Teachers’ Perceptions of School Ethical Culture: The Implicit Meaning of TIMSS

This chapter aims to explore whether a shared perception of ‘School Ethical Culture’ (SEC) emerged from teachers’ questionnaires that were distributed in 45 participant countries on behalf of the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS 2015). Based on Multiple group confirmatory analysis, the results support a universal perception of SEC among teachers, which was elicited from teachers’ responses to TIMSS questionnaires. This led to the understanding that the TIMSS teachers’ questionnaire has additional meaning, which goes beyond its original factors. The results also contributed to understanding the meaning of SEC among teachers, by identifying its four dimensions: ‘teachers’ profession,’ ‘care for students’ learning,’ ‘interaction with colleagues,’ and ‘respect of rules.’ This may be a new measure that, up until now, has never been investigated in schools. The findings may support a universal perspective, showing how common perceptions of SEC affect student achievements. However, the different impact of SEC dimensions across countries may be explained by the national context, which depends on specific policies of each country.