Interview Transcript

Mary Gutierrez

Q: Could you explain more about the philosophy of this bilingual second grade classroom?

A: We want to develop [students'] foundation in their language, because research has shown that students who have a stronger foundation have more success in learning and in education. So what we want to do is provide them with the skills that they need to make the transition into English. We have found even in the past that those students who we immerse into English immediately have a high rate of failure. Once they learn their skills in the language that they have grown up in, have started from childhood with, then they do much better if those skills are developed until they have acquired enough English to be proficient in English and to be able to do the academic tests in the English language.

Q: Talk about the transition from Spanish to English. What do you generally see?

A: We really want to get the kids to start doing academic tasks in English as quickly as possible, but we don't usually push them to do it any sooner than we feel they are ready. Usually that's about when we feel that they've acquired enough English. Many times the students themselves will start picking up English books and reading the English books. We do have them go to an English reading class for about fifteen minutes when they first start--that's for the kids that are more proficient in English, who have started reading in English. But then there are some that still are having a harder time reading in Spanish, in their native language, so they don't start until their Spanish reading is stronger. Usually we wait for them to be strong in their literacy skills and in their language before we transition them.

Q: Bilingual education is very controversial. How do you feel about it?

A: My feeling on that is that a person being able to speak in two languages is at a better advantage. Having these students be able to speak in those languages is one issue, that is one point. Having them being able to speak in two languages is a benefit to anybody, that would be a benefit to anyone to be able to speak in two languages. The other thing would be that having those students be able to succeed more because they are starting in a language that they're familiar with. They can learn those skills that the other kids are learning and be successful with those skills, which is going to help them along in school, where as if we would try to teach them in English and have them fail, that would be detrimental to them. I see it as an advantage, and I think that many times people are not aware that we are not just teaching Spanish in a bilingual classroom. We are teaching English and Spanish in a bilingual classroom and yes, we are trying to prepare them to be able to take those tests that are required of them to take in English. But the best way to do that is to do it in their primary language initially, and then to teach them in English as soon as they can get proficient and be able to perform successfully in English.

Q: How much different is this classroom from the classroom that you attended when you were a similar age.

A: Oh, it was very different. We grew up, first of all, in a rural area…. My sister was held back in first grade, and they didn't have a kindergarten, and she's a year older than I am so we both were in first grade together. I didn't understand the language very well, so what I ended up doing was sitting by her and copying a lot of her work … so that I would know, understand what was going on, so I would know what to do. Because a lot of what the teacher said I didn't understand.. That's pretty much what got me through the first year. After that I think I was so motivated to learn to read, so I used to read books, and pretty soon I was reading better than she was. But it was very difficult. I remember going through school and many times not understanding what was going on in the classroom. I'd lose the teacher. I'd try to follow what she was saying and then she'd say something that I could not understand …. And I think had she been able to translate some of the concepts that she was trying to get across and teach in my language that I would've understood much better.

Q: How did that experience affect you in terms of your academic performance?

A: I did okay in reading because I was so motivated to read, and I would pick up books. I even to taught myself to teach in Spanish, that's how motivated I was to read in Spanish, but it was just to read. Period. The other subject areas I didn't do very well in, because there were so many concepts that were being taught at the time and I was lost so much of the time. I barely made it through school. I did like school. I enjoyed being in school learning because of all the friends or peers that I had that I went to school with.

Q: You graduated?

A: No, I dropped out of school in tenth grade and then I went back and got my GED. The experience that I feel I had the most difficult time with was junior high and trying to keep up with my classmates. There are so many subject areas that you're being taught, and also part of it was just the discipline of knowing how . . . having those study skills that are so important. I wasn't taught those study skills. Along with that I think role models: I didn't have those role models that other students that are successful have. I dropped out and got married shortly afterwards and I ended up going back for my GED after I had two of my children. And then I went on to college. I started at Boise State University. I started working as a paraprofessional for the school district in 1975 and heard about the Boise State Program that they were starting, which was a bilingual program. And I was able to get into that program and started that program and was able to finish that program. It was difficult because I had two kids and I even had one on the way before I graduated. I went back and got my Masters after I completed those four years of college. That was even a struggle for me at that time. That was in 1994. I already had my youngest son, so I had four kids when I went back to get my Masters. So it was a struggle, but you know when you finish, you feel such a relief, such an accomplishment. And I feel that being able to do all of that and raise four kids, is an accomplishment for me. It makes me feel successful.

Q: So when we look at these children, is it better now?

A: You know they have so many programs now, they have mentor programs . . . there are still students, because of what I had mentioned before: the parental connections and support, role models, those type of reasons, that they may not make it that have the odds against them as well. But I think that there are programs out there that are working towards trying to make these kids successful. So they have more opportunities to be successful, but yes, I think the bilingual program is one program available to these students that provides them with the ability to use their language and feel successful in using that.

Q: Because of your experience do you look at the children differently?

A: First of all let me tell you this. I have a choice of pretty much where I want to teach. And this is where I've chosen to teach, at this school, where there are a lot of Spanish speaking students, because I feel that that's my calling. That's where I have my tools; using my Spanish is part of my teaching tools. I encourage my students; I talk to them from the beginning about what they're going to do when they grow up. We talk about college and I've told them about how important college is, and how successful they will be if they start looking at college now and keep that as part of their goal. I do that with the boys and the girls. I talk to all of them And I tell them abut how they can become a teacher, they can become a doctor, they can become any professional that they want to be, but that they have to make sure that they work hard in school to do that. I encourage them and I do talk to them about that. Even when my husband got his appointment, I used that as an example of what they can do.

Q: And it's nice to see them playing together.

A: They do and that is important in this classroom. We talk about accepting people's differences. That's actually the theme that we were covering was the immigrant topic and talking about differences. And also appreciating the diversity that we enjoy, the things that we enjoy that started from the immigrants, the European immigrants, the Asian immigrants, the African immigrants, all of those immigrants, and I think that is a positive thing about the curriculum is that it does have that subject that we can use to encourage kids. Not only that, but for them to feel proud of who they are. Many of these kids are immigrants, or their parents are immigrants. It reinforces that or it teaches them to feel good about that.

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