Nearly one in ten children living in the U.S. has a parent who speaks English less than “very well.” Among Asian and Latiné children, the proportion is closer to four in ten. Within the world of child health research, language remains a significant barrier to equitable research recruitment and inclusion. However, education for pediatric, child psychology, nursing or maternal-child health research trainees does not routinely include education on working across language differences. This is despite the fact that many young researchers are themselves bilingual or bilingual-bicultural.
To address this training gap, our team at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and Penn State University’s Applied Linguistics program developed the Short Course on Multilingual Approaches to Research Studies (MARS). The goal of MARS—which aligns with PolicyLab’s focus on health equity and improving practices to support inclusivity—is to strengthen the health research workforce by equipping investigators, including those who are bilingual or bicultural, with skills and knowledge to design and manage protocols that are inclusive of children and families who speak languages other than English. Earlier this summer, PolicyLab faculty and other CHOP team members hosted an incredible, innovative group of health researchers from across the country for our second annual Short Course on MARS. (author introduction)