Interview with Lynn Tracy, fourth grade teacher, Dixon Unified School District

April 5, 2006

BTF: Before answering my questions, I asked Lynn to provide some background information regarding her unusually long teaching career.

LT: I earned my teaching credential at the University of California, Davis in 1969. In 1980 I took off approximately 10 months when my son, Brett, was born. When Erin, my daughter, was born in 1983, I took an entire school year off. Except for those brief absences from teaching, I have been in the classroom since 1969, nearly 36 years. I have taught third, fourth, fifth, and sixth grade students, both in regular ed and the gifted and talented program. My first students, some of whom still visit me, are approximately 45 years old today. I have taught many children of former students and even one grandchild! I began teaching in a small Sacramento Valley town and immediately enjoyed the friendly community, supportive school district, and wonderful children. I am proud to say that I have remained in that school district throughout my entire teaching career. In 1969 the town was a small, predominantly farming community, and there was quite a large population of permanent Hispanic farm workers and a migrant population that lived at a labor camp for part of the year. The children of the migrant farm workers attended school in our district a few months in the fall and again in the spring each year. There were very few Asian members of the community, and I don't believe there were any African Americans. The population of the town has increased tremendously. Today it is much more ethnically representative of the general population of California, although the Hispanic population is still, by far, the largest minority group. Many of the town's approximately 17,000 citizens commute to jobs in the Bay Area or Sacramento, and I would say that the education level of the average citizen has increased over the years. The economic status of my students varies greatly. Most come from two income families; some receive public assistance.

BTF: Given the number of years you've remained engaged in the education of children, you've gained a unique perspective that allows you to identify trends occurring over periods of time measured in decades. Describe some of the trends you've observed including those within behavior, cognitive abilities, patience, level of respect for fellow students, ability to cooperate, and/or anything else you've noticed as having dramatically changed, or markedly stayed the same.

LT: Many things have remained the same about my students in general. Within a classroom there has always been a huge range of abilities and behavior. It remains, just as it did in 1969, a huge challenge to meet the academic, social, and emotional needs of all the students in a classroom. I would also say that children have always been fundamentally happy during the school day, and even though the profession can be exhausting, stressful, and frustrating at times, working with children brings joy to my life.

Influenced by television, advertisements, video games, and their older siblings, I feel children are growing up much faster than they did when I first started teaching. Children today seem to value material possessions much more than experiences. They constantly talk about all the electronic things they have and the new items that they want. Parents seem to feel guilty if they don't give them the things they want. Many of my fourth grade students bring their i-pods, and cell phones to school, and some of my female students have multiple ear piercings and bleached streaks in their hair.

I also find that my students are far less appreciative of the extra things that I do for them or the personal money that I spend. They seem to expect things that would have thrilled my students earlier in my teaching career. They are also less respectful of classroom and personal property. If something is broken, destroyed, or lost, they assume it will be replaced. They also expect to be entertained at all times. I'm not really surprised considering the number of hours many of them spend daily in front of the television, computer, or video game system.

A recent trend I have noticed is the tendency of my students to use offensive language both on the playground and in the classroom. I remember the first time I swore in front of my parents I was embarrassed and extremely apologetic, fearing I may have offended my parents. My students are not embarrassed when I hear them swear and almost seem to feel that they haven't said anything unacceptable. I am forced to spend valuable time dealing with children who call each other gay, and use the "F" word. Consequences don't seem to eliminate this problem.

Of course the above observations are just generalizations. There are still many appreciative, well-mannered, motivated, and thoughtful students in my classroom every year.

BTF: Discuss some of the changes to your curriculum that have been required by sources at the state or federal level. How has the increased prevalence of standardized testing changed the classroom environment? What are your personal feelings with regard to the relatively recent introduction of programs such as the 'no child left behind' act?

LT: It's the things that teachers no longer have time to teach that disturb me the most. Due to the amount of time we are required to teach language arts and math on a daily basis, we have little time to spend on subjects such as social studies, geography, music, art and science. My students spend 80 minutes a week with a science teacher, but that really isn't sufficient.

The emphasis placed on standardized testing and test scores has become oppressive. I happen to teach in a school considered high achieving because our state test scores are above a certain level. I think the staff in general feels a certain amount of pressure to continue to improve these scores as required by the state. Students will be taking these very difficult state tests in a couple of weeks, and I personally am feeling very concerned that I may not have covered everything my students should know.

I am always annoyed when I hear people whose only experience in a classroom was as a student presume to understand the challenges involved in teaching a class of 32 students. These are the same people who often write unrealistic legislation.

BTF: Describe some of the trends you've noticed regarding the diagnosis of attention deficit disorder and ADHD. Have you become aware of a change in the percentage of students who qualify for this diagnosis? What are your thoughts on possible environmental factors that could be affecting this trend? Please comment on the prevalence of students on medication for ADD and related disorders.

LT: When I began teaching there were no students in my classroom diagnosed with ADD or ADHD. For at least the past 10 years I have had one or more students diagnosed with one of these disorders. This year I have three students diagnosed and two students taking daily medication. In a previous school year I had four students on medication for ADD or ADHD.

BTF: As an employee of the state, how much freedom are you allowed to teach lessons outside the required curriculum? Have you ever felt this freedom impinged upon? Have you ever been told to teach something in a certain way? Are you aware of a set of consequences set up to discipline teachers that stray too far from the established program?

LT: I don't have enough time to teach many of the things I would like to teach, however no one has ever told me what I can or cannot teach or how I must teach. If our school's test scores drop or do not increase as required, the situation will change. Underachieving schools must teach a prescribed reading program. Every classroom receives reading instruction at the same time and daily lessons are scripted. This type of education does not allow for creativity in teaching spontaneous instruction or challenge. I am unaware of any consequences established to discipline teachers that stray too far from the established program, however with the exception of a few teachers whose inappropriate behavior lands them in the news, most teachers have the intelligence to stay away from certain subjects.

BTF: Provide some insight regarding what kind of citizens your more recent students are likely to become? How does the set of values your current students are developing look different from the values nurtured by students 10 or even 20 years ago?

LT: I still see a great many students who are being raised with good family values, and I don't expect there to be a big difference in the kind of citizens these students will become from the students of ten or twenty years ago. This year I have noticed that many of my students feel very close to extended family members, especially grandparents. On a negative note, as I mentioned earlier, I believe that my students have become more materialistic over the years.