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need to improve educational opportunities for these students.
English proficiency is the NCLB goal for these students. Thus, the NCLB Act requires
that teachers in language instruction education programs must be certified as English language
proficient, have an effective curricula, and establish annual achievement objections (U.S.
Department of Education 2002). With NCLB mandates and additional funding, the penalties of
NCLB spur principals and administrators to provide the best learning opportunities for students.
Research Methodology
The research reported here stems from data collected by interviews with 6 elementary and
middle school principals or assistant principals conducted between July and September, 2004.
The interviews conducted were part of a pilot study to examine administrative leadership in
raising student achievement. The pilot study tested the interview instrument and the
appropriateness of the study. The principals were chosen as a sample of convenience. They were
all either enrolled or recently graduated from the Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership at
Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, Texas. All were working at schools in the area
surrounding the Huntsville location. These principals were given alphabetical designations in the
order they were interviewed because their school district administration required anonymity for
their district and employees. Thus, they are designated as “A” through “F”. Principal “E” led a
school with no non-English speaking students; thus, the report of her interview is not included.
The schools led by the five principals fit an interesting model that developed by chance.
They each had from 10 to 98 percent bilingual students. Four of the five schools were classified
as Title I schools, where 50 percent or more of the population were classified as disadvantaged.
Convention