Scale Creation

Simple indices are the variables that are constructed through the arithmetic transformation or recoding of one or more items in exactly the same way across assessments.

New and trend scale indices are the variables constructed through the scaling of multiple items. Unless otherwise indicated, such indices have been scaled using a two-parameter item response model (a generalized partial credit model was used in the case of items with more than two categories) and the index values correspond to Warm likelihood estimates (WLE).

Scale indices were constructed through the scaling of items. Typically, scale scores for these indices were estimates of latent traits derived through Item Response Theory (IRT) scaling of dichotomous or Likert-type items.

Only scale indices are listed below.

List of Background Scales

Student questionnaire scales

• Index of economic, social and cultural status
• Meta-cognition: understanding and remembering
• Meta-cognition: summarising
• Meta-cognition: assess credibility
• Home possessions (WLE)
• Cultural possessions at home (WLE)
• Home educational resources (WLE)
• Family wealth (WLE)
• ICT resources (WLE)
• Disciplinary climate in test language lessons (WLE)
• Teacher support in test language lessons (WLE)
• Teacher-directed instruction (WLE)
• Perceived feedback (WLE)
• Parents’ emotional support perceived by student (WLE)
• Teacher’s stimulation of reading engagement perceived by student (WLE)
• Adaptation of instruction (WLE)
• Perceived teacher’s interest (WLE)
• Joy/Like reading (WLE)
• Self-concept of reading: Perception of competence (WLE)
• Self-concept of reading: Perception of difficulty (WLE)
• Perception of difficulty of the PISA test (WLE)
• Perception of competitiveness at school (WLE)
• Perception of cooperation at school (WLE)
• Attitude towards school: learning activities (WLE)
• Competitiveness (WLE)
• Work mastery (WLE)
• General fear of failure (WLE)
• Eudaemonia: meaning in life (WLE)
• Subjective well-being: Positive affect (WLE)
• Resilience (WLE)
• Mastery goal orientation (WLE)
• Self-efficacy regarding global issues (WLE)
• Student’s awareness of global issues (WLE)
• Student’s attitudes towards immigrants (WLE)
• Student’s interest in learning about other cultures (WLE)
• Perspective-taking (WLE)
• Cognitive flexibility/adaptability (WLE)
• Respect for people from other cultures (WLE)
• Awareness of intercultural communication (WLE)
• Global-mindedness (WLE)
• Discriminating school climate (WLE)
• Subjective well-being: Sense of belonging to school (WLE)
• Student’s experience of being bullied (WLE)

School questionnaire scales

• Creative extra-curricular activities (Sum)
• Shortage of educational material (WLE)
• Shortage of educational staff (WLE)
• Student behaviour hindering learning (WLE)
• Teacher behaviour hindering learning (WLE)
• School principal’s view on teachers’ multicultural and egalitarian beliefs (WLE)

Optional educational career questionnaire scales

• Number of changes in educational biography (Sum)
• Information about careers (WLE)
• Information about the labour market provided by the school (WLE)
• Information about the labour market provided outside of school (WLE)

Optional ICT familiarity questionnaire scales

• ICT use outside of school (leisure) (WLE)
• Use of ICT outside of school (for school work activities) (WLE)
• Use of ICT at school in general (WLE)
• Interest in ICT (WLE)
• Perceived ICT competence (WLE)
• Perceived autonomy related to ICT use (WLE)
• ICT as a topic in social interaction (WLE)
• Subject-related ICT use during lessons (WLE)
• Subject-related ICT use outside of lessons (WLE)

Optional parent questionnaire scales

• Current parental support for learning at home (WLE)
• Parents’ emotional support (WLE)
• Parents’ perceived school quality (WLE)
• School policies for parental involvement (WLE)
• Previous parental support for learning at home (WLE)
• Parents’ enjoyment of reading (WLE)
• Parents’ attitudes towards immigrants (WLE)
• Parents’ interest in learning about other cultures (WLE)
• Parents’ awareness of global issues (WLE)

Optional well-being questionnaire scales

• Body image (WLE)
• Social Connections: Parents (WLE)

Optional financial literacy questionnaire scales

• Familiarity with concepts of finance (Sum)
• Confidence about financial matters (WLE)
• Confidence about financial matters using digital devices (WLE)
• Financial education in school lessons (WLE)
• Parental involvement in matters of Financial Literacy (WLE)

Optional teacher questionnaire scales

• Teacher’s view on staff shortage (WLE)
• Teacher’s view on educational material shortage (WLE)
• Test language teacher collaboration (WLE)
• Exchange and co-ordination for teaching (WLE)
• Teacher’s satisfaction with the current job environment (WLE)
• Teacher’s satisfaction with teaching profession (WLE)
• Teacher’s self-efficacy in classroom management (WLE)
• Teacher’s self-efficacy in maintaining positive relations with students (WLE)
• Teacher’s self-efficacy in instructional settings (WLE)
• Opportunity to learn (OTL) aspects of reading comprehension (WLE)
• Teacher’s stimulation of reading engagement (WLE)
• Teacher’s initiation of reading strategies (WLE)
• Teacher’s use of specific ICT applications (WLE)
• Disciplinary climate in test language lessons (WLE)
• Direct teacher’s instruction (WLE)
• Feedback provided by the teachers (WLE)
• Student assessment/use (adaption of instruction) (WLE)
• Feedback provided by the teachers (WLE)
• Teacher’s attitudes towards immigrants (WLE)
• Teacher’s training on global competence (WLE)
• Teachers’ multicultural and egalitarian beliefs (WLE)
• Teacher’s self-efficacy in multicultural environments (WLE)