Communication Tools with Non-primary English Speakers
Communicating across cultural and language barriers can be one of the most challenging aspects of working with newcomers. We recommend the following best practices and tools to navigate communication with non-primary English speakers.
Best Practices:
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Speak clearly and simply- avoid complex tenses, jargon, acronyms, and abbreviations.
Speak a bit slower, but at normal volume.
Repeat as necessary, rephrase when things don’t seem understood, and confirm understanding
Be patient- remember that folks still learning English are translating what you are saying in their head, formulating a response in their own language, and then translating it back to English.
Use direct, clear language- Many English speakers are indirect or use phrases that might be confusing to new learners. Phrases like “See you later” can generically mean goodbye, but can be understood as a expecting to meet someone later.
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Be comfortable with silence or long pauses.
Express empathy with your face and body language- note many cultures do not cross gender lines when shaking hands, a simple hand over heart can act as greeting.
Use gestures, drawings, realia to make a point.
Make eye contact when appropriate.
In mixed gender settings, be aware of proximity, eye contact, and body language.
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Use simple phrases and avoid complex tenses.
Remember that many clients may not have familiarity with the Latin alphabet or any alphabet. When messaging, consider sending a voice note alongside written text to increase comprehension. Also consider that if a client is writing something on a volunteer’s phone to communicate, they might not know how to use a phone keyboard in Latin alphabet.
When clients respond in writing and you may not understand or words are misspelled, try reading it out loud to see if it audibly makes more sense than written.
Digital Tools for Communicating with Clients:
While we encourage the use of English as much as possible with clients to support learning, digital tools can be helpful to establish understanding and avoid confusion. In more urgent or important situations where things are not understood, please reach out to the ReR team for support.
We strongly encourage volunteers to download WhatsApp in order to communicate with clients and ReR staff.
WhatsApp is a free cross-platform communication app that allows users to send text, voice messages, and video messages, and share images, documents, user locations, and other content. It operates using internet signal/data allowing communication without a wireless plan (though a phone number is necessary to download the app). Many clients and people around the world use WhatsApp as their primary communication channel avoiding phone plan charges for international texting/calling.
WhatsApp Tutorial for Apple (IOS) and Android Users
Through Google Translate, you can translate documents, texts, and websites from one language to another. Google now also has many languages where you can do speech to translated text for those who are not as familiar with alphabets. Note for working with Afghan clients- Dari and Farsi (sometimes called Persian) are very similar dialects of the same language, with Dari including more Afghan phrasing and Farsi more Persian/Iranian phrasing. Pashto is a different language.
Tarjimly is a web-based and translation app that was founded specifically to support refugees and immigrants. This platform can perform basic translation services similar to Google Translate, but it also offers live interpretation or translation of longer documents with volunteer interpreters. For the free version, wait times can be quite significant, so plan ahead if you are intending to use live interpretation. We encourage volunteers to only use the live interpretation in necessary situations and try to use English and other web-based platforms when possible.
The popular AI platform has high level translation capabilities and can provide some other points of context. As with all AI platforms, it is best to cross-check significant points of information with other sources. The free version offers a limited number of daily inquiries.
Talking Points can make communicating with individuals with limited English proficiency much easier. You can send messages through the website or download the app!
You will need to select your role when signing up, and as a volunteer tutor, you can choose either “Coordinator- Parent Engagement/Family Liaison” or “Other- Tutor.”