NAETISL - Access & Inclusion Newsletter

NAETISL

National Association of Educational Translators and Interpreters of Spoken Languages

Access & Inclusion Newsletter

Introduction to Translation: Special Education and Other School Documents

Join us for the fourth session of our Learning Through Practice Series! Jeannette Houchens, CMI-Spanish, CI has over 20 years of experience in the Language Service Industry and has worked as a Spanish/English translator and interpreter for different fields, including Social Services, Health Care, Mental Health, Court and Education.

After learning with Ms. Houchens, we will practice translating, formatting and editing short documents in small groups. A special surprise, courtesy of our NAETISL members, awaits those who attend! 40% off for NAETISL Members!

NAETISL celebrates the Translation Center of the University of Massachusetts Amherst

From Professor Regina Galasso: In celebration of International Translation Day, September 30, 2021, the Translation Center of the University of Massachusetts Amherst asked select school districts, "what do you want your school community to know about translators and interpreters, or their work in Massachusetts schools?" We are pleased to share the responses we received in the "Celebrate" poster. We thank everyone for their participation and especially the translators and interpreters who make a difference every single day!

Please share this poster with your school community as you wish. If you'd like a printed color copy, please write to the attention of Professor Regina Galasso at desetranslates@umass.edu

NAETISL Members Hard at Work

Our Emergent Bilingual Family Advisory Board has been busy! After creating a fact sheet with the skills that families should expect from interpreters and translators in education (in 13 languages), they are now adding video components. Subscribe to our YouTube Channel and watch the Spanish version with more languages to come. We thank all of the NAETISL members who are creating tools to empower families to self-advocate.

Our new committee, Beyond Spanish, is growing! We are exploring the development of useful resources, glossaries, facts sheets, videos and other interpretation/translation tools for those who speak languages other than Spanish. We are proud of the NAETISL members who have helped this committee grow with the goal of including the voices and representation of all interpreters and translators who work in education. For more information, please email naetislbeyondspanish@gmail.com

Not a NAETISL Member yet? Ready to Make a Difference?

Join us as we continue to make history and establish high standards of ethical practice and professional integrity of educational translators and interpreters of spoken languages in early childhood and K-12 education. Participate in the solution and become part of an active network of professionals who are taking concrete steps to develop and disseminate the academic and professional credentials required to attain and maintain a national certification in the field. Click here for our membership options .

Cultural Humility: Beyond Cultural Competence

By Diana Sanchez-Vega

As an interpreter, I have always been fascinated with the concept of culture. My sense has been that it is a construct that holds some mystique: many know what it is, but few are brave enough to spontaneously, and accurately, define it.

A New Curriculum on Acceptance and Diversity

By Taylor Svete

Three years ago, Acacia WoodsChan had high school students in her ethnic studies class create a video dictionary with vocabulary in Arabic, Spanish, and Mam, a Mayan tongue from Guatemala.

A Poetic Perspective on Interpretation

By Gloria Herrera, Bilingual Parent Liaison

A poetic description of the journey of teachers and interpreters as they collaborate to engage with multicultural families.

A special THANK YOU to our Editor-in-Chief, Pablo Saínz-Ferretti for sharing his editing expertise and insight with NAETISL!

Pablo is a Translator and Interpreter with San Ysidro School District, San Diego, CA.

Thank You to Our Authors!

We thank all the contributing writers who have shared their experiences as teachers collaborating with interpreters, as families requesting an interpreter, as translators navigating the complex terminology in education, and as interpreters in early childhood and K-12 settings.

Let us hear your voice! Click here for our article submission guidelines.

Voices From the Field

We have enjoyed facilitating listening sessions and focus groups with emergent bilingual families, interpreters, translators and school representatives. In this section we highlight their voices, their insight, and their hopes as they collaborate to establish cultural and linguistic bridges.

Oscar Diaz,

Assistant Principal, AR:

“Language justice and language access must be a priority in schools if we want family engagement to increase. That's the bottom line."

Yung Kim

Emergent Bilingual Parent, TN:

“Parent advocacy goes a long way. In many ways, we are not just advocating for our children, but also for ourselves."

Linh Nguyen

Video Remote Interpreter, NY:

“I see the advantages of working as a freelancer. It must be hard to wear so many hats when you work as an interpreter, translator and engagement facilitator in a school"