Development of an Educational Collaborative Network Diagnostic Tool and Application to a Case of Climate Change Education

This study aimed to develop an educational collaborative network diagnostic tool capable of assessing the level of collaboration and the characteristics of interaction within Climate Change Education (CCE) networks, applying the collaborative network framework for education. Employing a theory-informed instrument development approach integrating deductive and inductive elements, the initial 16-item draft was subjected to two rounds of expert review and revised using the Content Validity Index (CVI) and the Factorial Validity Index (FVI). The finalized tool was then applied to ten program coordinators representing diverse institutional types engaged in multi-year collaborative CCE activities from 2023 to 2025. The final tool comprises 20 items across six sections: (1) network structure, (2) roles of network participants, (3) network interaction, (4) function (knowledge, consensus, and innovation) space activities, (5) network growth, and (6) network expansion. The tool employs a mixed-methods design incorporating open-ended, single-choice, and multiple-choice item formats. Application to the case suggested that the collaborative network appeared to be positioned between Level 4 (Collaborative Network) and Level 5 (Growing Network), with the university research institute as a boundary-spanning hub. This study presents the first expert-reviewed diagnostic tool designed to assess collaboration levels and identify inter-agent interaction patterns within CCE networks, offering actionable evidence for network advancement.