Development, Validation, and Reliability of an Instrument to Assess Teachers’ Competence in Education
Keywords:
Validity, Teacher Competencies, Reliability, Instrument Development , Factor Analysis , EducationAbstract
This study aimed to design, validate, and establish the reliability of a comprehensive and localized instrument to assess the professional competencies of school teachers. This applied research used a sequential exploratory mixed-methods design. In the qualitative phase, semi-structured interviews with 25 teacher-competence experts were analyzed using grounded theory to identify initial categories. Based on these findings, a 29-item Likert-scale questionnaire was developed and administered to 384 educational experts and practitioners selected via stratified random sampling. Qualitative data were analyzed through open, axial, and selective coding; quantitative data were examined using first- and second-order confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling with SPSS and Amos. Reliability and validity were evaluated through average variance extracted, Cronbach’s alpha, composite reliability, and inter-coder agreement (Cohen’s kappa = 0.876). The qualitative phase yielded 29 major categories and 10 core dimensions, forming the basis of the questionnaire. CFA results confirmed that all 29 items had factor loadings above 0.30 and the 10 main factors had loadings ranging from 0.92 to 1, indicating strong construct validity. Reliability indices, including Cronbach’s alpha, composite and homogeneous reliability, all exceeded 0.92, supporting excellent internal consistency. The developed instrument demonstrates high validity and reliability and comprehensively assesses teachers’ competencies across educational, technological, social, and ethical domains. It provides a robust foundation for future research, teacher professional development planning, and evidence-based educational policymaking.
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