CEC members press translation unit over use of simplified vs. traditional Chinese characters

At a New York City District 25 Community Education Council meeting, members raised concerns about the district translation unit’s continued use of “traditional” Chinese characters in communications and asked staff to gather data on family preferences.

Why it matters: District 25 has a large Chinese‑language population; forms and outreach that do not match family-language preferences can limit family engagement and obscure important school messages.

A council member said translation staff “don’t wanna change” and noted the district’s blue card (family contact form) does not ask whether families prefer simplified or traditional characters. She said school practice varies; at her building the assistant principal reported that the school uses traditional characters, while other schools distribute simplified translations. Another member suggested a brief family survey or a single short translated prompt on the blue card to capture preferences; district staff said they can investigate and sample school rosters to quantify need before the translation unit alters documents.

Staff and council members also discussed literacy and access: some families rely on device translation or friends to read notices, while others are not literate in any written form and need oral outreach. One staff member suggested collecting usage counts across the district and presenting that data to the translation unit to justify changes.

Ending: Staff agreed to explore options for a short survey and to work with a language‑access coordinator to present data about simplified vs. traditional character needs to the translation unit.