The Development of the Network Examination for Student Socialization (NEXSS) Observational Instrument

The complexity of learning has plagued the educational establishment for decades. Recently, ideas of complexity theory and complex adaptive systems have made headway in how we think of institutions of learning. This study developed and tested an instrument for the modeling of underlying social structures, as an element of complexity, within the physical education learning environment. Currently, there are no instruments capable of producing valid and reliable models of underlying student social networks in physical education classes. This study sought to develop and test one of the first instruments for the explicit purpose of this modeling. The Network Examination for Student Socialization was developed as a product of this effort. Testing demonstrated the Network Examination for Student Socialization is both a reliable and valid instrument for modeling underlying student social structures within physical education classes. It is hoped that in years to come, the Network Examination for Student Socialization can play a key role in the study of complexity within physical education.