EFFECTIVE SCHOOL LEADERSHIP CHARACTERISTICS OF DUAL LANGUAGE EDUCATION PRINCIPALS

The purpose of this mixed-methods study is to explore leadership characteristics dual language school principals possess to effectively lead a dual language program. The research seeks to identify specific leadership characteristics and qualities necessary for a principal to effectively lead a dual language school compared to the leadership characteristics required to lead a traditional/monolingual school. The researcher examined the perceptions of leadership responsibilities with dual language teachers in an urban school district in southern Washington. This research study was compared with a similar study completed with monolingual teachers in an urban school district in western Wisconsin. The researcher used an electronic survey, via Qualtrics, to gather demographic information and determine the rank order perceptions of the 21 leadership responsibilities according to dual language teachers. A total of 17 teachers participated in the research study. The highest rated leadership responsibility among the dual language teachers was Communication and the lowest rated leadership responsibility was Contingent Rewards. The researcher also implemented a collective case study design to accumulate and analyze data regarding the leadership characteristics of two dual language school principals, via semi-structured interviews. A recommendation from this study is that several of the 21 leadership responsibilities are more applicable to increasing student achievement in dual language classrooms compared to monolingual classrooms.