Establishing Construct Validity and Reliability for the NAESP Professional Development Inventory: Simplifying Assessment Center Techniques

The Professional Development Inventory, an instrument used in assessment centers sponsored by the National Association of Elementary School Principals, has recently been revised from a two- to a one-day process to reduce the time for those being assessed and for those assessing. This article reports a preliminary study to determine the validity and reliability of the instrument using field-based data from the first 113 candidates assessed. The assessment consists of thirteen skills assessed in twelve different simulated activities that principals might face in their daily duties. When finished, the artifacts produced during the simulations are then analyzed by trained assessors, scores entered into a computer data file, and results returned to the participants for direction in professional development. Preliminary results as reported indicate user satisfaction with the simplified process, construct validity for the thirteen skills, and a high degree of validity and reliability for the instrument.