All Together Now

Abstract

This study sought to validate a new measure, the Classroom Cohesion Survey (CCS), designed to examine the relationship between teachers and classroom assistants in autism support classrooms. Teachers, classroom assistants, and external observers showed good inter-rater agreement on the CCS and good internal consistency for all scales. Simple factor structures were found for both teacher- and classroom assistant–rated scales, with one-factor solutions for both scales. Paired t tests revealed that on average, classroom assistants rated classroom cohesion stronger than teachers. The CCS may be an effective tool for measuring cohesion between classroom staff and may have an important impact on various clinical and implementation outcomes in school settings.

Measuring Special Educators’ Working Conditions: A Systematic Review

“…We identified 44 studies using quantitative measures to assess SETs’ working conditions. Of these, only Kratz et al’s (2015) primary purpose was to validate a measure. Many other studies provided validity evidence within their methods sections (e.g., Cancio et al, 2013), but validity evidence was not the primary purpose of the study; in other studies, no validity evidence was described at all (e.g., McIntyre, 1983).…”

“…Only one study (Kratz et al, 2015) specifically examined relationships between the instrument and an outcome to evaluate criterion-related validity; however, they found no association between their measure of paraprofessional support (termed staff cohesion ) and either burnout or implementation of an intervention (criterion measures). In many other studies, researchers tested associations between working conditions and expected outcomes (e.g., intent to stay), but results of these tests were used to make inferences about the impact of working conditions, not to evaluate the validity of the measures.…”

“…x Nelson et al (2001) .82 x Paraprofessional support Bettini, Cumming et al (2020) .81 (training); .87 (trust) x Kratz et al (2015) .97 x School climate/culture Bettini, Cumming et al (2020) .89 (collective responsibility);…”

One-to-One Assistant Engagement in Autism Support Classrooms

“…Unfortunately, as this is a new area of study, there is very limited research to our knowledge that examines why this may be the case. One study conducted by Kratz and colleagues (2015) suggested that the objective and subjective dimensions of classroom cohesion may predict different outcomes.…”

“…Teachers and classroom assistants completed their respective versions of the Classroom Cohesion Survey (Kratz et al, 2015), an 18-item self-report measure on the working relationship between the teacher and classroom assistant. Responses from both versions are structured on a 5-point scale ranging from 1 ( not true at all ) to 5 ( always true ).…”