Interpreter shortage getting worse

When the Facilities Closure and Realignment Commission recently toured the Kansas School for the Deaf, KSD students and alumni told members about the poor quality of interpreter skills they faced while attending public schools.

Students from elementary schools, junior and senior highs and KSD alumni said KSD provides barrier-free communication where all staff, teachers and students can communicate freely in sign language. The result, they said, is education is good at KSD.

However, it was stunning to hear about the poor sign language skills of interpreters at some of the smaller public school districts.

One deaf student said it was hard to understand her public school teachers and other students when they do not know how to communicate in sign language. One student said she felt isolated because she could not communicate with anyone in sign language, except with her interpreter, who only understood some sign language.

One interpreter told me it is common in some small public schools to hire interpreters who learn sign language while interpreting for a deaf student.

The quality of interpreting provided to deaf students in some public schools is simply not good. Even with good interpreters, some deaf students have not done well.

It’s hard to blame smaller school districts, which typically may have only one or two deaf students. There’s also the problem of finding qualified interpreters in rural Kansas.

Because of annual state tests, school districts and parents realize it is important to have KSD as a choice for education for their deaf students. Some deaf students who transfer to KSD have lower reading, writing, and math test scores. KSD staff has done a great job to raise many of these students’ education skills.

Unfortunately, there is more bad news on the horizon. The interpreter training program at the Cowley Community College branch in Wichita closed last year. The program at Maple Woods Community College in Kansas City will close this year. Only Johnson County Community College has an interpreter training program.

The interpreter shortage, which already hurts rural Kansas, will get worse in bigger cities. Deaf education in some public schools will continue to suffer. Fortunately, KSD is still a viable option for deaf students.