The dramatic growth in the number of immigrants in the United States has been paralleled by an ever-increasing demand for interpreters in the courts. The fifth, sixth and fourteenth amendments of the Constitution support the provision of due process and equal protection under the law for all residents. Legal interpreters are therefore needed to provide equal access to justice for linguistic minorities. However, it takes more than bilingualism to make a legal interpreter. The legal interpreter must also be able to manipulate dialect and geographic variation in his/her working languages, possess wide general knowledge, understand both the legal process and the related terminology, and also understand the various discourse styles used in the courtroom. But, despite the stringent requirements needed to perform legal interpreting, academic institutions have been slow to develop suitable programmes. While a few ongoing but limited legal interpreting programmes exist at the undergraduate level, the only comprehensive and graduate programmes are the Master of Arts in Bilingual Legal Interpreting and the Graduate Certificate in Bilingual Legal Interpreting at the University of Charleston, South Carolina.
IN AN ATTEMPT T O PROVIDE AN INSTRUCTIONALalternative to the traditional classroom, the College of Charleston has embarked upon an individualized language program in Spanish with only a moderate budget and limited staffing. Located in Charleston, South Carolina, the College of Charleston is a state-supported institution of 5,000 students, with a large local enrollment. The institution still retains a twoyear language requirement for all students. Approximately eighty-five percent of the Spanish classes meet three hours per week in the traditional self-contained classroom.Descriptions of individualized programs and their underlying theoretical framework have appeared in numerous books and articles during the past decade. The Individualized Learning Program (ILP) in Spanish at the College of Charleston has incorporated many of the elements of program design which have been discussed in the professional literature: mastery-based learning, variable pacing, flexible scheduling, learning activity packets, small group conversation sessions, and peer tutoring.' SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONSThe implementation of the I L P required attention to three major areas. Funding. While extensive funding was not necessary for developing the ILP, some money was needed to cover the initial cost of equipping the center with tape recorders, Caramates, tapes, and other supplies. Furthermore, the two pmgram directors received a stipend for one summer in order to develop the curricular materials which were based on the textbook used in all Spanish classes.2 The cost of maintaining the program in subsequent years has been com--Modern L a n , p q e Jvurnal, 66 (Summer 1981): 150-54 parable to that of the traditional program in that the student-teacher ratios have been approximately the same.Facilities. Elaborate facilities were not required. The ILP was assigned one large classroom on a permanent basis. This room has been divided into small activity centers for conversation sessions, taped activities, testing, and independent study. The only additional facility used was the language laboratory.Staffing. Obtaining qualified personnel was undoubtedly the crucial factor in determining the success of the I L P .~ At universities with graduate programs, teaching assistants are a ready source of staffing. In undergraduate institutions such as the College of Charleston, other staffing alternatives must be found. The two program directors were each given a onecoune reduction of the standard four-course (twelve hours per week) teaching load in order to supervise the ILP; they have divided the responsibilities for daily administration and have worked closely as an academic team. Spanish majors, native speakers, and other qualified upperclassmen were effectively employed as aides. These students have worked in a tutorial capacity and have provided clerical assistance as well. Work-study monies have usually financed such additional staffing; since student assistants have been used in the traditional Spanish program, their involvement with the ILP has not crea...
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