As a program of the Federation for Children with Special Needs, MASFEC is connected to a wide range of healthcare and education-focused supports for diverse language speakers and those who work with them. The Federation offers helplines, workshops, support groups, and learning resources in many different languages.
A new collaboration with the National Association of Educational Translators and Interpreters of Spoken Languages (NAETISL) will broaden these efforts to include capacity-building efforts for everyone involved in providing language access in education.
Addressing Language Access Challenges in Education
In any setting, it’s vital for translators and interpreters to understand the concepts and terminology of the field in which they are working. This is why Legal and Medical interpreters must be specially licensed. A license is not required to interpret or translate in education settings, but a certification is available and encouraged by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
Aceriane Leal, FCSN’s School Navigation Manager, has recently completed this certification and is facilitating a new partnership aimed at furthering the conversation about language access in education. Leal describes many unique challenges for effective language support in education.
For example, while individual districts may develop their own glossaries of educational terminology, there is no statewide or national standard for how terms should be translated. This has the potential to create confusion—for example, if one interpreter translates the term Individualized Education Program (IEP) as “Program for Educational Individualization (PEI)” while another refers to it as a “Special Education Plan for Individuals (SEPI).” If families do not see the same exact words each time an IEP is being referenced, they will have more difficulty understanding and discussing it.
Clarity about roles is another concern. It is common for school districts to rely on family engagement specialists or other existing staff members for translation and/or interpretation. While there are enormous benefits to this approach, it is important for everyone involved to have clarity about the shifting roles that these staff members must play. When meeting 1-1 with a parent/caregiver, a staff member might be a source of referrals and support, or might assist families with building their navigation and advocacy skills. When interpreting during a formal meeting, however, they must be as neutral as possible, focusing on accurately representing what each person in the room is saying.
Providing interpretation during special education evaluations with students is particularly complex. Information must be communicated to the student in a very precise way to avoid biasing results. Word choice, tone of voice, or facial expressions can all bias the student’s responses during the evaluation process.
A Dual Capacity Approach to Interpretation and Translation
To promote effective educational interpretation and translation, the Federation and NAETISL facilitated a range of activities focused on building capacity of families and professionals around interpretation and translation in 2025.
- In March 2025, NAETISL presented on best practices for educational interpretation and translation during the Federations Visions of Community Conference. Our plan is that a full strand of training will be offered for NAETISL members at our 2026 conference.
- The Federation’s Connecting Families series in April 2025 offered strategies for families on interacting with interpretation services and ensuring a successful communication experience with the school.
- The Federation also hosted NAETISL’s fall member event and will be shared information about MASFEC and Federation resources.
In a sense, this partnership goes beyond “dual capacity” to build capacity in multiple directions. For independent professional interpreters, there is a lot of content, vocabulary, and context that must be mastered to ensure accuracy. Families must learn that it’s ok to ask questions, provide feedback, and advocate for their language-related needs. District-based language access staff must learn to clearly communicate the impartiality of their role when serving in an interpretation role. And English-speaking staff members need to learn how to build meaningful relationships with families, not solely with the interpreters who facilitate their interactions.
Unlocking the Power of Accurate Translation and Interpretation
Inaccurate, biased, or improperly supported interpretation and translation can create additional barriers to successful family engagement. But successful translation and interpretation can open doors. As Leal explains, “a successful interaction should make you forget that you and the family are speaking two different languages.”
