Changes in Texas English language learners' academic achievement scores after No Child Left Behind

• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2047/d20004820

The "No Child Left Behind Act of 2001" (NCLB) was implemented in order to help narrow or close achievement gaps among the United States of America's K-12 students. However, recent studies indicate that rather than improve academic outcomes for English language learners/low English proficient (ELL/LEP) students, testing under NCLB revealed lower outcomes. Math, Reading/ELA and Science passing rates of Texas ELL/LEP students have been perennially low. Passing rates in some schools with high proportions of ELL/LEP students persist below 40%. This study sought to capture the nature and extent of the post-NCLB changes in ELL/LEP students' passing rates using a quantitative research approach. The goal of this study was to examine Texas ELL/LEP students' test scores before and after NCLB so as to address the research questions and also to scrutinize supplemental programs for ELL/LEP students in Texas. The study results indicate that soon after NCLB, there was an initial rapid decline in passing rates of ELL/LEP students and their state peers, which was followed by recovery in both groups. In the post-NCLB period studied, ELL/LEP passing rates mostly returned to where they were before NCLB. The pattern of change for ELL/LEP students was found to correlate with those of the State although the magnitudes of change were somewhat different. The greatest improvement in passing rates was seen for ELL/LEP students enrolled in Bilingual Education Dual Two Way program, a Texas ELL/LEP supplemental program.