Cross-Cultural Validation of the Student Engagement Instrument for Chilean Students

Student engagement is associated with various aspects of students’ school experiences, including student achievement, high school completion, and post-secondary success. As measurement of student engagement has grown in countries around the world, few studies have been conducted in South America. This study examined a translated version of the Student Engagement Instrument, widely used in the U.S. and other countries, in a study of 2337 adolescents in Chile. Consistent with prior research, confirmatory factor analyses revealed a six-factor solution as the best fit for the data. However, fewer items were retained than on the studies of the SEI with students in the U.S. The Future Goals and Aspirations and Extrinsic motivation subscales were associated, in expected directions, with achievement 1 year later.