As the bilingual SLP on your Special Education team, you may find peers coming to you (for bilingual assistance) more than you expected. Monolingual Occupational Therapists, Physical Therapists, Special Education teachers, Resource Teachers, Reading Specialists, Social Workers, and Psychologists still need to provide services to bilingual and Spanish-speaking students in your school. They also need to communicate with parents who may or may not speak English. How do you set professional boundaries, yet still act as a team player?
Following these steps from the beginning of the year will help you maintain a healthy schedule and set a routine before any uncomfortable situations arise.
- Find out what the district’s policy is for requesting translation and interpretation. In general, there should be an interpreter for IEP meetings and phone calls or translation for letters sent home to parents. Encourage your peers to use the procedures that are set in place by the district. I suggest that the bilingual SLP reach out to the individual(s) responsible for this service and introduce themselves. For people who are reaching out to the bilingual SLP for assistance, the SLP can say something like - "I recently met the bilingual Spanish interpreter, let me get the two of you connected via email".
- When another member of the educational team has attempted to follow the district procedure for interpretation and translation, but still needs help, be willing to help. Recognize that sometimes the procedures that are in place simply just don’t work.
- Set specific times throughout the week that you are available to make phone calls or write a letter to a parent. This ensures the work for your caseload remains a priority in your schedule, but allows flexibility on your part to remain a team player and offer your unique skills for the education of the student.
