Course Description
The two-week long Applied Consecutive Interpreting Techniques (ACIT) is a workshop designed to support, among others, English-language teachers who often act as interpreters for various groups of visitors.  The workshop concentrates on the development of skills essential to the task of effective interpreting including: event preparation, memory and comprehension, note taking, and handling linguistic and ethical challenges assertively.

Participants
Each ACIT workshop has eight participants, who arrive in pairs from the same country (with the same native language). Each participant should have, as a minimum, an English-language Standardized Language Profile (SLP) of 3/3/3/3.  Pairs from English-speaking countries should have STANAG 6001 (or ILR equivalent) Level 3 or higher in the same target language.

Aim
Integrating theory, principles, and concepts with practical application and skills development, the ACIT workshop aims to assist individuals in developing basic competencies, skills, knowledge, and attitudes required for satisfactory practice as consecutive interpreters. 

Training Strategy
The workshop offers a structured progression of subject-matter explanations, scenario-based interpretation activities, and memory-building/note-taking exercises.  Realistic scenarios serve as the basis for active interpreting exercises.  Facilitators incorporate consecutive interpreting exercises throughout the workshop with a view to analyzing and improving practice through self-assessment, peer feedback, and facilitator-provided diagnostic assessment.

Final Learning Outcomes
Students show greater competence and confidence in preparing for interpreting events and employing a blending of memory-improvement techniques and note-taking skills in order to interpret consecutively while providing accurate renditions of informal and formal speech.

Learning Objectives:

Students will

•  Identify several ways in which interpreting differs from translation.
•  Identify the primary characteristics of consecutive interpreting.
•  Identify various techniques to improve performance in consecutive interpreting.
•  Productively research specific topics in advance to improve performance.
•  Use various memory strategies to track, mentally, global features, pragmatic/situational information, the general thrust of the speech, and overarching concepts.
•  Use note taking to capture important details, such as numbers, names, and dates.
•  Employ a dynamic balance of memory strategies and note taking to maximize recall.
•  Control nonverbal responses, such as gestures, and handle unfamiliar situations appropriately, including those involving taboos or emotionally-charged subjects.
•  Interact with others in a way that reflects significant knowledge and understanding of cultural expectations.
•  Produce target text in a target setting for a target purpose & target audience in target circumstances.
•  Successfully communicate messages without distracting hesitations, repetitions or corrections.
•  Observe standards of integrity, professionalism, and confidentiality in all interpreting settings and contexts.

Upcoming course dates:

Calendar year 2023

ACIT 23-01 24 January - 02 February 2023

ACIT 23-02 15 - 24 August 2023

Calendar year 2024

ACIT 24-01 23 January - 01 February 2024

ACIT 24-02 20 - 29 August 2024