Validation of an instrument to evaluate health promotion at schools.

OBJECTIVE: To validate an instrument designed to assess health promotion in the school environment. METHODS: A questionnaire, based on guidelines from the World Health Organization and in line with the Brazilian school health context, was developed to validate the research instrument. There were 60 items in the instrument that included 40 questions for the school manager and 20 items with direct observations made by the interviewer. The items' content validation was performed using the Delphi technique, with the instrument being applied in 53 schools from two medium-sized cities in the South region of Brazil. Reliability (Cronbach's alpha and split-half) and validity (principal component analysis) analyses were performed. RESULTS: The final instrument remained composed of 28 items, distributed into three dimensions: pedagogical, structural and relational. The resulting components showed good factorial loads (> 0.4) and acceptable reliability (> 0.6) for most items. The pedagogical dimension identifies educational activities regarding drugs and sexuality, violence and prejudice, auto care and peace and quality of life. The structural dimension is comprised of access, sanitary structure, and conservation and equipment. The relational dimension includes relationships within the school and with the community. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed instrument presents satisfactory validity and reliability values, which include aspects relevant to promote health in schools. Its use allows the description of the health promotion conditions to which students from each educational institution are exposed. Because this instrument includes items directly observed by the investigator, it should only be used during periods when there are full and regular activities at the school in question.

Validation of an instrument to evaluate health promotion at schools / Validação de instrumento desenvolvido para avaliação da promoção de saúde na escola

ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE To validate an instrument designed to assess health promotion in the school environment. METHODS A questionnaire, based on guidelines from the World Health Organization and in line with the Brazilian school health context, was developed to validate the research instrument. There were 60 items in the instrument that included 40 questions for the school manager and 20 items with direct observations made by the interviewer. The items’ content validation was performed using the Delphi technique, with the instrument being applied in 53 schools from two medium-sized cities in the South region of Brazil. Reliability (Cronbach’s alpha and split-half) and validity (principal component analysis) analyses were performed. RESULTS The final instrument remained composed of 28 items, distributed into three dimensions: pedagogical, structural and relational. The resulting components showed good factorial loads (> 0.4) and acceptable reliability (> 0.6) for most items. The pedagogical dimension identifies educational activities regarding drugs and sexuality, violence and prejudice, auto care and peace and quality of life. The structural dimension is comprised of access, sanitary structure, and conservation and equipment. The relational dimension includes relationships within the school and with the community. CONCLUSIONS The proposed instrument presents satisfactory validity and reliability values, which include aspects relevant to promote health in schools. Its use allows the description of the health promotion conditions to which students from each educational institution are exposed. Because this instrument includes items directly observed by the investigator, it should only be used during periods when there are full and regular activities at the school in question.

RESUMO OBJETIVO Validar instrumento de avaliação da promoção de saúde no ambiente escolar. MÉTODOS Para validação do instrumento de pesquisa, foi elaborado questionário com base em diretrizes da Organização Mundial da Saúde, mas adequado ao contexto de saúde escolar no Brasil, com 60 itens, sendo 40 dirigidos aos gestores e 20 para observação direta pelo entrevistador. A validação de conteúdo dos itens foi feita pela técnica Delphi, com aplicação do instrumento em 53 escolas de dois municípios, de porte médio, da região Sul do País. Foram realizadas análises de confiabilidade (alpha de Cronbach e split-half) e de validade (análise de componentes principais). RESULTADOS O instrumento permaneceu composto por 28 itens, distribuídos em três dimensões: pedagógica, estrutural e relacional. Os componentes resultantes apresentaram boas cargas fatoriais (> 0,4) e confiabilidade aceitável (> 0,6) para a maioria dos itens. A dimensão pedagógica identifica atividades educativas que abordem drogas e sexualidade, violência e preconceitos, autocuidados e paz e qualidade de vida. Estrutura se divide em acesso, estrutura sanitária e conservação e equipamentos. A dimensão relacional inclui relações na escola e relações com a comunidade. CONCLUSÕES O instrumento proposto apresenta valores satisfatórios de validade e confiabilidade, englobando aspectos relevantes à promoção de saúde nas escolas. Seu emprego permite retratar condições de promoção de saúde às quais estão expostos os estudantes vinculados a cada instituição de ensino. Como possui itens de observação direta pelo pesquisador, deve ser usado apenas em períodos de atividade plena e regular da escola.