Measuring Homeroom Competency in Pre-Service Teachers: Scale Development and Validation

Abstract

The objective of this study is to delineate the latent structural components underpinning homeroom management competencies and to quantify the extent to which pedagogical interest influences the cultivation of such competencies among third- and fourth-year pre-service teachers. The research instrument was meticulously constructed via Google Forms and administered through an online modality, targeting undergraduate cohorts enrolled at four major institutions: Hanoi National University of Education, Hanoi Pedagogical University No. 2, Thai Nguyen University of Education, and Thu Do University. The hypothesized structure of homeroom management skills was operationalized through a multidimensional construct comprising seven conceptual domains, derived from an initial item pool of 44 indicators. Out of 806 responses received, a refined dataset of 550 statistically valid entries was retained post data cleansing and subsequently subjected to inferential analysis. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) resulted in the retention of 38 observable variables and extracted seven underlying dimensions. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) further validated a refined seven-factor structural model encompassing: (i) Skills to understand the educational objective of the homeroom teacher (SU), (ii) Behavioral regulation and disciplinary intervention (BH), (iii) Classroom discipline management (CD), (iv) Student support facilitation (SS), (v) Communicative interaction with pupils (CS), (vi) Collaboration with parents and educational stakeholders (CP), (vii) Extracurricular activity organization (EP), and (viii) Level of interest in participating in training homeroom teacher skills (IH)”. The empirical insights gleaned from this study hold substantive implications for educational practitioners, faculty developers, and institutional policymakers aiming to devise evidence-based strategies for enhancing the homeroom leadership competencies of prospective educators within the Vietnamese teacher education paradigm.