Desenvolvimento de uma escala multidimensional para análise de ambientes de aprendizagem

Abstract

This study aims to propose a multidimensional measurement scale to analyze the dynamics of the learning environment of management undergraduate courses in Brazil. To achieve this purpose, it was necessary to define the constructs of the learning environment and their implications for the professional development of management undergraduate students in public HEIs in Brazil; to develop a multidimensional learning environment scale; and to identify the relationships between the dimensions of the environment to ratify its multidimensionality. The theoretical basis comprised three parts: the first approached the meaning of the learning environment, its concepts, and theoretical perspectives; the second presented the dimensions of the learning environment (physical, psychological, social, technological, and pedagogical) from a multidimensional perspective. The third, on the other hand, involved carrying out a Systematic Literature Review to map the published works on the Learning Environment theme and identify the main measurement instruments validated in the literature. The methodological path followed a quantitative approach, exploratory and descriptive, using the survey method. The research was carried out with professors of management Undergraduate Courses of Public Institutions of Higher Education in Brazil. The questionnaire was made available to professors through the Survey Monkey platform and the final sample of the survey was 571 participants. The data were analyzed using SPSS software, version 22.0, which supported the performance of the correlation analysis, reliability and exploratory factor analysis, obtaining a valid and reliable measurement structure, called the Multidimensional Learning Environment Scale (MLES) with five constructs: physical learning environment, technological learning environment, socio-emotional learning environment, teaching-learning planning and student-oriented learning. An analysis of the learning environment by cluster association and the Mann-Whitney test was also performed with variables that characterize the profile of the professors and the context of their professional performance. One of the practical implications of the study involves the use of MLES in the analysis of learning environments in management courses to broaden the understanding of the culture of teaching and learning in higher education in Brazil, and to assist professors, course coordinators and other managers in the preparation of strategies to enhance teaching planning and action, as well as the students' development process.