Measurement of school connectedness (MOSC): modified connectedness questionnaire for secondary schools.

The aim of this study was to design and test a questionnaire that measures perceived connectedness in secondary schools. The Measurement of School Connectedness (MOSC) questionnaire, a modified version of the Psychological Sense of School Membership (PSSM) scale (Goodenow, 1992; Goodenow, 1993), was distributed in an urban high school with student population of 1340. A parallel questionnaire was distributed to the faculty and staff of the same school. ❧ Extant literature does not have a comparable study of adult connectedness in school communities. Most of the studies are limited to measuring students’ perceptions of belonging to a school. However, teachers, administrators, counselors, social workers, maintenance staff and other support personnel considerably influence the general school atmosphere and its operational structures. Therefore, it would be logical to consider the perceptions of the adults working at a school as well. The results of this study provide new direction in evaluating school connectedness that allows a more comprehensive view including the perceptions of all participants. ❧ Due to the novelty of this approach, the research findings pose more questions than give answers. For example, the mean values of adults’ connectedness were substantially lower than students’ values across all four factors. Would that be a normal pattern or does it indicate a potential problem with adults’ morale that needs to be addressed? ❧ An exploratory factor analysis confirmed four constructs of connectedness extracted from literature: being liked by students (connected with students), belonging, communication, and being liked by teachers (connected with teachers). As a result, these four constructs were used in the final version of the MOSC, which contains 24 questions. Cronbach’s Alpha and Pearson correlations support the reliability and discriminant validity of each construct. ❧ To investigate construct validity, connectedness was correlated with GPA, grade level and gender. Student versus teacher differences were also considered. Results showed a significant correlation between connectedness and grades in the liked by students and belonging factors. There were no significant differences found in perceived connectedness related to grade in communication and liked by teachers constructs. Students in earlier grades demonstrated higher mean value of connectedness with a steady decrease in values reported by their more senior peers in constructs of being liked by students and in belonging. In constructs of being liked by teachers and in communication, the decrease in connectedness was observed in grades from 9th through 11th, with a slight raise in mean values in 12th grade. There was no significant correlation found between gender and the four connectedness factors. ❧ The MOSC could be used to measure perceived connectedness in both students and adults in schools. The construct of connectedness has gained acceptance in the literature as a significant factor that influences students’ achievement. Therefore, a measure of connectedness could be used to indicate the effectiveness of school reform policies designed to build supportive and nurturing learning environments.