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NSI's CCQ: Assessing Classroom Climate
NSI’s CCQ: A Framework for Teacher-Driven Professional Learning
NSI’s Classroom Climate Questionnaire (CCQ): Features and Benefits
Comprehensive Assessment
The CCQ provides a comprehensive analysis of important learning environment climate factors.
Reliable and Valid Instruments
Evidence to support the psychometric properties ensures teachers reflect on and collect quality, reliable, and valid data.
Assesses Students across Different Year Levels
A validated version of the CCQ is available for students in all stages of schooling: early childhood, primary school, and secondary school
CCQ Reports: Student Feedback
A confidential CCQ Report is available to teachers immediately after closing the survey. The reports provide easy-to-read profiles representing students' views.
Appreciating Context
The CCQ can be contextualised to ensure relevance to the unique contexts of individual schools.
Evaluating improvement efforts
The CCQ is administered as a pre-test and a post-test, allowing teachers to evaluate the impact of their improvement efforts.
Aligns with and supports efforts to address the AITSL Standards
Use of the CCQ aligns with and can be used to evidence a range of AITSL Standards.
Supporting the Aboriginal Cultural Standards Framework
The CCQ and NSI processes align with and support the Aboriginal Standards Framework, including the relationship, leadership, teaching, learning environment, and resources standard.
Supports promotion applications
The use of the CCQ and processes for improvement provides evidence of a range of teaching standards and supports promotion applications.
NSI’s Classroom Climate Questionnaire (CCQ)
NSI’s Classroom Climate Questionnaire (CCQ) assesses students’ perceptions of the classroom learning environment. This empirically validated instruments provides rich feedback and a framework to help teachers:
- Plan targeted improvement efforts to improve teaching and learning.
- Initiate discussions with students about learning (metacognition).
- Work with students to co-construct the learning environment.
The CCQ is administered as a pre-test and post-test to encourage an action research process and allow comparisons to determine the efficacy of strategies/interventions.
What the CCQ measures
NSI’s CCQ assesses learning environment features across three broad categories:
- Relationships (quality of interpersonal relationships in the classroom).
- Assessment (quality of the assessment in terms of clarity and opportunities for learning).
- Delivery (quality of teaching and learning components).
The selection of constructs in the instrument was based on theory and research evidence to ensure they are strong indicators of cognitive and affective outcomes.
In addition to comprehensive coverage of the learning environment, the CCQ also includes validated measures of:
- Student motivation (self-efficacy, task value, and learning goal orientation.
- Student engagement.
Versions of the CCQ are available for:
- Early Childhood (pre-primary to year 2).
- Middle Primary (years 3 and 4).
- Upper Primary (years 5 and 6).
- Secondary School (years 7 to 12).
Download a summary of the Features and Benefits of the CCQ.
CCQ Reports: Student Feedback
Teacher Reports.
The CCQ feedback report is available to teachers immediately after closing the survey.
The reports provide easy-to-read profiles representing students’ views. The profiles provide an overview, or snapshot, of the learning environment as well as the ability to drill down to examine:
- Responses to individual statements.
- Differences between groups (e.g., males and females).
- Person-environment fit.
School-wide Report.
As well as confidential reports to individual teachers, aggregated reports are provided to the school. These reports provide an overview of students’ perceptions as well as differences between groups, such as learning areas, year level, and gender. School-wide reports can be used to inform decisions about professional learning needs and school improvement planning.
Evidence to Support Promotion Applications
Using the CCQ provides evidence to support applications for promotions, including Highly Accomplished and Lead teacher applications (based on the AITSL standards) and Senior or Level 3 teachers. The evidence provided by engaging in the process (including the generation of student feedback reports) has been used successfully by teachers.
For those aspiring for recognition as Highly Accomplished or Level 3 Senior teachers, the student feedback reports, generated as a pre-test and post-test, provide substantial evidence to support improvement efforts.
For those aspiring for recognition as Lead teachers, supporting colleagues in the process of collaborative inquiry using the CCQ as a framework, provides evidence of working with colleagues to help them gain a better understanding of how students learn (Standard 1), provides engaging and productive learning environments (Standard 3.3), supporting colleagues in improving pedagogical practices (Standard 3.4), and using effective classroom communication (Standard 3.5).
Using the CCQ, as a meaningful framework to guide collaborative inquiry, provides evidence to support a range of elements within each of these AITSL standards:
- Know students and how they learn (Standard 1)
- Plan for and implement effective teaching and learning (Standard 3)
- Create and maintain supportive and safe learning environments (Standard 4)
- Engage in professional learning (Standard 6)
- Engage professionally with colleagues (Standard 7)
Building a Learning Culture:
NSI's Collaborative Inquiry Process
Using the CCQ supports schools and teachers in developing positive learning environments through educator-driven professional development.
Data collected using the CCQ provides teachers with a framework for critical self-reflection and evidence-based decision-making. Using NSI’s Five-Step Collaborative Inquiry Process, teachers engage in a cyclic process of planning, action, and reflection as they implement interventions and changes to pedagogical practice to improve their learning environment.
Assessment and Gathering Student Feedback
Reflection and focusing
Planning an intervention
Implementing and Refining
Examining Changes
Using the CCQ as a Framework for Collaborative Inquiry:
Building a Culture of Learning
Shared Practice
As teachers engage with the CCQ and the NSI processes, teachers share their struggles and successes, engendering a collective sense of achievement.
Building a Culture of Trust
NSI’s processes involving the CCQ develop trust between teachers through exploring and sharing their practices with colleagues.
Building Social Capital
The use of the CCQ encourages shared learning and expertise between teachers, building professional and social capital while exposing unacceptable practices.
Engaging in Critical Self-Reflection
Processes involving the CCQ encourage teachers to engage in critical self-reflection as part of the improvement cycle.
Encouraging Innovative Practice
Engaging with the CCQ and NSI processes encourages innovative practice in classrooms, a prerequisite for a culture of improvement.
Evidence of Addressing the AITSL Standards
Engagement with the CCQ provides teachers with evidence of engaging with the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (AITSL).
Increasing Pride and sense of Community
Sharing experiences and engaging in transparent conversations, engenders pride and a sense of community.
Supporting the Aboriginal Cultural Standards Framework
The CCQ and NSI processes align with and support the Aboriginal Standards Framework, including the relationship, leadership, teaching, learning environment, and resources standard.
Supporting the OECD’s Seven Principles of Learning
The use of the CCQ supports the seven principles of learning by promoting learning environments that: place students at the centre through co-construction and active participation; promote positive relationships and caring teachers in tune with students’ needs; encourage the recognition of individual differences and make learning relevant and meaningful to students; and promote the use of meaningful assessment and rich feedback.
