Validating the early childhood classroom observation measure in first and third grade classrooms

ABSTRACT

The present study reports on the psychometric properties of the Early Childhood Classroom Observation Measure (ECCOM) in Finnish and Estonian first and third grade classrooms. The observation data were collected from 91 first grade teachers and 70 third grade teachers. Teachers' curriculum goals, teaching experience and the classroom size were measured also. The results of confirmatory factor analysis provided evidence of the three-factor model (management, climate, and instruction) for each dimension—child-centred, teacher-directed, and child-dominated—in both grades. The reliability of the dimensions and sub-scales was good, and some evidence was also found for criterion validity. The findings imply that ECCOM is a reliable and valid instrument for measuring teaching practices in primary school.

KEYWORDS:

• Teaching practice
• child-centred classroom
• teacher-directed classroom
• child-dominated classroom
• primary education

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

¹For an accurate comparison, we used the same residual correlations pattern for both the three-factor and one-factor models.

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by the Academy of Finland [grant number 268 586 for 2013–2017 and 277 299 for 2015–2017 and 292 466 for 2015–2019] and institutional research funding [grant number IUT 3–3] of the Estonian Ministry of Education and Research.