School Climate as Group Evaluation and Group Consensus: Student and Parent Perceptions of the Elementary School Environment

In this study, I examined the relation of consensus among students and parents regarding their perceptions of the school environment, its relation to their evaluation of the school environment, and the combined effect of consensus and evaluation on important student and parent outcomes. I analyzed survey responses of elementary school students (N = 25,557) and their parents (N = 23,107) regarding the learning and social environment of schools (N = 122). Results showed that consensus among student and parent perceptions regarding the school environment was significantly and positively correlated with their evaluation of the school environment. Schools having more racially and ethnically diverse student populations and more newcomers to the school showed significantly less student and parent consensus regarding the school environment. School size was unrelated to consensus. School-level multiple regression analyses showed significant and positive relations of student and parent evaluations of the school (school mean scale scores) to school-level student outcomes (satisfaction and academic performance) and to school-level parent outcomes (involvement and satisfaction). These relations were stronger in schools having greater consensus. Most of the observed school-level results were evident in hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) in which individual student and parent background characteristics and perceptions were considered. Implications of results for practices of elementary school staff are discussed.