Blog Archives
Questioning the Meaning Model’s application to contact language interpreting
The other morning for the Master of Arts in Interpreting Studies, I read a quotation of Danica Seleskovitch’s “Théorie du Sens” or “Meaning Model” and I’m not sure it applies to sign language interpreters who interpret contact language between English speakers and bilingual English/ASL deaf signers. After all, it is not that most deaf people don’t know English; it is that they can’t hear it. The only time I do what Seleskovitch describes is when I’m interpreting for ASL monolinguals, and even in their ASL there is often some English. Is there any “pure” ASL that we can apply the Meaning Model to?
ASL Video Re: The 10,000 Hour Rule
Relating how I became an interpreter in 18 months to the chapter “The 10,000 Hour Rule” from the book Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell. What is your “10,000 Hour” story?
Re: Interpreters receiving feedback even when it’s mean or vague
A video response to Mikey Krajnak’s video about ways that interpreters accept and deal with feedback. I relate my experience in the MA in Interpreting Studies program at WOU and what I’m learning about effective and nonjudgmental ways interpreters can give each other feedback, including Demand-Control Schema, Observation-Supervision, and Case Conferencing. I also ask Mikey what he thinks about whether “the customer is always right” and how to give good customer service as an interpreting professional.
Master of Arts in Interpreting Studies & Interpreter Feedback
My reflections after the first week of our two-week face-to-face session (or colloquium). I learned a lot, and I share what I learned about feedback as a follow-up to the video I posted about receiving unsolicited feedback last week. Topics include Demand-Control Schema, Talking about “The Work,” practitioner-centered approach, professional discussion, case conferencing, listening, observation/supervision, nonjudgmental inquiry, guided self-discovery, etc.
Creators & Haters, and why sharing doesn’t equal soliciting criticism
In this signed language video, I talk about my experience of sharing a sample of my interpreting and transliterating work and receiving unsolicited criticism on it. Haters tend to be people with no real names and no creative works of their own. All they do is shoot down others’ work and give nothing to YouTube. As an interpreter, I am courageous enough to share my work–imperfect though it may be–with the world so that people may see it, but I am not thick skinned enough to take criticism about it. I think there are things a person creates and is willing to share with the world but doesn’t want to allow responses on because they don’t want the criticism and they don’t need the praise. This is how I feel about the sample I posted yesterday.
