The PIMRS assesses how often a school principal carries out behaviours associated with instructional leadership. It rests on Hallinger’s three-dimension model, in which defining the school’s mission, managing the instructional programme and developing a positive learning climate are broken down into ten functions. The current version has 50 items, five per function, each rated on a five-point frequency scale running from ‘almost never’ to ‘almost always’.
Three parallel forms exist: a principal self-assessment, a teacher form and a supervisor form. The items are the same across forms and only the stems differ; Hallinger’s own technical report regards teacher ratings as the most valid of the three. A shorter teacher form of 23 items reports scores for the three dimensions only. Scores are usually computed as subscale means. The instrument is copyrighted, so researchers should seek permission from the developer before use. Hallinger’s 2011 review of doctoral studies gives a useful picture of how the scale has been applied.