SED ships language translator pens with many potential uses in schools |
On Board Online • September 1, 2016
By Cathy Woodruff, Senior Writer
Editor-in-Chief
The State Education Department (SED) has begun shipping hundreds of high-tech text translation devices and related documents to school districts around the state. The materials are designed to help school districts communicate with families who do not speak English.
SED expects the first 325 home language questionnaire toolkits to arrive in 250 school districts this week, said SED spokeswoman Jeanne Beattie. Later, another 325 toolkits will be shipped to another 250 districts. In all, 500 districts are slated to receive 650 free toolkits including the digital devices, which look something like small flashlights.
The handheld PenPal "pens" can read aloud the home language questionnaire, an important screening document for incoming students, in 26 languages.
The pens are made in China by Mantra Lingua, a United Kingdom-based publisher of books and other multi-lingual education materials. The special translatable version of the home language questionnaire (often abbreviated by state education officials as HLQ) and the other materials in the kits were produced and printed in the U.S.
The device has other applications. The Syracuse school district has purchased many PenPals directly from Mantra Lingua as well as related translatable documents for use in settings including
school nursing offices.
The district is training staff to use the device right now, according to Jacqueline Leroy, director of the district's programs serving English language learners. "It has a lot of potential," she said.
Several local school leaders told On Board they welcome the SED toolkits, which will arrive in some districts in the midst of the annual scramble to register new students for the school year.
"More than 290 students are identified as English language learners in the Kingston City School District," said Superintendent Paul J. Padalino. "The diversity of backgrounds of our students now includes Mandarin, Punjabi, Kachhi and many more. While we are fortunate to have some translation services available, it would be logistically and financially impossible to provide on-demand services in every language."
"This is excellent news," said Hicksville Superintendent Carl Bonuso.
"We have students who speak 33 different languages coming to register and enroll in our district, so these toolkits should be very helpful," said Marianne Litzman, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction for Hicksville. "We want to be welcoming to families and to be able to quell some of their anxieties."
Even relatively rural districts are likely to find the devices and toolkits useful, said Superintendent Peter Turner of Carthage, which frequently welcomes students from families working or stationed at nearby Fort Drum.
"This sounds like a wonderful idea," Turner said. "Spanish is the most commonly occurring language here, but we have had others. Last year, we had a Vietnamese youngster."
The home language questionnaire must be completed by all parents who are enrolling a student. The printed form helps school officials determine whether a student should be identified as an English language learner (ELL) in need of educational supports.
Having an electronic device that can provide consistent, accurate audio translations of the questionnaire should be helpful for several reasons, according to Associate Commissioner Angela Infante-Green. Fluent human translators in some languages are hard to find, particularly on short notice, she said, and it can be hard to discern which language is spoken by the family of an incoming student. In addition, written versions of a translated questionnaire aren't helpful if a parent cannot read or write in the family's home language.
At a cost of $140 per toolkit, the state's total cost for providing the kits is estimated at $91,000. School districts that wish to have more PenPals can order additional devices directly from the vendor at their own cost.
Each toolkit includes: one rechargeable 4 GB PenPal loaded with 26 audio language files; two home language questionnaire charts with audio files for 26 languages; language maps; rechargeable AAA batteries; a silicone sleeve for the device; and a USB cable for downloading future updates of the home language questionnaire and Mantra Lingua sound files. The kit also comes with guidance documents on using the questionnaire and on identification of ELLs.
Audio files and printed materials for more languages are expected to be available later.
Any district with at least two ELL students is eligible to receive one free toolkit including a PenPal. Each of New York City's 32 school districts will receive two kits. The other four members of New York's Big 5 (Yonkers, Rochester, Buffalo and Syracuse) will receive three each.
The 26 home languages included in the initial toolkit are: Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, Bengali, Russian, Arabic, Urdu, Korean, Haitian-Creole, Polish, Albanian, French, Yiddish, Karen, Nepali, Punjabi, Somali, Uzbek, Japanese, Burmese, Fulah, Vietnamese, Turkish, Portuguese, Ukrainian, and English.