I may be wrong, but the way I see it is that you can only delay and deflect for so long.  At some point it will all come bubbling up. Since the COVID-19 pandemic really hit home here in Canada, interpreters have seen unprecedented numbers of cancelled, postponed or rescheduled appointments. Interpreters, along with many others, have had their livelihoods snatched from under their feet. But when life gets back to some form of normal, not only will many of these previous appointments re-emerge with clients and public services in need of interpreters, but the need will inevitably be greater than before.

More cases, more need, and more demand.

Interpreters will become even more essential to the fabric of Canadian society.

When we start to come out of our homes and cautiously resume our activities, those areas that were most critical – justice, health care, mental health, and education – will be the first to resume. And there will be more on the horizon.

While the news coverage these days seems to be almost entirely about COVID-19, and understandably so, life continues in the background. Many people will continue to struggle in areas including health, finances, substance abuse, violence, and legal issues; many of these are probably intensifying due to the disruptions that COVID-19 has brought to our lives, as we have had to socially distance ourselves from one another and adapt to new isolated lifestyles.

Although the demand for interpreting services may currently be low, once the pandemic restrictions are lifted, demand will return, and in all likelihood, be even greater than before.

I applaud the provincial and federal governments’ efforts to provide interpreting services for the ASL community. It is important that community members not only get the information they need, but that they also feel the same sense of community support and connection that those of us who speak English or French do.

In Saskatchewan, ASL services were provided only once the community sent in email requests for them to do so (‘I felt so included’: Sask. interpreter communicating COVID-19 information to deaf community, CBC News)

“I feel so included” 

Patricia Spicer, Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services, Saskatchewan

Indeed, a sense of inclusion is especially critical in times of crisis. However, the very real need for information is also important – it is crucial for us in fighting and recovering from the pandemic. Lack of accurate information, or lack of access to that information, can lead to other complications and concerns:

“For me to get the information in my own language, it was a huge relief. I knew that I had to stay home. I knew I should wash my hands regularly.

I knew what to do. Without that I would still be worrying.” (CBC news)

Canada is home to people that speak  65 indigenous languages and dialects, and nearly 200 non-official languages. And we know that there is a struggle to get critical information to those populations that are excluded by language barriers.

To address this, the City of Calgary has set up an amazing Multilingual Resources Page that I highly encourage everyone to visit and to share among community members.

Sometimes simply finding the information for those that do not speak English or French, or face other communication access difficulties, is often challenging.

The resources that some of us take for granted, or assume as obligatory and common – internet, WIFI, phones, laptops, etc. – are not universally available. Moreover, going to see your doctor, or even to a walk-in clinic is a changing reality for many across Canada, with many clinics moving to ‘virtual-care’ services. Virtual services play an important role in supporting social distancing; however, they can exclude clients if adequate language access has not been provided.

Many organizations are now feeling this gap in services – a gap which was a pre-existing problem now highlighted by the pandemic.

Newcomers to Canada may not have the same reserves as those who have been here for some time. Health and other concerns can only be ignored so long. For some individuals and their families, staying in place can be a dangerous and unhealthy proposition.

Given the precarious subsistence of some families and individuals, stress can exacerbate an already difficult reality. Courts across the country have been put on hold, and prisons across the country are seeing increasing cases of COVID-19.  Even the IRB has suspended all in-person hearings.

The extensive list of services and businesses experiencing temporary closures and reduced activity has affected a  range of sectors: settlement services, education, justice, health, mental health, businesses, child-care, employment, financial services, and transportation have all been touched.

In my assessment, one of the many lessons that this pandemic world is teaching us is the importance of human outreach and connection, especially when we have been deprived of them.

It has been said that interpreters are the glue that hold a multilingual society together.

For once society emerges from this shared yet isolating experience, and people move through the bottlenecks and backlogs, interpreters’ services will be even more vital and in greater demand.

Some good things to do to turn downtime into SMART time:

• Assess your skills and identify areas for improvement
   
  • The Interpreter’s Lab Self-Assessment Checklist
  • Interpreter Aptitude Assessment
  • Understanding Deliberate Practice:  A Deliberate Practice Approach to Skill Development
  • Listen to Anders Ericsson speak on Deliberate Practice (Podcast)

Volunteer your language skills

• • Translators without Borders
  • Check with your local community centre or neighbourhood house

• Take online courses and workshops
  • visit The Interpreter’s Lab COVID-19 Resource Page for a list of online courses
  • See what The Interpreter’s Lab has to offer for online courses

• Read – books for learning and for pleasure.
  • Check out and follow the #1ntbookreferrals on Instagram for recommendations from other interpreters – (Thank you to Mike Lemay/@miketheinterpreter for tip)

“Skate to where the puck is going, not where it has been.” – Wayne Gretsky

Simultaneous Interpreting workshop and professional development for interpreters that work primarily in consecutive mode.

The line between consecutive and simultaneous modes of interpreting are regularly being blurred. Though community interpreting has traditionally been taught and perceived as being primarily or exclusively consecutive interpreting, the reality is that community-based interpreters frequently find themselves in situations that call for simultaneous mode. [i]

Much anecdotal evidence exists where interpreters are given an assignment and, without warning or notice, will be asked to interpret in simultaneous mode. Perhaps, during a class or presentation, an interpreter is requested to sit with the client among a group of English speaking clients and whisper the translation of what is being said (also known as chuchotage) or, also common, they are expected to instantly switch from consecutive to simultaneous mode, mid-stream, or, as I’ve heard, interpreters are sometimes even expected to interpret along to a video being shown, in real time, like a human ‘sub-titler’.

When an interpreter finds themselves in such a situation, they might attempt simultaneous, and they might do well enough, but without the knowledge, proper training and practice, is one really achieving competency? Is the rendition accurate and faithful to the message?

Consecutive and simultaneous interpreting modes draw differently from the interpreter’s set of skills and abilities.

While consecutive interpreting relies heavily on an excellent working memory (aided by note taking), the simultaneous mode instead, demands a more urgent conversion of meaning. Both skill sets require education and practice. And both skills sets should be developed, and enhanced, by interpreters working in all settings.

Given today’s global crisis with COVID-19, but also more broadly the global shift to more frequent utilization of remote interpreting, many interpreters may be considering expanding their skills and incorporating simultaneous as something that they can offer. Or maybe it’s not even about expanding work opportunities, but simply improving competencies for the current situation.

Complementing your toolkit of services is always a good idea, and, as many of our students know, something that we, at The Interpreter’s Lab, always encourage.

Sometimes fear gets in the way of our professional growth.

We think we are not good enough or capable of doing something that we have watched experts master.

But we all have to start somewhere and exiting our comfort zones is where real growth happens.

As Wayne Gretsky once said, “skate to where the puck is going, not where it has been.”

Simultaneous interpreting is not simply confined to the booth any longer (and really, was it ever?) and, as a fellow interpreter comments, “the conventional image of court or conference interpreter doing only simultaneous, while community interpreters work exclusively in consecutive mode is like a false dichotomy — they’re not as neatly disparate as that.”

Acquiring the knowledge and skills to perform in simultaneous mode as effectively as in consecutive mode gives interpreters more than the obvious additional abilities and greater competency, it also boosts confidence – regardless of the setting.

And so, we invite you to:

START YOUR JOURNEY TO SIMULTANEOUS INTERPRETING

Join us on April 16th and April 23rd for a unique workshop:

Simultaneous Interpreting: Out of the Booth and in the Community.

This unique professional development workshop is designed with interpreters that work primarily in consecutive mode in mind.

Below is a short blog written by our Program Coordinator – Annike Andre-Barrett – on her reflections of working in simultaneous mode from the perspective of an interpreter working primarily in consecutive.

On Simultaneous Interpreting from the Perspective of Consecutive Practice

“Consecutive interpreting is like playing catch and simultaneous interpreting is like juggling.”  – Annike Andre-Barrett

In sports broadcasting, a sports commentator gives us play-by-play commentary of a game in real-time.

In other words, they narrate the game. In the case of radio commentary, the listeners cannot see what is going on, and the commentators try to convey the action on the field in words as quickly as it happens. Both the game and the commentary are being broadcast live. The commentator cannot pause the game in order to take note of the moves and then summarize them to the listeners, nor will the players stop to allow the commentators to catch up. The commentators must therefore keep up with each significant detail and ensure their listeners have all the key information to be able to visualize and follow the game.

I’m not really a sports spectator myself, but I thought of this as a fitting analogy for interpreting, specifically the art of simultaneous interpreting. Radio commentary makes more sense in this comparison, because visual language is a communication system in itself – not being able to see the game is like not having access to a particular language. As such, the commentator is like an interpreter, converting visual into spoken language.  And the play-by-play nature of the commentator’s coverage can be thought of as simultaneous interpreting.

When it comes to my own lived experiences as an interpreter, I may be biased, but I find simultaneous interpreting to be even more exciting and engaging than watching one’s favourite sport. It doesn’t matter what the subject matter is, the urgency of the challenge to deliver the message AND keep up is highly stimulating.  In simultaneous mode, the brain is trying to dynamically distribute the cognitive efforts or functions of listening, analysis, short-term memory and target speech production (source: Inside the Brain of a Simultaneous Interpreter, Literally). To me, it feels like mental gymnastics.  Or better yet, if consecutive interpreting is like playing catch, then simultaneous interpreting is like juggling.

Watch A Formula for Success in Simultaneous Interpreting – Professor Chikako Tsuruta – Tokyo University of Foreign Studies

[i] Sometimes this happens because those that work with interpreters (professionals and others) lack an understanding of the interpreter’s work and role.

There’s an old adage that goes “to be ahead of the curve” which means “to be one of the first to change to a new idea or way of doing something that later becomes generally popular.”[1] These days we are using a different type of curve analogy: “flattening the curve” is an expression about society coming together to slow down the spread of this current coronavirus – COVID-19. Both are good things: to be forward looking and to be in solidarity.

When we started moving our Interpreter Education programs online in 2017, we encountered some reluctance from prospective students about taking an online course. Comments like “I don’t have a fancy computer,” or “I’ve never taken an online course before” or even “I don’t think I am good enough with technology to do it” were very common. But we encouraged our clients and showed them not only how easy it truly is, but how much better it can be. Our courses are what is called Blended Learning, because we blend live, teacher-led instruction with self-directed content (you can find out more here – Frequently Asked Questions) and this enhances the whole learning experience.

With online courses, as opposed to classroom-based programs where students attend in-class lessons, students are given a student manual or handouts, and then left to their own devices.  We connect you to external resources – like speech depositories, online tools and videos – and to experts from other parts of the world (something which was not possible in the older model of programs). Not only that, students can keep coming back to their secure student portal to revisit the lessons, as well as the RECORDINGS of each lesson, whether or not the student missed the lesson. This access is open for a period of 3 months from the time the course begins. The learning continues at the student’s own pace, (something which is not typical of the on-site, classroom based courses)

“I always thought old school concept was better, but I never knew online class is going to be the best.”
TIL student – 2020

After 2 years and over 200 students later, we can definitely say that moving online was the best decision we made, and given the current situation, we were definitely ahead of the curve. But who could foresee such a tragic and historic event? We simply wanted to make programs and courses more easily accessible for our students and now we find that online is how the world is connecting – it’s the new normal.

At a recent open Forum we hosted, “What COVID – 19 is Teaching Us: An Open Forum on the Effects and Impacts of Crisis on Interpreters” — we wanted to focus on the current situation as not only a time of great stress and anxiety, but also as an opportunity for learning, preparing and looking toward the future. The exchange of questions, ideas and feedback that emerged from the discussion inspired us to create a COVID-19 RESOURCE PAGE for interpreters — we will be periodically updating this page and welcome any resources you’d like to share with us so that we can share with others.

Planning, learning something new, and preparing for the future are all ways to overcome the disquiet and uneasy feelings caused by these uncertain times. And although we still have some challenging times ahead, we also have seen some progress for which we can be thankful – both near and far. Now is a good time to prepare for the future – now that we have been given this gift of downtime and reflection. We want to encourage all of our readers and clients to consider taking an online course or program to keep yourself engaged in learning and in community. While we would love for you to take one of our courses – or maybe even re-take one as a refresher[2], we don’t mean you should take our courses exclusively. On The Interpreter’s Lab COVID-19 RESOURCE PAGE we have listed a number of FREE online courses ranging from medical terminology to philosophy to emotional and physical well-being (also included in this newsletter below).

Take a moment to visit our online Resources Page and consider expanding your skills and knowledge. An informed interpreter is always a better interpreter. As a couple of other old adages go – “luck is preparation meeting opportunity” and “knowledge is power” – so get prepared and empowered to meet the opportunity.

[1] Collins Dictionary online
[2] If you are interested in re-taking a course as a refresher, we can offer a discounted price – contact us for more information. All of The Interpreter’s Lab courses are updated annually – new content – new activities – new learning

Without interpreters working and working safely, essential communication is jeopardized. And that affects us all.

Interpreters foster community cohesion, community safety and community health, and are an integral part of our system. Accurate communication is vital during emergencies like the COVID-19 pandemic.

It has occurred to me, in recent years, that the core concern of the interpreter’s responsibility – be it in court, classroom, office, hospital, correctional facility or a client’s home – is not language, but communication. To not recognize that very important distinction relegates the role of the interpreter to that of a language converter. And that strongly devalues the work that interpreters do, for to simply convert words in one language into words in another is a task that can be done by AI, or even a simple, old-school, bilingual dictionary. Instead, interpreters spin together words, meaning, context, situation, goals, interpersonal relationships, culture, awareness, responsibility, accountability, strict role boundaries, empathy, objectivity, intrapersonal communication, systemic realities, and non-verbal communication to ensure that speaker and listener are achieving the communication exchange necessary – without altering an iota of the intended message – if they are an educated, professional interpreter (let’s not confuse bilingualism with interpreting). I know that for many in the field, this is a very obvious conclusion. But an awareness of the depth and breadth of the interpreter’s role and work must also extend outside of the inner circle. We work and live in a world where, in most part, our essentiality in a multilingual world goes unrecognized.

Creative responses to crisis in a virtual age should be immediate

Good interpreters make it look easy. But it’s not. Not only is it not easy, it is a role that comes with immense power and, subsequently immense responsibility. Without educated, professional interpreters, health care professionals, lawyers, judges, social workers, correctional officers, community workers, and other professionals, inclusive of the system, are unable to effectively communicate with their clients – unable to do their job or achieve their mandates. But because it is commonly believed that interpreters work strictly in language, and if we are satisfied that what is happening in front of us is indeed someone saying words in two different languages, then we assume all is good. False assumption. Which brings us to the reason why, in the current health care and community crisis, there is not enough being done to support the critically important, or rather, the essential work of interpreters and translators. While our government officials are busy ensuring that the message gets out, that the population understands, are they also ensuring that limited-English or limited-French speakers are also included? And if they are not, how effective can the public health campaigns be if they are not reaching the whole population.

Our personal health status is conditioned on the health status of every member of our community.

I recently have had to interact with the health authority because of the needs of my elderly parents. I am an educated, English speaker that has worked in the healthcare system. I should, therefore, understand. One would assume. But the system is confusing, disease and illness are stressful, what to do where and with whom is a complex network of assumptions and connections that can be overwhelming. Even for me. We cannot take this essential communication for granted, for we do so at the risk of the population’s health.

When interpreters are not available, community members that do not speak, or understand the language of government and government services are denied critical information and access.

The COVID-19 pandemic is something that we, as a global village, have not experienced, on a similar scale, in recent memory. It has fostered fear, anxiety and concern in all of its unknowns and the missteps of the leadership in some regions. We try to heed the advice of experts and keep ourselves safe. But for some, withdrawing to work at home is not always a possibility. Essential services must remain. Doctors, nurses, allied health care, law enforcement, border patrol, prison guards, lawyers, judges, and others, must continue to work as the society cannot simply stop functioning. And alongside these professionals, when needed, you may also find interpreters – supporting them in their services. However, while all of the professionals listed above are given some protection if or when they fall ill, but interpreters are not always given any such security. And so, in a move for the preservation of their own and family’s health, they decide to not accept any assignments, decline work, remove themselves from the lists. They choose to be careful, because guidance for them in this case, may not exist, at least not from public health or government officials. The federal and provincial governments have made changes to some of our social safety nets, allowing for speedier responses and access to resources, and while those changes keep evolving for a more comprehensive response, will those changes align with the nature of the freelance interpreter and translator work world?

More important is how to keep interpreters working AND safe, because when interpreters are not available, community members that do not speak, or understand the language of government and government services are denied critical information and access. Professional interpreters are what’s required for complex settings and crisis scenarios, not naive assumptions that the message is being communicated.

Interpreters work as freelancers, for the most part and in most regions around the world, because it is the nature of the field, the nature of the work. And along with that also comes a lack of stability, minimal access to ensured coverage or services when adverse events occur, and lack of access to financial services available to employed positions. While interpreters in some sectors and in some jurisdictions in Canada are considered essential services, these policies are not universal, leaving large gaps for some communities.

We need interpreters to feel secure, protected and valued in order for them to be able to dedicate their professional skills and abilities in aid of community cohesion and continued good health.

Let us also find ways to acknowledge and support these heroes as well: these service providers that act as multilingual conduits for our multicultural, Canadian community. We are in this together for a better outcome. Let’s keep them working, and facilitating communication by acknowledging their need for financial and other resources, securing their safety to the best of all abilities and by recognizing them as vital members of our social and health services continuum.

It’s already hitting the fan – Language barriers hamper corona virus response.

Note: this article was originally posted in LinkedIn

As an organization that serves many different clients, it of course came to mind to write a piece relevant for the current crisis that we are all facing as a global community. But then I thought to myself that all of the do’s and don’ts must have already been delivered by the various agencies where our community of students and clients work. Not only that, if they, like me, belong to other mailing lists (lists which seem to daily and independently multiply in my inbox) they must also have received such notices from those organizations as well. So, I have made the assumption that most people receiving this newsletter are already well informed. If I am incorrect in that assumption, then I urge you to please visit the Centre for Disease Control website (BCCDC can be found here – BCCDC COVID-19, along with the information translated into other languages here – CDC Translated Content) for critical information on this virus. Do NOT trust information that does not come from a reliable source (no, FOX News is NOT a reliable source).

Moving to online, virtual programs and courses now seems like even more of a positive step in the right direction given the additional benefit it brings when we are encouraged to keep a “social distance”. While people are at times hesitant to try online courses, they soon find that it can be a very pleasant and easy option. However, the daily work of interpreters is rarely all online – which means that interpreters will travel to many different settings, meet many different people, often be in close proximity to others, and of course, for those interpreters that work in healthcare settings, be exposed to a variety of contagions. But all of this need not lead us to fear and withdrawal.

As I started thinking more about the nature of freelance work, the “gig-like” economy of it, I was struck by how, if we allow it, such a way of working can lead us to be in a constant state of reaction, anxiety and maybe even fear – if we let it affect us that way. And perhaps now is the time to not simply react but realize the personal and community benefits that interpreters bring and allow that to guide us in an informed and rational way. In a multilingual community, interpreters are an integral part of the service continuum. The services you provide links essential services to individuals and families in need of those services.

The spread of COVID-19 is a very serious situation and we must treat it as such. There is NO denying that. And that is not what this blog post is about. It is more about recognizing that there will always be something that can become an obstacle, situations that can make us anxious and fearful and that become bigger than our rational, thinking selves. But when, and it will be ‘when’ not ‘if’, our amazing scientists and health care personnel find a way to tame COVID-19 and add it to the growing list of infections, diseases and conditions that humanity has learned to manage, another crisis will come our way (many of us can well remember SARS – from which Canada learned many lessons applied to our current situation, or the AVIAN Flu – and other similar epidemics). Will we also react with fear, or will we be ready to wisely manage the situation, without losing our sense of control?

The nature of working as a freelancer, or even more broadly in self-employment, means that we live with an abundance of uncertainty and with a work life that may change more often than we wish. Even when balanced with the positives of freelance work – such as the freedom and autonomy that it brings – such a situation can cause stress and anxiety. What can be done? They say that the anecdote to fear and anxiety is knowledge and preparation. How can freelancers prepare? Taking the current situation as not only an example, but also as an opportunity for evolution, we can use this time to reflect, plan and prepare. Think about:

• What is causing you the most anxiety at this time?
• Why are you feeling this emotion?
• Can you think about things that could have been done in preparation for such an event?
• What might you do differently next time?
• What do you need (resources, connections, people, etc.) for you to be able to better face any future, similar, situations?

It does not need to be a global pandemic to affect us as the COVID-19 is currently doing. And while I do NOT want to understate the importance of taking this corona virus spread seriously, we are also vulnerable to other circumstances: what happens when we are sick and can’t work? what about if our children or spouses are sick and we need to stay home? what happens if a complaint is made against us and the work is suspended for a time? or what if we lose a contract? or the agency we work with has a decline in appointments and we are getting fewer assignments? These are all situations that may expose us to undesirable consequences. But it doesn’t have to be that way. So, let’s take this time to learn, converse, engage, and evolve so that next time we are not reacting in fear. With that in mind, we’ve scheduled a special session of The Interpreter’s Lab Online – Professional Development session on Thursday, March 19^th  as part of our free monthly sessions.Join us this Thursday: What COVID – 19 is Teaching Us: An Open Forum on the Effects and Impacts of Crisis on Interpreters.

A colleague of mind recently wrote a beautiful piece about her reflections on the current situation, and I want to share some of her article with you. Ashley Avinashi is the Founder of Raising Humanity – a global village focused on supporting the change we wish to see in the world, in our children and beyond. I particularly like Ashley’s last positive point – to build our own immunity. As our students know, we continuously say that the best interpreter is a healthy interpreter – in mind and body.

“The survival state has a funny way of bringing up what is truly important for our humanity to thrive – it’s not the productivity, not the mass consumerism, not quick fix-band aid solutions that has us ‘progress,’ but rather an authentic regard and mindful attention towards self and community.

As humans, we tend to respond only when situations become elevated and we HAVE to do something about what is in front of us. We take a great deal for granted. We are passive until we are not – and then, our hyper vigilance tends to become aggressive. From this fear-based state, no productive change can come about. We become caught in a deeply reactive cycle as a humanity, looking for the next external upset to tackle. Our reactive approach to live does not give us relief from the ongoing struggle, nor does it create a strong, sustainable foundation for future generations. Only healing the disconnection within will do that.

With that, I share some ‘survival’ tips that come to mind

• Take precaution. It is not a time to be naïve nor defiant (these are also old childhood patterns!), whether it be this global recalibration or any other. Understand the impact of your fear management on your own well-being, and that of others. How do you model dealing with ‘crisis?’ Particularly in the presence of our vulnerable populations – children and elders?

• Allow yourself to not ask WHAT this is all about, or WHY it is happening, but HOW can you move through it with awareness and ease.

• If you do feel safe to venture out, explore the natural world around you. You will find that you are not alone. The animals, the trees, the grass is supporting you at every moment. At no point are you alone in your journey.

• Hold grace and compassion for those who are riding the wave of fear, without wallowing in their fear with them. Allow them to face their inner beliefs as they may. We are all in different places on the path – some, to model what’s possible.

• Honour this day today. Be grateful you are alive and well,

• Last but not least, take your health seriously – BUILD YOUR OWN IMMUNITY. Eat nutritious foods. Stay well hydrated. Sleep with ease. Dance. Play. Laugh. Set intention for how you wish to experience your day. Get your Vit D outside and ground in nature. Breathe in good air amongst the trees. Surround yourself with others who take responsibility for their own well-being and have honest conversations. Accept the fear that may be moving through you, so you can process your emotions, pains and past hurts.”

Looking for more strategies for calmly living through these challenging times? Below are links to an article on Bustle and a Podcast by Global News called “Wait, There’s More” on the current situation:

Article: Coronavirus Anxiety Is Everywhere. Experts Explain How To Feel Better.

Podcast: Wait, There’s More

To quote one of the experts recently heard in a CBC interview – now is the time to be a citizen of your community. As a community of interpreters, let us work together for a better tomorrow.

Join us on Thursday, March 19 for our free Online Professional Development Session: What COVID – 19 is Teaching Us: An Open Forum on the Effects and Impacts of Crisis on Interpreters. Let’s start the conversation on what we can do and how to get it done.

This forum will be co-hosted by Angela Sasso and Annike Andre-Barrett

Some ideas just shine brighter.

In 2016 we at The Interpreter’s Lab (and parent company Shifting Pictures Inc.) made the decision to move our courses online. I had never really been a fan of self-directed, online courses for interpreter education and training. At the time that online learning started gaining popularity, the majority of programs for interpreters working in specialized settings (community, health, legal, education, err.) did not include an actual live instructor, just student-directed content. For orientation and professional development topics, self-directed courses make sense, of course, but for genuine education and the acquisition of essential skills and knowledge, instructor-led and classroom-based programs were the only way to go – in our view. So, while we saw a lot of promise and potential benefit in virtual courses (personally, I have always been a big technophile), at the time we did not see how it could be done without losing some of our programs’ value that came as a direct result of the live interaction with between students and our expert instructors, the engagement and interface within the student cohort, and the opportune, and often unanticipated, outcomes emerging from the free form discussions of an adult-centered classroom.

However, in 2017 we discovered a platform that was simple to access, free for the students to utilize and did not demand that users be technological wizards or internet experts. Moreover, after some investigation we learned of an online, e-learning management system that once again made sense for our students – adults that came from diverse educational and occupational backgrounds. We then combined these two platforms in order to be able to deliver quality educational programs in a virtual space – without sacrificing any of the benefits of “face-to-face” instruction and student-focused, classroom method teaching. And not only did we not lose what we had in intrinsic value; the programs gained even more benefits. Online means that we can blend so much more into the learning modules – connecting students to global resources and international speakers and thought-leaders of the industry. Online also means that students get more – more content, more depth, and longer engagement with the course and the instructor. Table 1, at the end of this article, outlines how the e-learning space offers so much more to students – especially adult students that are already juggling family, work, and other commitments and that are seeking to make a career shift to interpreting – as many of our students tend to be.

We knew that moving our courses to the virtual classroom environment would bring great advantage to the operational capacity of our programs, and of course, advantage to both our instructors and students as well, but we were surprised to discover one other, very important recipient that also benefited – the environment. Since we moved our programs online, we have substantially reduced the carbon footprint of our courses in so many ways (substantial is relative as we are a small organization, so substantial to us):

• Students and instructors no longer have to drive to the course – saving on fuel and emissions (to date this has resulted in the elimination of 100 people from driving for an estimated 60,000km and a savings of 13.2 – 16.4 tonnes of emissions or CO2e*).
• The student manuals and other handouts are distributed via the online content and students are encouraged to NOT print anything unnecessarily, but to file the documents on their computers (savings of approximately .5 trees**).

Online also means more family time for our students – turning on their computer versus getting into their cars to come to class – allows for a quick “commute” back to family and friends.

The NOSA blog found 4 environmental benefits to online learning. These are:

1. Fuel cost savings
2. Reduced pollution and carbon emissions
3. Reduced drain on natural resources
4. Savings on paper and printing/copying

And a further benefit, that came to light due to a recent heavy snowfall in our area, is no snow days! This means no down-time in learning, no missed lessons, no extended course duration or cancellations and no dangerous commuting for students and teachers.

The shift to our e-learning, blended programing has not only provided all of the benefits to our students that we foresaw but has also demonstrated serendipitous rewards to our environment. While our new e-learning program model has only been in operation for just under a year, we eagerly anticipate its enduring benefits. Perhaps serendipity will manifest again, in new and wonderful ways.

[ninja_tables id=”4646″]

*Emissions calculator used: https://www.saanich.ca/EN/main/community/sustainable-saanich/green-at-home/carbon-fund-calculator.html

** Source: https://ribble-pack.co.uk/environment/much-paper-comes-one-tree

Handbook of Research on Medical Interpreting

Founder and Director of Shifting Pictures and The Interpreter’s Lab, Angela Sasso, has been recently published in the Handbook of Research on Medical Interpreting – a textbook for interpreting students. Angela’s chapter, titled In Through the Looking Glass: The Discord Between, Practice and Education, looks at the evolution of the healthcare interpreter’s role in Canada, and the necessary educational programs to prepare interpreters to work in complex settings. Here is the overview of her chapter:

Traditional interpreter education programs were designed for conference interpreting markets. With the introduction of dialogue interpreting, some portion of the educational content was then allotted to public service interpreting and specialized settings became more prominent, programs then added courses to place more attention on specific contexts. In the last decade researchers began to view healthcare interpreting as a specialization of interpreting, and not just interpreting in a different setting. This chapter will review the evolution of the healthcare interpreter’s role in the context of alignment between education and workplace reality in Canada. The results of this review demonstrate that the work expectations of healthcare interpreters do not align with delineations of the interpreter as a language conduit nor with current educational programs and recommends a more robust and situated pedagogical schema that includes ongoing and deliberate continuing education as an interim measure to mitigate tensions between student and practitioner, theory and practice.*

The Handbook of Research on Medical Interpreting is a compendium of essential reference material discussing the educational, ethical, pedagogical, and specialized aspects of medical interpreting. Featuring research on topics such as patient care, competent healthcare, and specialized training, this book is ideally designed for hospital staff, healthcare administrators, medical specialists, professional interpreters, industry professionals, academicians, researchers, and students seeking coverage on a new, international perspective to the medical sciences.  (Taken from the publisher’s website: IGI Global – publishers)

While this is a textbook and therefore not necessarily intended for independent interpreters (the book is $276USD), individual chapters can be purchased from the publisher for $40. To find out more you can click here and be taken to IGI Global website:

Handbook of Research on Medical Interpreting

Izabel E.T. de V. Souza (Osaka University, Japan); Effrossyni (Effie) Fragkou (National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece)

ISBN13: 9781522593089|ISBN13 Softcover: 9781522593119|EISBN13: 9781522593096

https://www.igi-global.com/book/handbook-research-medical-interpreting/220086

*Sasso, A. (2020). In Through the Looking Glass: The Discord Between Practice and Education. In I. Souza, & E. Fragkou (Eds.), Handbook of Research on Medical Interpreting (pp. 397-420). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-9308-9.ch017

Just as music is the marriage of notes and pauses, communication is in the verbal and non-verbal alike.

In a recent conversation I was having with the manager of an LSP – he, the manager, being new to the industry and field – commented that “interpreting is a very lucrative business” and that he wanted to profit off of this cash-cow so he had ramped up their recruitment efforts by posting for interpreters across multiple job boards. I had to ask what his definition of an “interpreter” was, and his response was simple: An interpreter is someone who speaks two or more languages. Wow! There you have it. Well, I guess that makes my 81-year-old mother an interpreter, my 16-year-old niece an interpreter, and the wonderful man that served us dinner at the restaurant in Lisbon an interpreter as well. And along with them, all of the other approximately 56% of the world’s population that are either bilingual or multilingual. There must be few, if any other, professions where one can simply claim their competency based on the fact that they have a facility that they share with 3 billion other people. In fact, the Dunning-Kruger Effect is well evidenced in language services, because those that label themselves, or are labelled, interpreters simply based on their apparent bilingualism, without even the slightest attempt at exploring the definition of what the role entails, often fancy their competency in their language ability much higher than the reality. And that does not even speak to all of the other skills, abilities, and profound knowledge of communication, self and culture that interpreters must hold.

But I like to see the positive in the negative, so, setting aside the absurdity of this fellow’s statement, there is a lesson in this for those of us still slogging away in the mire of language services in community settings: We are not doing a good job of it at all. Not a good job of teaching others what it means to be an interpreter. Not a good job at building awareness of the importance of quality language access. Not a good job of explaining that standards matter, and that those standards are there for the consumers and the non-English (in the case of my geographic location) speaking clients. Not a good job of explaining that the slightest shift in the message, the omission of some words and the addition of others, the change in tone and register, can completely transform what the speaker said. And those alterations can have devastating impact. We have all heard anecdotal evidence over the years of what bad interpreting can do, from battlefields, to court houses, to operating rooms, incompetent interpreting has transformed, endangered and even taken, lives.

 “A study by the American College of Emergency Physicians in 2012 analyzed interpreter errors that had clinical consequences, and found that the error rate was significantly lower for professional interpreters than for ad hoc interpreters — 12 percent as opposed to 22 percent. And for professionals with more than 100 hours of training, errors dropped to 2 percent.”

NPR: In the Hospital, A Bad Translation Can Destroy A Life

Communication alone, in the same language, in the same or similar cultural context, can often be completely ineffective, now add to that interaction layers of language and culture and see how much more opaque it can all become. Interpreters are not language specialists; their work is in communication. They facilitate communication between parties that speak different languages, who have a need to communicate. The nuanced skill of hearing the message and converting it, while retaining its original intent and tone, is not one that is easily attained. It comes with a base knowledge, a competency with professional skills and techniques, and adherence to an ethical code that places high demands on critical thinking, analysis, speedy response and a lot of practice. If interpreting were only about words, then all that would be needed are bilingual dictionaries. And if interpreting competency was only about language, then there’s a world of polyglots from which we can pick our interpreters. But do we really just want our words translated or is it that we want our voice and message heard? If it’s the latter then we must utilize and promote professionals that have the competence to facilitate our communication – professional interpreters. Just as music is the marriage of notes and pauses, communication is in the verbal and non-verbal alike.

 “You can speak the words of a language, but still be totally off, because you are saying all the wrong things, in the wrong way, in the wrong order and in the wrong structure.” Hilde Fiva Buzungu on Just Another Do-Gooder: Working with interpreters – a conversation with researcher and anthropologist, Hilde Fiva Buzungu

It has always been my belief that interpreting (and translation) are often considered as non-professions by the lay audience because it’s communication itself that people don’t understand. If you don’t have an appreciation of how difficult interpersonal communication is, or how many levels of interference exist in intercultural communication, then you won’t understand that interpreting is not just about language, and not just about words. So to those of us that are still slogging away at that strata of the industry where the uninitiated still reign (I know many of my lucky colleagues living in more progressive countries have fortunately passed through this phase of language services evolution), it is up to us to improve our awareness building and education strategies and to more effectively promote the understanding of how critically important quality language services are – not just for fun or profit, but for equity, equality and community cohesion. Because while interpreting is a profession, not everyone calling themselves an interpreter is a professional.

Angela Sasso

CEO and Director – Shifting PicturesInc.

 Originally published in LinkedIn on August 7, 2019

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/what-interpreter-educating-change-angela-sasso/

August 7, 2019

 The Case of R v Sidhu and the Ontario Ministry of Attorney General

In 2005 a case heard on appeal at the Ontario Superior Courts (Canada), exposed a network of deceit, favoritism and unethical practices in the provision of interpreting services to the courts. Access to justice in one’s own preferred language is a Charter Right in Canada. While the situation in Ontario resulted in more stringent assessment and testing procedures for interpreters, it nonetheless acts as a cautionary tale because current practices, whether they be in courts in other parts of the land, or language service programs under the management of people similar to the fellow with which I spoke, are the today’s mirror of what was happening in the Ontario Court System – under the Ministry of Attorney General’s watch – 15 years ago. I included these excerpts because they so beautifully capture the “gist” of what is wrong. We fail to learn, we fail to grow, we will fail our citizens and community members once again.

“The trial judge concluded:

The failure of proper interpretative services in my view is clearly the major contributing factor to the state of affairs in this case. On the first day, apparently there were problems with interpretation for the applicant and on the second day, problems with the witness interpreter function.

Quite fairly, on my review of the record, a mistrial became necessary after an appropriate investigation was conducted. I find the period involved regarding the investigation and conclusion to be far from unreasonable. I find that to be an efficient utilization of resources, given the issue at hand.” (p.23 Ontario Superior Court of Justice – Summary Conviction Appeal Court accessed at 2005 Canlii 42491 _ On SC).

“[319] Ms. Wyatt believed interpretation to be some type of art-form capturing “the gist” of what was said in court while Ms. Laws was of the view that court interpretation was essentially a question of whether, “for the majority of the time”, “the essence” was captured. The supervisors demonstrated little insight into the constitutional significance of the access to justice issue at hand” (p.93 Ontario Superior Court of Justice – Summary Conviction Appeal Court accessed at 2005 Canlii 42491 _ On SC).

“[330] For years, Judges and lawyers have justifiably assumed that competent, accredited interpreters were placed in Brampton’s criminal courtrooms. Ms. Masrour scheduled unaccredited interpreters into courtrooms before they became accredited. Ms. Masrour and Mr. Brum have routinely scheduled unaccredited interpreters in the criminal courts who have failed the accreditation test one or more times. Ms. Masrour’s testimony as to why these individuals were scheduled and should be uncritically accepted as competent interpreters was entirely unconvincing. By having failed an accreditation test, an interpreter would be presumptively incompetent. Failing the Ontario test, would seem to provide a guarantee of incompetence. It was not for the Coordinator or her staff to conclusively determine the competence of interpreters unaccredited by the Ministry without disclosure to the court and the parties that such individuals were being used in the courts” (P. 95 – Ontario

Superior Court of Justice – Summary Conviction Appeal Court accessed at 2005 Canlii 42491 _ On SC).

Interpreting is a highly specialized profession that requires strong language and communication skills – in addition to important protocols and abilities. This lively, intensive short-course program covers core skills and competencies required of interpreters and is a pre-requisite for all of our other courses. Start your interpreting career here.

Interpreting in Healthcare Settings can be an emotionally, but rewarding, context for interpreters. This course, is a second level program that provides fundamental skills to allow interpreters to work in healthcare settings confidently.