Google Translate breaks down language barriers

FRESNO, Calif. — Life for Eduardo hasn’t always been easy. His parents brought him and his brother to the United States for a chance at a better life.

Living in Mexico wasn’t the easiest thing for them. Like many people, the family struggled financially.

“Sometimes — not always, but sometimes, we didn’t eat. My grandma would help us,” Eduardo says.

Now, with food on the table every day, Eduardo’s dad says he tries to not let their kids forget why they came to the United States.

“We expect them to grow, my sons, you know? But not just them. Us as well,” his dad says.

Eduardo has been attending school in the United States for an entire year, and his parents say they can see the growth.

“It’s been hard for them, it really has, but I’m so proud,” says Eduardo’s mom. “But I know they can both still give more.”

At first, it was hard for Eduardo to communicate with his teachers and other children, so the school provided a teacher’s assistant who helped him with class work and homework. When he learned a little bit more English, the TA no longer helped him. Instead, it was Google Translate.

His elementary school provides a tablet for him with the Google Translate app installed for him to use during class, but Eduardo says he uses it only when most necessary.

“When we do classwork, and if I can’t understand it, I’ll use it. But, I can’t use it on tests,” Eduardo says.

Thanks to technology, he can now keep up with his classmates and is moving on to 6th grade.

To keep his mind off of how much he was struggling, Eduardo joined the cross country team and has even won first place at several meets. He says he uses sports as a motivation to try hard in class and keep his grades up.

Being a very active boy, it was hard for him to watch other kids playing while he had to stay in doing home work. With Google Translate, he was able to learn English a lot quicker, so what once took him five hours, now takes him one to two hours.

For the many more kids who will struggle just like Eduardo has, he has this to say: “You don’t speak English, it’s hard for you, but it hasn’t only happened to you. It’s happened to kids who have passed before this time… don’t stop fighting.”