C. THE STUDENT SELF-REPORT FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL (RAPS-SE)
1. Item by Construct Description
This multidimensional measure includes a total of 79 items, tapping three major domains and seven separate subdomains, in a questionnaire format that can be administered to students during a single class period. The majority of these items reflect negative feelings or beliefs. In order to reduce the overall negative tone of the questionnaire, nine positive items have been added. These nine items were selected from the middle school version of the questionnaire, but are not used in constructing summary scores for elementary school students.
With one exception, all items are responded to on the following scale:
Very True Sort of True Not Very True Not At All True
(4) (3) (2) (1)
An item by construct list, including brief descriptions of each construct, is presented on the following pages. The nine items that are not included in the summary scores are presented together in the final table.
Engagement Domain
The Engagement domain as measured by the RAPS-SE incorporates two separate but interrelated subdomains of student adjustment in school: 1) Ongoing Engagement with school; and 2) Reactions to Challenge (i.e., the strategies students use when faced with negative or stressful school events).
Ongoing Engagement Subdomain
Ongoing Engagement includes the extent to which the student exerts effort on schoolwork, pays attention in class, prepares for class, and believes that doing well in school is personally important. The RAPS-SE includes a total of six items tapping these aspects of student engagement. These items are listed below:
Item Item Code3 Questionnaire
Item Number
I work very hard on my schoolwork. eoxs7 3
I don’t try very hard in school. eoxf3 19
I pay attention in class. eaxs2 35
I don’t work very hard in school. eoxf4 50
When I’m in class I just act as if I’m working. eaxf3 60 How important is it to you to do the best you can in
school? eyxx3 88
3 As with the RAPS-TE, codes are item names that have been used in all IRRE-sponsored and facilitated administrations of this measure. They are included to facilitate communication among users of these measures and with IRRE staff.
Eyxx3 is the single item that has a response set that differs from the other items in the questionnaire. It is responded to on the following scale:
Very True Sort of True Not Very True Not At All True
(4) (3) (2) (1)
Reaction to Challenge Subdomain
There are a number of ways in which students may cope with, or react to, negative school-related events. Students may blame negative events on the teacher or other individuals (Projection). Students may cope with negative events by downplaying their importance (Denial). At other times, they may perseverate on the events and worry about them without necessarily doing anything to ensure that such events won’t occur again (Anxiety Amplification). Finally, students may cope by examining their own behavior and attempting to make changes to
prevent similar negative events from occurring in the future (Positive Coping). Of these four different reactions to challenge, Projection and Denial appear to be particularly related to positive or negative outcomes for elementary school students and are included in this revised version of the RAPS-SE. One Anxiety Amplification item is included as well. The items are listed below:
Item Item Code Questionnaire
Item Number Projection Items:
When something bad happens to me in school (like not doing well on a test or not being able to answer an important question in class), I say the teacher didn’t cover the things on the test.
ecjx3 14
When something bad happens to me in school, (like not doing well on a test or not being able to answer an important question in class), I get angry at the teacher.
ecjx4 33
When something bad happens to me in school (like not doing well on a test or not being able to answer an important question in class), I say it was the teacher’s fault.
ecjx1 65
Denial Items:
When something bad happens to me in school (like not doing well on a test or not being able to answer an important question in class),, I tell myself it didn’t matter.
ecdx3 22
When something bad happens to me in school (like not doing well on a test or not being able to answer an important question in class), I say it wasn’t important.
ecdx4 42
When something bad happens to me in school (like not doing well on a test or not being able to answer an important question in class), I say I didn’t care about it.
ecdx7 71
Anxiety Amplification Item:
When something bad happens to me in school (like not doing well on a test or not being able to answer an important question in class), I worry that the other students will think I’m dumb.
ecax1 53
Beliefs about Self Domain
The Beliefs about Self domain incorporates three separate subdomains: 1) Perceived Competence, 2) Perceived Autonomy, and 3) Perceived Relatedness.
Perceived Competence Subdomain
The Competence subdomain of the RAPS-SE consists of a total of 16 items. One of these items reflects perceptions of control in the school setting. Seven items reflect the student's beliefs about what kinds of strategies are necessary in order to achieve desirable, or avoid undesirable, outcomes. There are four different
strategies represented: 1) Unknown, 2) Powerful Others, 3) Effort, and 5) Luck. A fifth strategy that appeared in earlier versions of the RAPS-SE, Ability, has been omitted because students’ endorsement of ability as a strategy for doing well in school did not appear to be associated with student performance and adjustment in elementary school.
The final eight Perceived Competence items reflect the student's belief that he or she has the capacity to enact strategies. There are two capacity items for each strategy except Unknown, including Ability. Thus, although students’ beliefs that ability is necessary to do well in school do not appear to differ among students doing more or less well in school, students do differ in the extent to which they believe that they are smart in school. The Unknown strategy items reflect the student's inability to determine what it takes to do well in school. Thus, it more accurately reflects the lack of a strategy and hence would have no associated feeling of being more or less capable of enacting the strategy in order to do well. The 16 items included in the revised RAPS-SE are listed below:
Item Item Code Questionnaire
Item Number Perceptions of Control Item
I can’t do well in school. ccxf3 72
Unknown Strategy Items
I don’t know how to keep myself from getting bad grades. csuf2 5 I don’t know what it takes to get good grades in school. csus3 48 Powerful Others Strategy Items
I won’t do well in school if the teacher doesn’t like me. cspf1 36 The best way for me to get good grades is to get my teacher to like
me.
csps2 61 Effort Strategy Items
Trying hard is the best way for me to do well in school. cses2 43 Luck Strategy Items
I have to be luck to do well in school. csls2 1
If I’m unlucky, I won’t do well in school. cslf1 31
Item Item Code Questionnaire Item Number
Powerful Others Capacity Items
I can get my teacher to like me. cpps2 29
I can’t get my teacher to like me. cppf2 51
Effort Capacity Items
I can work really hard in school. cpes2 32
I can’t work very hard in school. cpef3 80
Ability Capacity Items
I’m pretty smart in school. cpas4 10
I’m not very smart in school. cpaf2 40
Luck Capacity Items
I’m pretty lucky at getting good grades. cpls2 17
I am unlucky in school. cplf1 45
Perceived Autonomy Subdomain
The Perceived Autonomy subdomain of the RAPS-SE is made up of nine items that tap two different types of self-regulation, or reasons for doing schoolwork or homework. Five items tap identified self-regulation (i.e., doing schoolwork because it is seen as important), and four items tap intrinsic self-regulation (i.e., doing schoolwork because it is fun or interesting). These two forms of self-regulation are positively related to each other and are all expected to contribute to students’
academic performance. Two other forms of self-regulation – external (i.e., doing schoolwork to avoid punishment or because it is the rule) and introjected (i.e. doing schoolwork or homework to avoid feeling embarrassed or guilty) were included in previous versions of the RAPS-SE but were omitted from the current revised version because they were unrelated to other indices of student performance and adjustment. Autonomy, or Self-regulation, items are listed below:
Item Item Code Questionnaire
Item Number Identified Self-Regulation Items:
I do my homework because I want to understand the subject. ardx1 20 I work on my classwork because I think it is important. ardx9 26 I work on my classwork because I want to learn new things. ardx2 39 I do my homework because I want to learn new things. ardx7 52 I work on my classwork because doing well in school is important to
me. ardx8 64
Intrinsic Self-Regulation Items:
I do my homework because I like to do it. arix2 6 I work on my classwork because it’s interesting. arix8 13
I do my homework because it’s fun. arix1 46
I work on my classwork because it’s fun. arix3 70
Perceived Relatedness Subdomain
The Relatedness subdomain of the RAPS-SE is made up of 14 items that tap four constructs: 1) Feelings about Self (5 items), 2) Parental Emotional Security (3 items), 3) Teacher Emotional Security (3 items), and 4) Peer Emotional Security (3 items). These four constructs differ from those presented in the middle school version, RAPS-SM in that items reflecting Emotional Security with Self and Satisfaction with Self, two separate constructs on the RAPS-SM, are combined into the single Feelings about Self construct. Three additional constructs were included in previous versions of the RAPS-SE: Parental Psychological Proximity Seeking, Teacher Psychological Proximity Seeking, and Peer Psychological Proximity Seeking. Due to low reliabilities and lack of associations with other indices of student performance and adjustment, however, these three components were excluded from the current revision. The Emotional Security constructs each reflect the extent to which positive emotions are present, and negative emotions absent, when in the presence of a relationship partner (i.e., parent(s), teacher, or peers).
Feelings about Self reflects the extent to which students feel negatively about themselves and wish that they were different or were someone else. The 14 Perceived Relatedness items are as follows:
Item Item Code Questionnaire
Item Number Feelings about Self Items
I wish I were someone else. rswx4 12
When I think about myself, I feel bad. rsef11 18
I wish I felt better about myself. rswx3 37
I wish I liked myself better. rswx5 57
When I think about myself, I feel unhappy. rsef10 69 Parent Emotional Security Items:
When I’m with my parents, I feel mad. rpef2 8
When I’m with my parents, I feel unhappy. rpef4 47 When I’m with my parents, I feel ignored. rpef1 83 Teacher Emotional Security Items:
When I’m with my teacher, I feel ignored rtef1 2
When I’m with my teacher, I feel mad. rtef2 15
When I’m with my teacher, I feel unhappy. rtef4 41 Peer Emotional Security Items:
When I’m with my classmates, I feel ignored. rref1 25 When I’m with my classmates, I feel mad. rref2 44 When I’m with my classmates, I feel unhappy. rref4 78
Experiences of Interpersonal Support Domain
The Experiences of Interpersonal Support domain of the RAPS-SE includes a total of 27 items tapping two subdomains: 1) Parental Support; and 2) Teacher Support.
Items within each subdomain reflect the extent to which the student feels that the adult(s): 1) are involved with them, 2) provide support for student autonomy, and 3) provide structure. Involvement items reflect the extent to which the student feels that the adult(s) know and care about them. Autonomy Support items concern the extent to which students feel that they are allowed to make decisions for
themselves, and the extent to which the real-life value of the work that they are asked to do is made clear by the adult(s). Structure items reflect the clarity of the adult(s) expectations regarding student conduct, the extent to which consequences are consistent and predictable by the student when expectations are not met, and the student’s perception of the fairness of the adult(s) expectations. In the RAPS-SE, Parental Support and Teacher Support constitute two separate subdomains, each encompassing involvement, autonomy support, and structure. All items referring to the teacher are specifically about the school setting. Items referring to the parent are either about school and schoolwork (School Context) or do not refer to any specific context (General Context).
Experiences of Support from Parents Subdomain
Item Item Code Questionnaire
Item Number Parent Involvement - School Context Items
My parents never have enough time to hear about what happens to me in school.
ipxf6 4 Parent Autonomy Support - School Context Items
My parents don’t explain why school is important. ypxf15 16 When it comes to school, my parents try to control everything I do. ypxf4 30 When it comes to school, my parents are always telling me what to
do. ypxf5 66
My parents don’t talk about how schoolwork is related to what I
want to be. ypxf14 75
Parent Structure - School Context Items
My parents don’t make it clear what they expect of me in school. spxf10 7 My parents want me to do better than I can in school. spxf12 24 I don’t know what my parents expect of me in school. spxf4 85 Parent Involvement - General Context Items
My parents don’t seem to have enough time for me. ipgf1 62 My parents don’t seem to know how I feel about things. ipgf3 87 Parent Autonomy Support - General Context Items
My parents don’t let me make any of my own decisions. ypgf2 54
My parents trust me. ypgs1 73
My parents try to control everything I do. ypgf1 77
Experiences of Support from Parents Subdomain - continued
Item Item Code Questionnaire
Item Number Parent Structure - General Context Items
My parents don’t think I can do very much. spgf1 11 I never know what my parents are going to do. spgf3 27 I don’t know what my parents want from me. spgf2 34
My parents are fair with me. spgs4 55
Experiences of Support from Teachers Subdomain
Item Item Code Questionnaire
Item Number Teacher Involvement Items:
My teacher doesn’t seem to have enough time for me. itxf5 38 My teacher likes the other kids in my class better than me. itxf3 68 Teacher Autonomy Support Items:
My teacher doesn’t explain why we have to learn certain things in
school. ytxf3 28
My teacher doesn’t talk about how schoolwork is related to what I
want to be. ytxf14 56
My teacher interrupts me when I have something to say. ytxf6 63 My teacher tries to control everything I do. ytxf1 81 Teacher Structure Items:
My teacher is fair with me. stxs11 9
My teacher’s expectations for me are way off base. stxf12 21
My teacher isn’t fair with me. stxf11 59
My teacher doesn’t make clear what he/she expects of me in
school. stxf8 74
Additional Items
The following items were selected from the middle school version of the RAPS-S (the RAPS-SM) in order to balance the predominantly negative orientation of the RAPS-SE items. Each item is presented along with the domain and subdomain with which it is associated on the RAPS-SM.
Item Item Code Questionnaire Item Number
Beliefs About Self Domain, Perceived Competence Subdomain: 1 item
I can do well in school if I want to. ccxs5 23
Beliefs About Self Domain, Perceived Relatedness Subdomain: 4 items
When I’m with my parents, I feel good. rpes1 58
When I’m with my classmates, I feel good. rres1 67 When I think about myself, I feel proud. rses8 76
When I’m with my teacher, I feel good. rtes5 84
Experiences of Interpersonal Support Domain, Support from Parents Subdomain: 3 items
My parents like to talk to me about school. ipxs2 79 My parents know just how well I can do in school. spxs11 82 My parents encourage me to find out how schoolwork could be
useful to me. ypxs14 86
Experiences of Interpersonal Support Domain, Support from Teachers Subdomain: 1 item
My teacher cares about how I do in school. itxs6 49
2. Administration Information