An Analysis of the Factorial Structure of the Teacher Communication Behavior Questionnaire with Brazilian High School Science Students

Abstract

-The Teacher Communication Behavior Questionnaire (TCBQ) has been used at different levels of education in many countries to measure students' perceptions of their science teachers' communication behavior. The TCBQ was translated into Portuguese in accordance with ITC test adaptation standards. Validity evidence for the Brazilian version of the TCBQ was obtained with a sample of 414 secondary students. The internal consistency of the TCBQ was satisfactory and an adequate fit of the original factor model was found through confirmatory factor analysis. The Brazilian data exhibited inter-factor correlations similar in value and direction to those of previous international studies. Statistically significant differences were found between school type and subject matter, which is consistent with previous studies. Positive classroom learning environments depend on teachers' interpersonal skills to create positive teacherstudent relationships (Wubbels, Levy, & Brekelmans, 1997). Classroom learning environments have received substantial attention from researchers, teachers, and schools (Dorman, 2002). At least ten different psychometrically-evaluated inventories have been reported as means of obtaining students' perceptions of the quality of the classroom learning environment (Chen, Chang, & Chang, 2002;Fraser, 2002;Idiris & Fraser, 1994;She & Fisher, 2000;Sebela, 2003;Waldrip & Fisher 2000;Walker, 2004;Wubbels & Levy, 1991). These scales have been used to assess the quality of classroom learning environments in North America, Europe, Asia, and Africa. Despite this internationalization, we noted the absence of instruments to measure students' perceptions of the classroom learning environment for use in South American countries. KeywordsAmong these scales, the Teacher Communication Behavior Questionnaire (TCBQ) assesses both verbal and non-verbal communication between teachers and students. The TCBQ has been validated with Taiwanese and Australian samples and used in the United States, United Kingdom, and Turkey. In this study, our primary goal is to adapt the student version of the TCBQ for use in Brazilian high school classrooms. Additionally, we examine the factor structure of the TCBQ with confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), an advanced psychometric method that has not previously been reported for this scale. Therefore, the version of the TCBQ we develop in this study contributes to research tools for measuring classroom learning environments in Portuguesespeaking contexts, as well as adding to the body of validation studies for the TCBQ inventory.To evaluate the TCBQ adaptation for use with Brazilian high school students, the Brazilian results were analyzed with CFA to determine if the five-factor structure could be recovered and if the scale statistics were comparable to previous studies from different countries and languages.

The Influence of Teacher-Student Communication on the Importance of Physical Education

“…The instrument used in the present study was formed by the Teacher Communication Behavior Questionnaire (TCBQ) created and validated by She and Fisher (2000) which measures students' perception of the type of communication used by teachers in their classrooms (Matos, Leite, Brown, & Cirino, 2014). The TCBQ is composed by 40 items distributed in 5 dimensions.…”

The Impact of Curiosity on Teacher–Student Relationships

“…In contrast, work with Brazilian high school science students has found no differences based on gender on students' perception of their teachers or their classroom learning environments. These perceptions include the communication styles that teachers exhibit in the classroom (Matos et al, 2014).…”

“…Second, this study expands the investigation of the impact of teachers' personal and professional characteristics (i.e., age, gender, teaching experience, socioeconomic status, and racial background) on teacher-student relationships. This investigation is important because of the ongoing conversation about teachers' characteristics and mixed results found so far in the United States and elsewhere (e.g., Barile et al, 2012;Close & Solberg, 2008; J. N. Hughes & Im, 2016;Košir & Tement, 2014;Matos et al, 2014;Roorda, 2012).…”

The Impact of Curiosity on Teacher-Student Relationships

“…Second, this study expands the investigation of the impact of teachers' personal and professional characteristics on TSR. This investigation is important because of the ongoing conversation about teachers' characteristics and current mixed results (e.g., Hughes & Im, 2016;Matos et al, 2014).…”