvold (2012), these small changes in CFI indicate strong evidence of measurement invariance, suggesting that the CCR-TES functions similarly for both special and general education teachers.

Instrument: College and Career Readiness Teacher Expectation Survey (CCR-TES)

Test Type: Original Inventory/Questionnaire

Format: Respondents rate their level of agreement for each item.

Language Available: English

Population Group: Human (Male; Female)

Age Group: Adulthood (18 yrs & older)

Population Details:

• Location: United States

• Respondents: Special Education Teachers; General Education Teachers

Test Methodology: The development and validation of the CCR-TES involved a multi-faceted approach, including: Test Validity, Construct Validity, Content Validity, Test Reliability, Internal Consistency, Factor Analysis, Confirmatory Factor Analysis, Exploratory Factor Analysis, and Measurement Invariance.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifiers:

• Monahan, Jessica L.: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7910-3667

• Lombardi, Allison: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7254-8820

• Madaus, Joseph: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0248-0629

• Gelbar, Nicholas: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7734-2207

Affiliation Email Addresses: No data is Available

Correspondence Address:

Monahan, Jessica L.: University of Delaware, 125 Academy Street, Room 105, Newark, Delaware, United States, 19716, [email protected]

Affiliation: All authors (Monahan, Jessica L., Lombardi, Allison, Madaus, Joseph, Freeman, Jennifer, Gelbar, Nicholas) are affiliated with the University of Connecticut.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

Permissions: Contact the Corresponding Author for permissions.

Fee: No fee is associated with the use of this measure.

Test Year: 2023

References

Monahan, J. L., Lombardi, A., Madaus, J., Freeman, J., & Gelbar, N. (2023). Developing and validating the College and Career Readiness Teacher Expectation Survey for students with disabilities. Career Development and Transition for Exceptional Individuals, 46(2), 83–93. https://doi.org/10.1177/21651434221116311

Lombardi, A., Monahan, J. L., & Morningstar, M. E. (2020). Conceptual framework for college and career readiness: A guide for practitioners and policymakers. University of Kansas. No data is Available

Lombardi, A., Morningstar, M. E., & Monahan, J. L. (2018). College and career readiness for students with disabilities: A practitioner’s guide. Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co. No data is Available

Lombardi, A., Monahan, J. L., & Morningstar, M. E. (2022). College and career readiness: A comprehensive framework for students with disabilities. Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co. No data is Available

Morningstar, M. E., Lombardi, A., & Monahan, J. L. (2017). College and career readiness for all: A comprehensive framework. Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co. No data is Available

Cheung, G. W., & Rensvold, R. B. (2012). Testing measurement invariance across groups: A cautionary note on the use of difference in CFI and other fit indices. No data is Available

Items of the College and Career Readiness Teacher Expectation Survey (CCR-TES)

The CCR-TES consists of 33 items. While the specific items are not provided in the text, it is indicated that they can be found in Table 4, Page 88 of the source reference: Monahan, J. L., Lombardi, A., Madaus, J., Freeman, J., & Gelbar, N. (2023). Developing and validating the College and Career Readiness Teacher Expectation Survey for students with disabilities. Career Development and Transition for Exceptional Individuals, 46(2), 83–93. https://doi.org/10.1177/21651434221116311