The reliability and validity of the Goal Orientation and Learning Strategies Survey (GOALS-S): A Filipino investigation

Abstract

The Goal Orientation and Learning Strategies Survey (GOALS-S; Dowson and Mclnerney, 2004) is an instrument designed to assess four sets of constructs: (1) academic goals, (2) social goals, (3) cognitive strategies, and (4) metacognitive strategies of high school students. This instrument was initially developed and validated among students in Australia. The applicability of this instrument to the Philippine setting was tested in a study involving 1,147 Filipino students from Metro Manila. Responses to this questionnaire are shown to have good internal consistency reliability. Support is provided for its within-network construct validity in terms of its factorial structure and evidence of its between-network construct validity is shown through its correlations with other valued educational outcomes. Different multigroup confirmatory factor analysis likewise indicated that the instrument is invariant across genders, across year levels, and across type of school. Suggestions for further research using the GOALS-S are provided. Copyright © 2011 De La Salle University, Philippines.