The development of the stereotypical attitudes in HPE scale

• Published in: The Australian journal of teacher education 2016-07, Vol.41 (7), p.70-87
• Main Authors: O'Connor, Justen, Penney, Dawn, Alfrey, Laura, Phillipson, Sivanes, Phillipson, Shane, Jeanes, Ruth
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Australia; Education; Factor Analysis; Foreign Countries; Health Education; Likert Scales; Maximum Likelihood Statistics; Methodology; Physical Education; Preservice Teachers; Rasch models; Social Bias; Statistical Analysis; Stereotypes; Student Attitudes; Student Diversity; Teacher Education Programs; Teachers; Test Construction; Test Reliability; Test Validity; Training of
• ISSN: 1835-517X; 0313-5373; 1835-517X
• DOI: 10.14221/.v2016n41.5

This study reflects that teacher education in Health and Physical Education (HPE) has long grappled with the challenge of how to disrupt pre-service teachers' (PSTs) established attitudes about HPE that may limit their capacity to positively engage with a diverse student population. This paper describes the development, validation and interpretation of the Stereotypical Attitudes in Health and Physical Education scale (SAHPE) for use in teacher education institutions. The scale was developed as a means of exploring the extent to which PSTs perpetuate or reject discriminatory attitudes and stereotypes that have been identified as having some historical and cultural acceptance in Health and Physical Education. It was designed as a tool to generate data that can be used by teacher educators with PSTs to better understand and problematise stereotypical attitudes that ultimately impact diversity and inclusion in HPE classrooms. This paper details the design process and pilot research that enabled validation of the scale for use by Australian teacher educators. For the purposes of validation, the SAHPE scale was administered to 109 pre-service teachers at one Australian university. Rasch modelling and confirmatory factor analysis using AMOS version 20.0 was employed to determine the measurement properties of the instrument and the construct validity of factors. Results from the study showed that a 17-item factor structure of the SAHPE is a valid and reliable predictor of a construct related to stereotypical attitudes. The discussion addresses the future application of the SAHPE as an instrument for teacher educators to use in efforts to enhance inclusion in HPE.