Constructing an Attitudinal Scale for Science Teachers Towards Laboratory Work

Abstract

This study aimed at constructing an attitudinal scale for
science teachers towards laboratory work. To achieve the objectives
of the study a preliminary Likert rating scale of 83 items was
constructed. The scale was administered to a randomly selected
sample of 224 teachers. The results indicated that 58 items fit the
assumptions of the rating scale model derived from the modern theory
(Rasch model). The scale in its final form exemplifies suitable
psychometric properties with a reliability coefficient of 0.98. The
scale also has several validity indicators. The results showed that the
scale presents the highest amount of information for persons with
moderate ability. The mean of ability values was θ= 0.35 which is
approximately equal to the mean values for the difficulty of items
b=0.36. These results conformed with the expected value by the
model.