Brief Description

The scale consists of 16 items referring to children’s emotional attitudes toward school. The questions aim to determine the extent to which children are inclined to enjoy or avoid the school environment.

Purpose

The scale was developed to assess students’ attitudes toward elementary school.

Scoring Method

Children’s responses are coded using a four-point scale:

1 = the statement does not describe the child at all

4 = the statement describes the child very well

The scale includes two subscales:

Liking Subscale

Avoidance Subscale

The overall score for each subscale is calculated as the average of the relevant items. Higher scores indicate greater liking or greater avoidance of school, respectively.

Validity

Factor analysis indicated good construct validity.

Reliability

The reliability of the scale was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha:

Liking: α = 0.82

Avoidance: α = 0.78

Data Analysis and Use

The adaptation of the scale was based on a sample of 336 children (168 boys and 168 girls), aged 6–9 years, attending elementary schools in the prefecture of Karditsa, Greece. The scale can be used for both diagnostic and research purposes, especially during the transition from kindergarten to primary school.

References

Ladd, G. W., & Price, J. M. (1987). Predicting children’s social and school adjustment following the transition from preschool to kindergarten. Child Development, 58, 1168–1189.
Sotiriou, A., & Zafeiropoulou, M. (2003). Changes in children’s self-concept during the transition from kindergarten to elementary school. Psychology, 10(1), 96–118.