Student Interpreter/Translator
“Wait up, Maria!” Mr. Clark shouted as he hurried to catch up with his fifth grader and her mother who were leaving school at the end of the day. Maria Montes usually walked home with her sister, a third grader at the school, but on this particular day they were delighted to find their mother waiting outside the school for them.
Mr. Clark has been trying to reach Maria’s mother, Ms. Montes, to discuss discipline concerns he had about Maria. Several students complained to him that Maria was not including them in activities at recess. Others complained that Maria was calling them names. Maria denied the accusations, but Mr. Clark, who started paying closer attention to Maria’s interactions with her classmates, witnessed a few incidents and wanted to let her parents know what was happening.
He wrote a note home but noticed a few days later that it was still in Maria’s backpack, undelivered. Next he called her parents, but he knew they were just beginning to learn English, so he wasn’t confident they would understand the message he left for them.
Maria’s mom was receptive during their last conference, when an interpreter was present. As he jogged to catch up with her, Mr. Clark wondered how a conversation would go now, given the fact that he did not speak Spanish.
When he finally reached them, Mr. Clark shook Ms. Montes’s hand and asked her if he had a few minutes to talk. “Yes,” she replied, and Mr. Clark noticed that Maria’s expression changed, probably out of concern that the conversation was not going to go well. Mr. Clark felt that asking Maria to interpret would not be a good idea since he was not sure she would translate accurately, given the topic of conversation. He turned, instead, to Marcella, Maria’s younger sister, who had developed a reputation for being a helpful and bright student, and asked her if she could translate for him. Marcella nodded and explained to her mother why Mr. Clark had stopped them.
After several minutes of conversation, slowed a bit by the translation process, Maria, Ms. Montes, and Mr. Clark agreed on an appropriate behavior plan for Maria. Mr. Clark was pleased with the impromptu meeting and its results. “Thank you, Marcella,” he said, and told her how wonderful it was that she was so proficient with two languages and that she was willing to help him. He looked at Maria’s mom and said, “You must be very proud of her. She’s very smart!”
Marcella beamed. “I can help other teachers too,” she said, shyly. Mr. Clark smiled and said he might need her to help translating for her mother in the future.
Looking back up at Maria and Ms. Montes, Mr. Clark noticed that they appeared uncomfortable. Seeing this, he reassured them, “I’m sure next time we will have something good to report.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow, Maria,” he said with a little wave, then headed back toward the school.
Mr. Clark felt satisfied about what he was able to accomplish in the short impromptu meeting. He felt confident that Ms. Montes would follow through on their agreement for at-home support. As a bonus, he felt good ab out empowering Marcella and praising her for her help. He was happy to know she would be a resource if he did not feel he could trust Maria to translate for her mother.
It’s a win-win situation, he thought.
Questions:
- Why might Ms. Montes and Maria have grown uncomfortable with Mr. Clark’s interaction with Marcella?
- In your opinion, was it appropriate for Mr. Clark to stop Ms. Montes, Maria and Marcella on their walk home from school in order to have a conversation about Maria’s behavior? Why or why not?
- Was it appropriate for Mr. Clark to ask Marcella to be the interpreter for the conversation? Why or why not?
