Language Support Services in an Educational Setting: Framing the Profession to Maximize Access, Impact, and Intended Ou

1. Language Support Services in an Educational Setting: Framing the Profession to Maximize Access, Impact, and Intended Outcomes Pre-WIABE Conference April 11, 2014 by Dominic James Ledesma Perzichilli

2. Three Frames The Profession School Districts Statewide Enterprises

3. Definition Language support is the use of any necessary tool or resource to facilitate communication where a linguistic/cultural barrier would otherwise exist (Ledesma 2010) Examples: Interpretation, Translation,

4. Why is the mitigation of cultural and linguistic barriers important? • Mandated by law • Moral imperative • Inclusive practice • Civility • Build stronger communities • The is a need

5. Individuals with Limited English Proficiency (LEP) in Wisconsin¹ • US Census Bureau 2011 American Community Survey (ACS) • Wisconsin’s total household population over the age of 5 was 5,362,567 • Out of the state household population, 177,233 identified as LEP • Individual counties with LEP populations higher than the state estimate of 3.3%: Milwaukee (6.7%); Clark (4.5%); Dane (4.5%); Walworth (4.4%); Brown (4.2%); Kenosha (4.2%); Sheboygan (3.8%) and Racine (3.6%). 3.3% ¹Taken from WI Courts Language Access Plan

6. LEP Students in WI School Districts • 2009-2010 Report on the status of bilingual-bicultural education programs in WI • 361 of 425 districts had one LEP pupil 15% 85% of the districts in the state

7. Language Access in WIat the Enterprise Level • Courts (Public) • Health Care (Public & Private) • Education (Public & Private)

8. Commitment to Language Access at the Enterprise Level WI Court System Brass Tacks Specialized training to meet a “special need” Legal mandate Sustainable certification program (Quality Standards) Publication (The road map, handbook, and tool belt) Task force oversight Coordination of resources Buy in from external stakeholder groups • Complex, precise, and technical lexicon • Compliance with Civil Rights Act of 1964 • Court Interpreter Program and policy development since 1999 • Language Access Plan • Council on Language Access (tools for certification) • Consortium for Language Access (shared resources) • State & federal alignment • Professional organizations (ATA, NAJIT, etc.) for continued education

9. Commitment to Language Access at the Enterprise Level Health Care (e.g. GHC) Brass Tacks Specialized training to meet a “special need” Legal mandate Centralized coordination of services and resources Standards development for certification Buy in from external stakeholder groups • Complex, precise, and technical lexicon • Compliance with Civil Rights Act of 1964 • LEP Coordinator (on-site) • National Council on Interpreting in Health Care (NCIHC) • Local, state, and national professional organizations (ATA,UMTIA, etc.)

10. Commitment to Language Access at the Enterprise Level Public Education Brass Tacks Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Sometimes? It depends. • Complex, precise, and technical lexicon? • Accountable to comply with Civil Rights Act of 1964? • Need to develop standards beyond the local level? • Need for ongoing professional development? • Need for a task force to address issues of language access? • Do professional organizations recognize education as an area of specialization? • Centralized coordination of resources and services?

11. Ownership of Language Support Services by Agency Court Interpreting = WI Court System Health Care (public) = Department of Health Services Health Care (private) = In-house coordination by providers Education (public) = ? ? ? ?

12. The Profession Complex and Unique role of LSS in Educational Setting

13. The Public’s Perspective (Oral) Translator Interpreter (Written)

14. Language Support in an educational setting¹ Indirect Direct Language support where a member of the staff can assist the student/parent in the target language Language support through the use of an intermediary resource or tool Taken from: Ledesma Perzichilli, D.J. (2011). Language Support Services in the Public Schools: A Framework for Including the Underserved Parents of Public Education. Concientización, 6(1&2), 12-22

15. LSS in an Educational Setting¹ Taken from: Ledesma Perzichilli, D.J. (2011). Language Support Services in the Public Schools: A Framework for Including the Underserved Parents of Public Education. Concientización, 6(1&2), 12-22

17. If the LSS profession had a motto, what would it be?

18. Context dictates everything.

19. Roles of the LSS Professional in Public Education • Interpretation (Oral Linguistic Transference) • Translation (Written Linguistic Transference) • Cultural Brokering • Family/Community Liaison • Advocacy

20. Where and how does language support need to happen? Parent-TeacherConferences Family inclusion strategies Handbook District meetings Health forms Behavioral intervention strategies School policies Curriculum Permission slips Code of conduct School Emergency Plans School letters to parents IEP documents

21. School Districts A Supportive Framework

22. School Districts • Adopt LSS Policy • Set standards of quality (certification, code of ethics, etc.) • Standardize the integration and administration of LSS practices • Task force oversight for issues related to language access (e.g. localization, technical terms, tools, best practices, etc.) • Platform for ongoing development of technical skills • Promote the establishment and coordination of stakeholder groups

23. “Rethinking the Hierarchy”

25. Final Thoughts • Education matches the other two enterprises in size, scope, and mission • Compared to other two areas, LSS practitioners in education play a very unique and complex role • LSS is an integral service that is critical to the educational process • Standardize and streamline practices that promote high quality communications and interactions • Continue to build out the administrative framework that supports LSS at every level (school, district, state, and federal)

26. Join us in June at the WISACALD Institute!

27. Thank You! djledesma@uwalumni.com