Interpreting in international sign: decisions of Deaf and non-Deaf interpreters. (original) (raw)
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Interpreting international sign: mapping the interpreter’s profile
The Interpreter and Translator Trainer
This is the first study mapping the profile of International Sign (IS) conference interpreters worldwide. Rather than a language, IS is a set of variable communicative practices used by deaf persons in international settings. In addition, international institutions and organisations increasingly offer IS interpreting services in order to provide accessibility. As IS is created through contact by deaf persons with various sign languages, IS is continuously changing and evolving. Because IS is not conventionalised, it requires highly specialised skills of the interpreter. At present there are only ad hoc training opportunities for IS conference interpreters and a new accreditation system has recently been put in place. This study presents questionnaire data from current IS interpreting practitioners, which provides insight into their present demographics and qualifications and which, in turn, can be used to inform educators on how to train future IS conference interpreters.
In this paper, we report interview data from 14 Deaf leaders across seven countries (Australia, Belgium, Ireland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States) regarding their perspectives on signed language interpreters. Using a semi-structured survey questionnaire, seven interpreting researchers interviewed two Deaf leaders each in their home countries. Following transcription of the data, the researchers conducted a thematic analysis of the comments. Four shared themes emerged in the data: (a) variable level of confidence in interpreting direction, (b) criteria for selecting interpreters, (c) judging the competence of interpreters, and (d) strategies for working with interpreters. The results suggest that Deaf leaders share similar, but not identical, perspectives about working with interpreters, despite differing conditions in their respective countries. Compared to prior studies of Deaf leaders' perspectives of interpreters, these data indicate some positive trends in Deaf leaders' experience with interpreters; however, results also point to a need for further work in creating an atmosphere of trust, enhancing interpreters' language fluency, and developing mutual collaboration between Deaf leaders and signed language interpreters.
American Sign Language Interpreting for Deaf Individuals with Disabilities
2019
There are complexities involved in American Sign Language (ASL) interpreting for the unique population of Deaf individuals with disabilities (DWD), particularly in educational settings, that must be considered. Based on the foundation of existing literature regarding the field of ASL interpreting, educational interpreting, and strategies of working with DWD individuals, the researcher created a theoretical conceptual framework that combined the frameworks of ASL Interpreting and Special Education. The current primary research is aimed at addressing another portion of the gap, that is, research regarding practical experiences in working with this population. This study was conducted through questionnaires sent out through email to ASL interpreters located through snowball sampling. This research seeks to understand the experiences of ASL interpreters who have worked with DWD individuals through participants responses to questions about strategies used, and unique challenges and rewar...
Deaf Community’s Expectations On The Roles Of Sign Language Interpreters
The European Proceedings of Social and Behavioural Sciences, 2019
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 Unported License, permitting all non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Techniques Deployed by Spoken and Sign Language Public Service Interpreters: A Comparative Study
Półrocznik Językoznawczy Tertium
Deaf people are among those who, due to their insufficient knowledge of Polish, are compelled to use interpreting services in all settings. In order to exercise their right to full access to information within both public and private services, they need highly skilled sign language interpreters. These, however, have relatively limited opportunities of professional development and no possibility to pursue higher education in the area of sign language interpreting. In our paper a pioneer project, consisting in providing training opportunities for Polish Sign Language (PJM) interpreters on the use of strategies and techniques in public service interpreting, is presented. The study is based on a mixed-method approach combining a qualitative and quantitative analysis. In particular, the results of observations of the use of techniques in public service interpreting made during two, 3-hour each, training workshops organized for PJM interpreters are discussed, followed by the presentation of the results of a survey concerning the use of interpreting techniques carried out among the participants of the above two workshops. The results of both the observations and the survey have inspired many questions concerning an ethical aspect of both spoken and sign language interpreting techniques. Furthermore, a necessity to implement a project relating to further training and research, of which the discussed pilot project is a promising point of departure, has been confirmed.
Deaf nondeaf interpreter teams and the complexity of professional practice
This chapter draws on data from open-ended interviews with 4 Canadian Deaf interpreters (DIs) and 4 Canadian non-deaf interpreters (nDIs) examining their experiences providing interpreting services for Deaf people across a range of community based settings. Four major themes emerged from the informants' interviews: (i) The strategies required of DI/nDI teams when working with recent deaf immigrants are unique; (ii) Describing DI work is often confusing to both Deaf and non-deaf consumers; (iii) The types of communication strategies used in some settings may fall outside the perceptions of ethical tenets of interpreting; (iv) The specialized work may be better served by referring to the DI's work as " language specialist " in some contexts. These findings are contrasted with existing literature that frames interpreting in general and specifically with DI, raising questions about some of the current approaches used to educate DI and the dominant philosophical curriculum assumptions (Boudreault, 2005; Forestal, 2014). We ask if the current approaches to training DI is predominantly skewed to working with Deaf consumers who use American Sign Language (ASL). We consider how DI learn to work with consumers who are recent immigrants, who are not fluent in ASL, who may not possess another signed language, and who may never have had access to education in a formal sense. The findings challenge the nomenclature that is used to describe the work in appointments where there are language and cultural complexities that are unique. These results are discussed in relation to norms and practices that are embedded in our field's current DI training. Finally, recommendations are offered for further advanced research and evolving professional practices within the field of Deaf interpreting.
World Association of Sign Language Interpreters
This paper presents data collected on North American certified and non-certified, Deaf and non-deaf sign language interpreters relative to the provision of interpreting services in legal settings. The study examined strategies and approaches that interpreters incorporate into their work in legal settings, including working in teams consisting of Deaf and non-deaf interpreters, use of consecutive interpreting, preparation for interpreting in legal settings, and maintaining appropriate roles in the courtroom. Findings suggest that there are practices that support access to the judicial system, while there are others that create challenges for interpreters and consumers alike. A systemic training sequence that addresses many of the deficits in both knowledge and skill currently found in the field is necessary.
Signposting: Neutral Channel Communications in Deaf-Hearing Interpreting Teams
Although Deaf interpreters have been working in a lay capacity for centuries and professionally for decades, their work often remains misunderstood, marginalized and underutilized. Analyzing the work of Deaf interpreters becomes problematic when the source language they are using—that provided by a Hearing interpreter—is inconsistent. There is a dearth of team training opportunities for Hearing interpreters working alongside Deaf interpreters, and this severely limits the co-creation of effective translations for a range of clients in diverse settings. This study examines communication concurrent to active interpretation within Deaf-Hearing teams and reveals a critical component in generating successfully interpreted interactions, now known as “signposting”. I seek herein to refine our understanding of signposting and to reveal the wider range of neutral channel communications occurring within the Deaf and Hearing team.