The Instruments

The Alliance for the Study of School Climate (ASSC) offers a series of comprehensive School Climate Assessment Instruments (SCAI) and support services to assist schools in achieving a clear sense of where they are and where they can go.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

Along is a two-way digital communication platform focused on reflection and feedback through text, video, and audio. Teachers sign up using a Google or Microsoft 365 Educator account, and then browse the site's tutorials and resources. There's info about getting started, how to find time in the day for reflection, the research behind the site, and even a customizable Google Slides presentation to introduce the platform to students. Dozens of teacher practice lessons focus on skills teachers can use to connect with students, including lessons that focus on types of praise or giving wise feedback, for example. Once teachers feel ready to interact with students, they can email students a sign-up link using their Google or Microsoft 365 account. Teachers then create a reflection question of their own, or draw from the questions and related resources on the site. If desired, they can also create a sample response to share as a model. Students will be able to see the question and respond via text, video, or audio. Student reflections appear on the teacher dashboard, where teachers can respond.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

AIR supports improved student and school performance through the Conditions for Learning Survey, administered in schools across the United States, including the Cleveland Metropolitan School District. The survey assesses four core constructs within elementary, middle and high schools: A safe and respectful climate, Challenge/high expectations, Student support, Social and emotional learning.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The ARC self determination scale, developed in 1995, assesses the self-determination strengths and weaknesses of adolescents with disabilities, facilitates student involvement in their education,  and aids in developing self-determination goals for students. The assessment yields a total self-determination score and four subscores (autonomy, self-regulation, psychological empowerment, and self-realization). Raw scores are converted into percentile scores using available data on norms. An adult version of the scale was developed later.  Subscore(s): Autonomy, Self Regulation, Psychological Empowerment, Self Realization

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is a school-based health survey in Arizona and the United States administered by the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) in a sample selection of Arizona high schools. Survey results are used by school districts, communities, organizations, policy makers, and government agencies, to understand and meet student needs, identify emerging health issues, and obtain funding for programs that support teen health.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

Arke Primack Scale (APS). The Arke Primack Scale (APS) measures media literacy and critical thinking. Subscore(s): Radio, TV, Print.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Caregiver Interaction Scale (CIS) consists of 26 items usually divided into 4 subscales. Some researchers have conducted factor analyses on the 26 items and have found different subscales (e.g., Whitebook, Howes, & Phillips, 1989). Observers are asked to rate the extent to which 26 items are characteristic of the childcare provider whom they are observing. Items are scored on a 4‐point scale from (1) Not at all characteristic to (4) Very much characteristic of the child care provider. The measure usually contains the following subscales: Sensitivity (10 items), Harshness (8 items), Detachment (4 items), Permissiveness (4 items) “To rate the emotional tone, discipline style, and responsiveness of teachers and caregivers in a classroom. The items focus on the emotional tone and responsiveness of the caregiver’s interactions with children. The scale does not address issues of curriculum or other classroom management issues (such as grouping or flow of activities)” (U.S. Department of Education, 1997, p. 78).

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

APT is one of three research-based measurement tools that make up the APAS System, a field-tested, user-friendly suite of evaluation tools built with OST in mind. Use APT to measure the quality of your program, identify the areas where you are succeeding, and pinpoint areas to improve. APT will give you a clear picture of your program by collecting data on practices that are linked to three key youth outcomes.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Assessing Bias in Standards & Curricular Materials Tool enables users to determine the extent to which developed standards and curricular materials reflect educational equity (Fraser, 1998; GLEC, 2011). The tool provides guidance in reviewing standards and curricular materials using equity-oriented domains. It also includes a scoring and analysis guide to assist with the evaluation process. The standards rubric is sectioned into the following three domains: 1. Build Consciousness— Content standards cultivate an understanding of how knowledge is constructed and that the co-construction of knowledge is the medium through which society defines itself. 2. Reflect Students’ Cultural Repertoires and View Them as Worthy of Sustaining—Perpetuate and foster linguistic, literate, and cultural pluralism by sustaining in-group cultural practices and cross-group cultural practices (Paris, 2012). 3. Social Improvement—Content standards encourage social critique and just action.

The curricular materials rubric is sectioned into the following seven domains: 1. Invisibility—The complete or relative exclusion of a group (Sadker, n.d, Invisibility section, para. 2). 2. Stereotyping —Widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person or behavior at the cost of individual attributes and differences (Sadker, n.d., Stereotyping section, para. 1). 3. Imbalance and Selectivity—Representing only one interpretation of an issue, situation, or group of people. Simplifying and distorting complex issues by omitting different perspectives (Sadker, n.d., Imbalance and Selectivity section, para 1). 4. Historical Whitewashing—(Sleeter, 2005) - Minimizing unpleasant facts and events in history by ignoring prejudice, racism, discrimination, exploitation, oppression, sexism, and inter-group conflict (Sadker, n.d., Unreality section, para. 1). 5. Fragmentation and Isolation —Physically or visually isolating a group of people in the text. Often, racial and ethnic group members are depicted as interacting only with persons like themselves, isolated from other cultural communities Sadker, n.d., Fragmentation and Isolation, para. 1). 6. Linguistic Bias—Ways in which the use of language and words perpetuate stereotypes, bias, and marginalization of specific groups of people (Sadker, n.d., Linguistic bias Section, para. 1). 7. Cosmetic Bias—The aesthetics of curricular materials suggest that the material is “bias free” however it is really a marketing strategy to give a favorable impression to potential purchases (Sadker, n.d., Cosmetic Bias section, para.1).

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Assessing School Settings: Interactions of Students and Teachers observational measure (ASSIST) is a classroom observation instrument that rates social processes occurring in the classroom. The instrument was initially developed to evaluate students' and teachers' behaviors using the Positive Behavior Intervention and Support (PBIS), however, recent updates have primarily focused on teachers. Teachers' behaviors are rated through event‚Äêbased tallies and global ratings. The measure has been used to evaluate the effects of school-wide interventions, and the relationship between teacher and student behaviors.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

Assessing Teacher Learning About Science Teaching (ATLAST) measures teacher knowledge in a specific content area. Assessments exist in the following content areas: Flow of Matter and Energy in Living Systems; Force and Motion; and Plate Tectonics. All questions are set in instructional contexts, with some items requiring teachers to analyze student thinking or to choose among instructional responses to student thinking. The measure has been used as a pre- and post-test to assess the effects of professional development programs. There are also corresponding student written assessments.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Assessment of Children’s Emotion Skills (ACES) contains three subtests—facial expressions, behavioral descriptions, and situational vignettes–that examine children’s ability to recognize emotion arousal. In addition to prototypic facial expressions and behavioral/situational descriptions, some items contain ambiguous emotion arousal, particularly containing a mixture of sad and angry cues. In multiple studies Dr. Schultz has shown that aggressive children tend to view ambiguous negative emotion arousal as indicating anger. The facial expressions subtest comes in Powerpoint format, and the behavioral and situational vignettes are read aloud. ACES materials can be downloaded for free.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

This assessment is designed to assess the mindsets of mathematics teachers at the middle and high school levels in teaching mathematics to African American students. The purpose of the survey is to provide an indication of (a) teachers‘ mindsets that may be productive or unproductive in supporting the mathematical learning of African American students; (b) teachers‘ awareness of and attribution for success and challenges in African American students‘ learning of mathematics; and (c) teachers‘ feelings of self-efficacy and/or support in enacting equitable instruction.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The APEEC was developed to provide a useful tool for both practitioners and researchers who want to understand Elementary school practices (K‐3) in general education classrooms serving children with and without disabilities. The APEEC does not measure specific curriculum content or in‐depth teacher‐child interactions” (Hemmeter, Maxwell, Ault, & Schuster, 2001, p. 1). “The APEEC (Maxwell, McWilliam, Hemmeter, Ault, & Schuster, 2001) measures three domains of classroom practices: physical environment, curriculum and instructional context, and social context.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Assessment of Social Perspective- Taking Performance (ASPP) uses scenarios to assess students' social perspective-taking competency Subscore(s): Articulation of beliefs, Positioning of actors in social contextsThe APEEC consists of 16 items covering three broad domains of classroom practices: physical environment, curriculum and instruction, and social context. All items are rated on a seven‐point, Likert‐type scale. “A score of ‘1’ indicates the classroom is inadequate in terms of developmentally appropriate practices, a score of ‘3’ indicates minimal developmentally appropriate practices, a score of ‘5’ indicates the classroom is good in terms of developmental appropriateness, and a score of ‘7’ indicates excellent developmentally appropriate practices. Intermediate scores of ‘2’, ‘4’, and ‘6’ can also be obtained” (Hemmeter et al., 2001, p. 4). Descriptors are provided at points 1, 3, 5 and 7. After each item is scored, items are summed and then divided by the total number of items administered to generate a total score. Ratings are made using information collected both through classroom observation and teacher interview, with more weight placed on classroom observation.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

Population Measure: Developed with the Assessment Profile for Early Childhood Programs: Research Edition I (1992) was originally standardized using 401 preschool classrooms in childcare, Head Start, and kindergarten settings. Later revised using a national standardization sample of 2,820 classrooms. Subsequent analyses across the original 87 items were conducted to confirm the factor structures, to estimate reliability, and to recalibrate the IRT properties. Following the analyses, each scale was reduced to 12 items and the Assessment Profile: Research Edition II was published in 1998.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

Building and maintaining a positive school climate is essential for creating a school setting that cultivates learning, academic achievement, and student growth. The School Climate and Connectedness Survey (SCCS) provides a unique opportunity to measure student, staff and family perceptions on school climate. Topics measured by SCCS include but are not limited to: How students, staff and families view school climate; How connected students feel to adults and peers; Social and Emotional Learning (SEL); Family/school Partnerships;

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Attitudes and Behaviors Survey gives a snapshot of the current experiences and perspectives of youth in schools, programs, or communities. It emphasizes the strengths and supports they currently have and need, and how those positive indicators protect against risk behaviors. This widely used survey grew out of more than 30 years of research on the framework of Developmental Assets. It is used by schools, organizations, coalitions, and programs seeking to understand young people’s lives through their strengths, supports, and resources.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Attributions of Mathematical Excellence Scale (AMES) is designed to assess elementary teachers' beliefs about why students excel or struggle in mathematics. Its focus lies specifically on teachers' systems of racialized and gendered attribution beliefs. AMES consists of four subscales, each representing distinct lay psychological theories that aid individuals in making sense of the behavior of others. These subscales describe the following four attributions of mathematical excellence: genetic (AME-G), social (AME-S), personal (AME-P), and educational (AME-E). The genetic and social subscales characterize mathematical excellence as a fixed trait, while the personal and educational subscales characterize it as malleable.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The purpose of the Authoritative School Climate Survey (ASCS) is to assess school climate and bullying in school settings and help guide school improvement efforts. The ASCS is derived from the School Climate Bullying Survey (SCBS) and contains many of the same items and scales. The survey was renamed because new research has sharpened its focus on authoritative school climate theory. Schools in Virginia have used the survey under the name Virginia Secondary School Climate Survey.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The BADER Reading and Language Inventory was constructed for use by teachers of K–12 and adult students to determine students' literacy levels, plan instruction, and make referrals to appropriate specialists. Portions of this test can also be used for quick screening or initial placement for students.

The EQ-i™ is a pioneering self-report tool that assesses emotionally and socially intelligent behavior, offering an estimate of emotional-social intelligence. As the first measure of its kind to be published by a psychological test publisher, peer-reviewed in the Buros Mental Measurement Yearbook, and the most widely used since its debut in 1996, the EQ-i™ stands as a leading measure in its field. The tool, detailed in the 1997 Bar-On EQ-i™ Technical Manual and extensively referenced in the literature, consists of 133 items using a 5-point response scale. Designed for individuals aged 17 and older, the EQ-i™ is easily readable at a sixth-grade level and takes about 30 minutes to complete.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The complete version of APERS must be completed by certified raters external to schools. The assessment includes a review of student records, interviews with school staff and parents, observations, and the completion of an electronic scoring tool. A shorter APERS self-assessment companion tool can be completed by teachers and used in combination with the full APERS evaluation by a certified rater.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development (BSID) measures the development of infants and young children (aged 16 days-42 months). Conducted by trained examiners, BSID includes several developmental play tasks to assess cognitive, language, motor, social-emotional, and adaptive behavior development. BSID’s most recent fourth version was created in 2019.

The Becoming Effective Learners Student Survey (BEL-S) was designed to identify and measure constructs within five categories of noncognitive factors—academic behaviors, academic perseverance, academic mindsets, learning strategies, and social skills—as well as identifying and measuring classroom conditions and instructional practices correlated with such factors.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Behavior Assessment System for Children (BASC), which is sold by Pearson, aims to measure adaptive behaviors, problem behaviors, and individual thoughts and feelings. It contains multiple evaluation forms: Teacher Rating Scales (TRS) and the Student Observation System (SOS) to be completed by a teacher; Parent Rating Scales (PRS), the Parenting Relationship Questionnaire (PRQ), and the Structured Developmental History (SDH) to be completed by a parent, and the Self-Report of Personality (SRP) to be completed by the student.

The Behavior Intervention Monitoring Assessment System (BIMAS-2) offers an online web-based data management system with dynamic analysis, graphing and reporting options. This allows its users to dynamically manipulate data in real time to assist in evidence-based decision-making within a comprehensive behavior health care model of service delivery. The BIMAS-2 is a brief, repeatable multi-informant measure that can be used for Universal Screening – identify students who might be at risk or in need of further assessment – and Progress Monitoring – monitor the effectiveness of system wide interventions. The data generated by this process, increases accountability across all parties involved, promotes implementation fidelity and facilitates the collaboration of school personnel and parents.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) is a questionnaire used to assess children’s everyday behaviors related to executive functioning—skills like starting tasks, staying organized, managing emotions, and completing work. While it focuses on “executive function,” the BRIEF is best understood as a measure of behavioral regulation that reflects how well children apply these skills in real-life settings such as classrooms or at home.

The BRIEF was developed in 2000 and assesses a student's executive functioning in the home and school. It includes parent response forms and teacher response forms. Designed to assess the abilities of a broad range of children and adolescents, the BRIEF is useful when working with children who have learning disabilities and attention disorders, traumatic brain injuries, lead exposure, pervasive developmental disorders, depression, and other developmental, neurological, psychiatric, and medical conditions. The BRIEF has eight clinical scales (Inhibit, Shift, Emotional Control, Initiate, Working Memory, Plan/Organize, Organization of Materials, Monitor) and is helpful in indicating attention disorders. The BRIEF has been adapted into 60 languages and for use from age 2-90. Recently, the BRIEF2 was created for ages 5-18. The BRIEF2 is shorter, but has no additional clinical items, allowing for consistency of data collection between the BRIEF and BRIEF2, and results can be translated from the BRIEF to the BRIEF2 to take advantage of new normative data. The BRIEF2 also has increased sensitivity for detecting ADHD and ASD.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.

The BERS-2 measures personal strengths and competencies in children 5-18. The BERS-2 is a multi-modal assessment system that measures the child's behavior from three perspectives: the child (Youth Rating Scale), parent (Parent Rating Scale), and teacher or other professional (Teacher Rating Scale). The BERS-2 measures six aspects of a child's strength: interpersonal strength, involvement with family, intrapersonal strength, school functioning, affective strength, and career strength. Subscore(s): Interpersonal strength, Involvement with family, Intrapersonal strength, School functioning, Affective strength, Career strength.

Note: The overview provided for this instrument includes content that may have been sourced from the instrument publisher's or author’s website (or other site providing information about the instrument). This information is presented for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions about the content or its permitted uses, please contact annenberg@brown.edu.