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Digital Storytelling in Interpreter Training

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 Digital Storytelling in Interpreter Training

Sandra Ribeiro
ISCAP (Portugal)
[email protected]

Abstract
Digital Storytelling (DS) allows people to construct narratives by combining multiple media including
images (e.g. photos, graphics), voice, music, video, transitions, titles, and movement.
In educational settings, the type of digital stories that prevails is the personal narrative. In fact, the
reflection involved in the crafting process, whether it is writing, the selection of images, photographs,
music or video clips, transpires the storyteller’s personal perspective, enriching and creating depth to
the final story, as each layer mirrors the creator’s own self – a story with personal meaning.
We propose to present a case study that describes how DS was implemented in interpreter training
course at ISCAP-IPP in Portugal.
Our study demonstrate that DS is capable of integrating different literacies and language skills, as it
combines multimedia researching, production and presentation skills with more traditional activities
like writing and oral production skills, thus ideal to integrate interpreter training courses. Furthermore,
the creation process, which implies the search for and selection of material, such as images, photos
and soundtrack, also confronts students with copyright issues on the Web. The narrative function
allows students to tell a story with their own voice, in a controlled environment. They are able to record
and edit their stories as often as they want before finally presenting them to their teachers and
colleagues, thus being able to improve their work until it is to their liking. Moreover, as digital stories
may be uploaded onto the Web, students may be confronted with positive or negative feedback to
their final stories. In sum, the creation process of digital stories encourages students to engage in
deeper reflection on their learning, their identities and, consequently on their own behavior on various
levels.

1. Interpreter training
Interpreting, seen as “the oral transfer of messages between speakers of different languages” is,
according to Pistillo [1], “one of the oldest of human activities”.
The interpreter listens to what the speaker is saying, has to quickly understand its meaning and then
almost immediately utter this orally into the language known by the listener. The emphasis in
interpreting in on promptness and the fact that it cannot be repeated, nor revised.
Although interpreting may seem to be an instinctive shift from one language to another, interpreting is,
in fact, a complex process which comprises three overlapping phases defined by Elamin [2] as:
“auditory perception” of what is spoken and the immediate grasp of its meaning, the “dissociation of
the meaning from the verbal form”, and finally an immediate and understandable “expression” of the
meaning in the target language. In this process, the first (comprehension) and the final (production)
phases are considered the most important ones, while the second phase serves as a link between the
two.
Due to the need for clarity and complete command of the target language, interpreters are incentivized
to work into their native language. Textual competence in this language is essential as the interpreter
must be able to produce coherent and cohesive texts and not isolated sentences or fragments.
Furthermore, speaking skills are vital, as the delivered speech should be expressed confidently and
convincingly.
“It appears that the interpreter’s voice and self-assured delivery have a confidence-
inspiring effect. Conversely, beginning interpreters with a somewhat hesitant voice are
often mistrusted by delegates, however faithful and clear the informational content of their
speech” [3, p. 33].
In sum, and corroborating with Kurz [4], interpreting is a “high-skill information processing activity
composed of interdependent subskills”.
Aware of the complexity inherent to interpreting, over the past 45 years many publications have
addressed issue concerning interpreter training [see 5]. Despite the amount of articles on specific
types of exercises and other suggestions for interpreter training [3, 4 and 6 for example], no
methodological guidance is given as interpreter-training literature is, in essence, based on individual
experience. As Giles [7] states, the responsibility to make the “appropriate decisions” regarding
interpreter training is placed on the teachers.
Considering Education to be about giving students voice, exchanging ideas with others, and building
knowledge [8], within an engaging, student-centred context, it is our belief interpreter-training activities
should incorporate learner’s intention, action and reflection.

2. Digital Storytelling
The term Digital Storytelling (DS), literally, means using computer-based tools that allow for the digital
manipulation of content – audio, text or images – to tell stories.
DS began in California in the 1970s through the work of a small group of theatre performers. Their
idea was to empower individuals and communities by teaching them the skills and how to manipulate
the tools needed to create their own digital stories, giving them voice [9].
DS, as originally conceived by its founders, implies a 2–3-minute personal story told with the use of
graphics, audio, and video. It includes many, if not all, of the following seven elements: Point (of View);
Dramatic Question; Emotional Content; Voice; Soundtrack; Economy; and Pacing.
Literature review on DS reveals studies in various contexts, from business and religion to community
and education. As to the latter, there are several studies that link DS with reflection in different grade
levels, both in formal and in informal settings [10-12].
The reflexive process involved in the crafting process of the digital stories, whether it is writing, the
voiceover, the selection of images, photographs, music or video clips, transpires the storyteller’s
personal perspective, enriching and creating depth to the final story, as each layer symbolizes a part
of the creator’s own self.

3. Interpreter training at ISCAP

The case study that follows describes how DS was implemented in an interpreter-training course at
ISCAP-IPP (Institute of Accounting and Administration of Oporto) in Portugal.
ISCAP’s Master’s program in Specialized Translation and Interpreting began in the 2007/2008
academic year. Its curricula design as to the Interpreting component of the Program seeks a
pragmatic understanding of Conference Interpreting, Remote and Teleconference Interpreting (RTI)
and Liaison Interpreting, focusing on intensive practice.
However, in order to allow for a deep understanding of questions revolving around interpreting,
besides intensive remote interpreting practice, students are invited to explore the notions of
communication pragmatics, perception in virtual environments, and semiotics as well as its history and
evolution [13].

4. DS in interpreter training: a case study

Considering the above-mentioned framework, 15 master’s students enrolled in the RTI course were
asked to participate in an research, where the focus was (1) to address Elamin’s [2] third phase in
interpreting, and (2) to address the visual dilemma often referred to in RTI, from a content-creator’s
perspective. As such, the objectives were: to improve students’ speaking skills and apply strategies for
overcoming doubts and linguistic weaknesses; to exercise speech fluency; and to select images,
pondering pragmatics and semiotics.
Digital storytelling activities took place in a computer lab and began with a Story Circle, as proposed
by Lambert [9] but with some adaptations. Instead of sitting in a group circle, students sat at their
computers and were asked to audio record all they said from that point on.
The first exercise was for students to answer the question: Who are you? They were given two
minutes to speak freely. After this short exercise, students were once again asked the same question
but key words and expressions were placed on the board at regular intervals. The students had to
incorporate these into their answer nevertheless maintaining a coherent and cohesive discourse. The
end result was a 10-minute speech, which ended with Tell me a story.
After the Story Circle, students were asked to consider the story they had just told and to organize it
into a 2-minute voiceover for their digital story. Special attention was to be given to delivery issues
such as tone of voice and pacing, as these are crucial elements in digital stories. This was the first
step in the DS creation process.
Students were then asked to consider the visual aspects of their story and what they wanted to
transmit. Students worked collaboratively in order to understand if their interpretation of certain
images/pictures were that of their colleagues. The visual composition of the stories proved to be time-
consuming as many group and whole-class discussions arose.
After having all the elements for the story, students were given time and one-to-one support on
assembling and editing their final story. Students that finished first were asked to help colleagues who
showed more difficulties in manipulating video editing software1.

When finished, some students shared their stories with one or two colleagues, but the final
dissemination of the stories did not occur.

4.1 Results
In order to understand learners’ perspective on DS and its creation process, the students were asked
to reflect on the activities carried out with detailed comments. Furthermore, during class activities, the
teacher registered observation notes.
All 15 students acknowledged that they enjoyed participating in the activities proposed. They also
referred that they were not expecting to carry out such activities in the RTI course, however by the end
of the three days, all were able to relate the various steps in the creation process with the school’s
interpreter training philosophy.

1
Microsoft’s Movie Maker
One third of the students (5 out of 15) mentioned time as a negative factor, in various perspectives.
The work was carried out in class, which was scheduled from 21h30 to 23h. These students were
part-time students that came to class after a full day’s work and initially these students didn’t see the
relevance of the work, as there was no interpreting involved. After, they felt that the class time
available was insufficient for the work they wanted to carry out. Curiously, these same students
expressed some dissatisfaction as to the final story saying they did what was possible, not what they
wanted to do, given the time constraints.
The remaining students were overall satisfied with the process they carried out, with the final result
and their learning experience, which curiously they referred to have been on two levels: on an
academic level and on a personal level.
Academically, students recognized the need to manipulate new ICT-related tools, such as voice
recording software, image software and video editing software. This allowed them to maintain a
creator’s perspective and thus produced deeper understanding as to details that influence the final
outcome, such as, for example: condensing information and finding the essence of the story; the need
for a clear, well-paced speech. Furthermore, while working with images and music soundtrack, digital
literacy issues, such as Internet copyright, were discussed.
On a personal level, students stated that the theme proposed for the digital stories implied an inner
reflection. As one student states: “Because even if we did not create a very personal digital story, such
as mine, we must reflect on who we were when we began and who we are now and the role ISCAP
had in that growth.”
Throughout the creation process in class, students constantly commented on their own progress and
on their colleagues’. These comments shed light on essential aspects such as: awareness of their
tone of voice - “I don’t understand what I said. I was nervous and spoke too fast. I have to repeat
everything”-, semiotics - “That was not what I intended to transmit. She didn’t understand. Maybe it
was the order of the pictures”-, among other aspects.
As to the Story Dissemination phase, students were reluctant to share stories. They claimed they were
“embarrassing”, “politically incorrect”, “too personal”, “show too much”, and “not professional”. In fact,
as one student puts it, the final story “reveals a part of me I do not want to show many people”. As
such, the stories were not disclosed in order to respect students’ wishes.

5. Conclusion
Our study demonstrates that DS is capable of integrating different literacies and language skills, as it
combines multimedia researching, production and presentation skills with more traditional activities
like writing and oral production skills, thus ideal to integrate interpreter training courses. Furthermore,
the creation process, which implies the search for and selection of material, such as images, photos
and soundtrack, also confronts students with copyright issues on the Web. The narrative function
allows students to tell a story with their own voice, in a controlled environment. They are able to record
and edit their stories as often as they want before finally presenting them to their teachers and
colleagues, thus being able to improve their work until it is to their liking. Moreover, as digital stories
may be uploaded onto the Web, students may be confronted with positive or negative feedback to
their final stories. In sum, the creation process of digital stories encourages students to engage in
deeper reflection on their learning, their identities and, consequently on their own behaviour on various
levels.
 References
[1] Pistillo, G. (2009). "The interpreter as cultural mediator." Journal of Intercultural Communication
(6).
[2] Elamin, S. (2003). “Reflections on the Teaching of Interpreting”.J. King Saud Univ., vol. 16 , Lang.
& Transl., pp. 1-23
[3] Gile, D. Basic Concepts and Models for Interpreter and Translator Training. Benjamins Translation
Library; 1995.
[4] Kurz I. (1992): “‘Shadowing’ exercises in interpreter training”, in Teaching Translation and
Interpreting - Training, Talent and Experience: Papers from the First Language International
Conference, Elsinore, Denmark, 31 May-2 June 1991. Ed. by C. Dollerup & A. Loddegaard,
Amsterdam-Philadelphia, John Benjamins, 1992, pp. 245-250.
[5] Gile, D. (2000). “The history of research into conference interpreting. A scientometric approach”.
Target, 12(2), 297–321.
[6] Pöchhacker F. (1999): “Teaching practices in simultaneous interpreting”, The Interpreters’
Newsletter, 9, pp. 157-176.
[7] Tennent, M. (2005). Training for the new millennium: pedagogies for translation and interpreting,
John Benjamins Publishing Company.
[8] Papert, S. (1980). Mindstorms. Children, computers and powerful ideas. New York: Basic Books
[9] Lambert, J. (2002). Digital storytelling: Capturing lives, creating community, Digital Diner Press.
[10] Alterio, M. (2002). "Using storytelling to enhance student learning." Higher Education Academy.
[11] McDrury, J. and M. Alterio (2003). Learning through storytelling in higher education: Using
reflection & experience to improve learning, RoutledgeFalmer.
[12] Robin, B. R. (2008). "Digital storytelling: A powerful technology tool for the 21st century
classroom." Theory into Practice 47(3): 220-+.
[13] Furtado, M., Almeida, P., Pascoal, S. (2009) Formar Intérpretes À Distância: o ensino de
Interpretação Remota no ISCAP. Polissema 9, pp.170-197.

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