|
"Oh, the Thinks You Can Think"
In 1983, ATA had just over 2,000 members. Who would have thought that the association would end 2007 with more than 10,000 members in 90 countries? That year, there were 500 attendees at ATA's 24th Annual Conference. Who would have thought that the 48th Annual Conference would host more than 1,800 attendees? There were no ATA divisions; now there are 15. There were no professional development seminars; now there are four to six each year. As I have quoted Dr. Seuss in a previous column, "Oh, the thinks you think up if only you try!"
As ATA approaches its 50th Anniversary in 2009, it's a good time to look back. But it's also a good time to look forward – to this fall's 49th Annual Conference in Orlando, Florida (November 5-8), to this summer's professional development seminars on court interpreting, localization, and translation tools, and to new member benefits and publications. While ATA's success has been impressive, there's more thinking to be done. Please let us know what you want to see in ATA's future.
Walter Bacak
ATA Executive Director
Click to learn more
Headlines
Industry News
Facebook, MySpace Use Different Translation Strategies
Florida to Require Certified Court Interpreters
Hindi Will Be Taught in Edison, New Jersey Schools
National Medical Interpreter Certification Pilot Test Launched
A Soldier's Quest to Save Iraqi, Afghan Interpreters
U.S. Doubling Foreign Language Program
Women Translators Offer New Perspective on Virgil's Aeneid
Hospital Uses Videoconferencing Interpreting Services
Tibetan Vocabulary Updated for the 21st Century
Standards Being Raised for Chinese Literary Translators
Oklahoma Comes Closer to Passing English-Only Bill
Justice Requires Local Interpreting Services
North Carolina Hospitals Seek More Interpreters
Michigan Translation Businesses Thrive in Global Economy
California Needs More Court Interpreters
ATA News
Business Smarts
Joint National Committee for Languages
Who’s an ATA Institutional Member?
S. Edmund Berger Prize for Excellence in Scientific and Technical Translation
Industry News
Facebook, MySpace Use Different Translation Strategies
Facebook's global users are translating the social network's visible framework into nearly two dozen languages to better serve the 60 percent of its 69 million users who live outside the United States. Facebook says it is using "crowd sourcing" techniques to create versions of site guidelines, particularly items specific to Facebook, to fit different cultures. However, the decision to translate material through crowd sourcing is generating criticism online, where some users question if amateurs can produce accurate translations. Critics have complained of sloppiness and skimping. Facebook's effort to build and launch sites in Japanese, Turkish, Chinese, Portuguese, Swedish, and Dutch, which will join its Spanish, French, and German sites, is one of the largest online collaborative translation projects, and normally such high-profile efforts are done by professionals. The Spanish version has been particularly criticized for grammatical, spelling, and usage problems. In comparison, MySpace hires professionals to manage translation for its social networks when it enters each market, says MySpace's Travis Kats. Contractors perform the initial translation for MySpace, which then assigns local teams to tweak and ensure the new page fits in the market. "The translation in and of itself is not very expensive," Kats says. "The thing that's challenging is getting the cultural aspects right and making sure that the site is culturally relevant and doesn't feel like an invader from Silicon Valley landed."
Return to Headlines
From "Facebook Asks Users to Mind Its Languages"
The Australian (Australia) (05/06/08) P. 35
Florida to Require Certified Court Interpreters
Beginning July 1, courts throughout the state of Florida will be required to use state-certified interpreters. Interpreters will be required to pass an oral and written exam that measures their proficiency in English, foreign languages, courtroom procedures, and legal terminology. Continuing education courses also will be required. Previously, training and testing were voluntary. The new law will likely boost the demand for the state's interpreters, which already have seen their work increase as the population soars. In Brevard County, for example, there were 294 cases that called for interpreters in the county's 2004-2005 fiscal year, but that number nearly doubled to 547 cases in the 2006-2007 fiscal year. Since July 2007, there have been requests for interpreters in about 400 cases, a pace that would set a new record. Although Spanish is the most requested language, other popular languages include Russian, Vietnamese, and Portuguese, says Earth Languages co-owner Julie Graybeal. Haitian Creole also is popular. Brevard County has a contract with an interpreter agency that draws from a pool of about 40 interpreters fluent in 27 languages. Judges may also use a telephone interpreting service when a live interpreter is not available on short notice. Brevard County interpreter Lea Collins says she uses newspapers, television, and the radio to keep up with Spanish and French slang, legal and medical terms, and cultural references.
Return to Headlines
From "Interpreters Ensure Court Cases Are Heard"
Florida Today (FL) (05/12/08) P. 1A; Summers, Keyonna
Hindi Will Be Taught in Edison, New Jersey Schools
Edison, New Jersey, which has the country's largest concentration of Indian Americans, will offer a Hindi foreign language program in its public school system next year, becoming the second such program in the United States to offer the language. Most of the Indian students in the public school system are second-generation Americans and speak English as their primary language, and few speak Hindi, India's national language. Some of the children's parents speak Hindi, but the children are more likely to speak English at home and around their peers. Edison residents have the option to attend HindiUSA, a volunteer organization that teaches Hindi on nights and weekends, but Hindi had not previously been an option at the two public high schools. Edison and J.P. Stevens high schools will incorporate Hindi into their curriculum this fall, thanks to a three-year grant from the U.S. Department of Education. As part of the course, students will be able to work on projects with students in India, collaborating over the Internet. "The United States and India are the two largest democracies in the world," says HindiUSA founder Devendra Singh. "As these two democracies become closer in business and other scientific endeavors, we have to know each other's languages." In a recent poll, the city's students said that Italian, followed by Hindi and Chinese, were their preferences for additional language options. However, the parents selected Hindi, followed by Chinese and Italian.
Return to Headlines
From "Teaching Hindi in Schools"
Converge (05/08) Mero, Ted
National Medical Interpreter Certification Pilot Test Launched
The second annual meeting of the National Medical Interpreter Certification Forum brought together representatives from various state and national interpreter associations, as well as providers of interpreter services, government officials, educators, trainers, hospitals, and health care organizations. Attendees discussed the forum's goals: to improve and support the standardization of quality language services in the nation's health care institutions and to eliminate linguistic and cultural barriers preventing patients with limited English proficiency (LEP) from receiving quality care. Title VI in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination based on race, color, and national origin, but despite recent efforts to clarify and strengthen the language access implications of Title VI, the lack of standards and guidelines establishing language access is still a significant health concern for LEP patients. Forum moderator Linda Joyce, a language consultant and former director of Language Interpretive Services at Grady Health System in Atlanta, says patients served by certified medical interpreters have better health outcomes. One of the most important resolutions from this year's forum was a unanimous recommendation to launch a pilot national medical interpreter certification test by May 1, 2009. The resolution is supported by the results of the second annual needs assessment survey, conducted in April 2008 and released at the forum. Survey respondents said that a viable medical certification test should offer more than one level of certification, have prerequisites that include a high level of linguistic proficiency, and mandate a minimum age of 18 with some college or certificate coursework.
Return to Headlines
From "Industry Leaders Convene at Second Annual National Medical Interpreter Certification Forum"
Hospital Business Week (05/25/08) P. 146
A Soldier's Quest to Save Iraqi, Afghan Interpreters
U.S. Army Lt. Jason Faler has launched the Checkpoint One Foundation, an organization dedicated to helping Iraqi and Afghan military interpreters and their families dodge reprisals in the Middle East by bringing them to the United States. Interpreters and others who work with the U.S. military or government are targeted for punishment by insurgents, along with their relatives. "I feel like what I'm doing with this foundation, it's personal, but like I'm repaying a debt owed by this nation," Faler says. "Countless scores of interpreters have paid with blood. This threat is not theoretical or notional in any way." Faler's desire to help interpreters out of such dangerous situations came from his deployment in Iraq in 2005, when he worked with interpreters at the Iraqi Ministry of Defense on the interpretation of such things as high-level meetings between American and Iraqi officials. Upon his return to the States, Faler received emails from the Iraqi interpreters he worked with asking for help with acquiring special visas to the United States that are available to Iraqi and Afghan interpreters who had worked for the American military. His efforts eventually led to the creation of the Checkpoint One Foundation. The Arabic-speaking Faler says he intends to raise enough money to pass the foundation's management over to someone who is more suited to be a full-time director.
Return to Headlines
From "A Soldier's Quest to Save Iraqi, Afghan Interpreters"
Christian Science Monitor (05/07/08) P. 1; Carroll, Jill
U.S. Doubling Foreign Language Program
A 32-state, national security effort to teach teenagers and teachers foreign languages will more than double in size and scope this summer, says Catherine Ingold, the project's coordinator at the University of Maryland. The STARTALK Program, administered by the University of Maryland’s National Foreign Language Center (NFLC) and funded by the U.S. Director of National Intelligence and the Department of Defense, will offer 81 programs this summer in five critical languages: Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Persian, and Urdu. The programs will accommodate more than 2,600 students and nearly 1,100 teachers. Last summer, the program debuted with 34 programs in 21 states, offering only Arabic and Chinese, and there were about one-third as many participants with no positions for middle school students. STARTALK aims to jumpstart the nation's ability to produce students with a mastery of a foreign language. Ingold says, "Many European and Asian nations start foreign language instruction in the fourth grade, and the truth is that the United States just doesn't have the ability to do this on a wide scale right now. As a nation, we lack many of the basics needed to teach critical foreign languages to younger students, and that hurts us across the board." The programs vary from summer camp settings to more traditional classrooms, with some programs offering total immersion; others offer more modest training to give students a head start toward learning an unfamiliar foreign language.
Return to Headlines
From "U.S. Critical Foreign Languages Effort Doubling: 32 States, 5 Languages"
AScribe Newswire (05/12/08)
Women Translators Offer New Perspective on Virgil's Aeneid
The translation of Virgil's "Aeneid" by Yale Divinity School poet and classicist Sarah Ruden highlights a new emphasis on the epic poem's more intimate and tender aspects amid all the spectacle and grandeur. Another translation of the "Aeneid" is being undertaken by literature professor Jane Wilson Joyce of Kentucky's Centre College, who is in agreement with Ruden that there is a compassion to Virgil's writing, noting that "even when horrible things are happening on the battlefield, there is a tenderness, and his feel for human relationships, his feel for landscape, and his pity for humans is something that I find intensely appealing." Ruden says the personal affinity that female translators feel for classical authors gives them an advantage over male translators, but she maintains that women should avoid getting so emotionally involved that they change the work's context to reflect their own attitudes and biases. Ruden opted to translate the poem roughly line for line and to work in iambic pentameter. She says she originally undertook the project to stay in translation by doing a major work, rather than to further the cause of feminism or challenge herself. Her goal is to have her translations used by popular and classroom audiences rather than fellow scholars.
Return to Headlines
From "Measuring the 'Aeneid' on a Human Scale"
Chronicle of Higher Education (05/16/08) Vol. 54, No. 36, P. B8; Howard, Jennifer
Hospital Uses Videoconferencing Interpreting Services
The Bridgeport Hospital in Bridgeport, Connecticut, where 71 languages and many dialects are spoken, has taken a unique approach to situations that could prove difficult to find an interpreter, such as when a patient only speaks Bengali, Mandingo, or Zange. Bridgeport Hospital's Lynn Charbonneau says the hospital has contracted with a firm that provides two-way live videoconferencing interpreting services, enabling patients to see the interpreter and the interpreter to see them. The hospital has used the service to assist patients that spoke Arabic, Turkish, Cantonese, Mandarin Chinese, Creole, French, Farsi, Gujarati, Portuguese, Hindi, Somali, Bengali, Vietnamese, and American Sign Language. Bridgeport Hospital also offers a Spanish proficiency exam in-house to staff members interested in becoming certified medical interpreters. So far, about 30 staff members have passed the test, and the hospital has enrolled many more employees in a University of Massachusetts program. Even in cases where patients come with family members who could serve as interpreters, Charbonneau encourages hospital staff to call for a professional, as quick and accurate communication can make the difference in emergency situations.
Return to Headlines
From "Hospital Breaks Down Language Barriers"
Connecticut Post (CT) (05/07/08) Brown, Marian Gail
Tibetan Vocabulary Updated for the 21st Century
The 1,300-year-old language used by the ethnic group that lives mainly on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in Tibet is being updated thanks to the efforts of interpreters. Tibetans recently learned how to say train in their own language after the Qinghai-Tibet Railway opened on July 1, 2006, linking the Tibet Autonomous Region with the rest of China by train for the first time. A variety of other words also have been added as the remote plateau region catches up to developments elsewhere in the world. The Tibet Autonomous Regional Compilation and Translation Bureau's Cering Toinzhub says it is difficult for interpreters to express new words accurately in Tibetan and help the local people understand and accept them. Toinzhub says five different Tibetan versions of SARS were used when the epidemic broke in 2003, causing confusion for medical workers and residents. A standard Tibetan term for SARS was created after consultations with interpreters and medical workers. A Chinese-Tibetan dictionary was published in 1991 with 80,000 entries, but more new words have come into being since, along with many new expressions not found in the dictionary. Toinzhub says local authorities are compiling a new edition that will have more than 200,000 entries. Tibet has about 1,000 Chinese-Tibetan interpreters, and about 500 new words are introduced to the Tibetan language every year.
Return to Headlines
From "Ancient Language Is Slowly Updated"
Shanghai Daily (China) (05/19/08)
Standards Being Raised for Chinese Literary Translators
Worldwide interest in Chinese literature has risen sharply, leading individual translators and the translation industry to recognize the importance of becoming more professional to establish their position in bridging the gap between China and the outside world. The inaugural Sino-English Literary Translation Course was recently held in Moganshan, China, to address this concern, improve translators' skills, and raise awareness on how best to translate authors' intentions. The six-day residential program included daily translation exercises, tips on networking, and discussions on the future of the industry. Most of the participants were based in mainland China, but some also hailed from Hong Kong, Britain, and the United States. Participants were divided into two groups, with one group working on Chinese-to-English translations and the other working on English-to-Chinese translations. The workshop was held in part because many competent, emerging English translators cannot find publishers, says Penguin China general manager Jo Lusby. She says many translators lack formal training and a publishing history, and the industry is reluctant to hire unknown translators. The workshop also put translators into direct contact with authors, an important step as translators frequently have no contact with the creators of the literature they are translating due to geographical constraints.
Return to Headlines
From "Mind the Gap"
South China Morning Post (China) (04/27/08) P. 7; Ma, Karen
Oklahoma Comes Closer to Passing English-Only Bill
Some Oklahoma residents are uncertain of what effect the state's proposed English-only language bill will have on Cherokee County and the county's growing Spanish-speaking population. The Oklahoma House recently approved a bill that would prevent the state from having to provide taxpayer services in languages other than English, eliminating the cost of providing services in multiple languages. If Oklahoma's Senate approves the bill, a referendum on the issue is expected to appear on the state's November general election ballot. Minority leaders, including Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chad Smith, have spoken out against the legislation. Smith says his ancestors, and the natives of tribes across the United States, were prohibited from speaking their languages in boarding schools and official environments, which led to the decline of many native languages and the extinction of others. The Cherokee Nation now runs an immersion program for young children. Lawmakers say the bill would not interfere with the teaching of native languages. However, if voters approve the referendum, residents would no longer have access to government functions in any language but English, such as taking a driver's test in Spanish. Still, some agencies and businesses already provide language services. The NeoHealth program, for example, which started as an effort to provide medical services to migrant workers, now runs a growing number of clinics across the state. The clinics all have interpreters for Spanish-speakers. Court clerk Shirley Glory says there are a number of interpreters available for court procedures, and she does not believe the bill would affect court practices.
Return to Headlines
From "Bridging Barriers"
Tahlequah Daily Press (OK) (05/20/08) Smith, Betty
Justice Requires Local Interpreting Services
A U.S. Justice Department investigation has resulted in Mattawa, Washington, officials agreeing to improve access for people who are not proficient in English, an agreement that is being touted as the first of its kind in Washington state and a caution flag for other municipalities with Spanish-speaking residents. Part of the Civil Rights Act, supported by an executive order in 2000, requires that interpretation and translation services be available for people who are not proficient in English. The law requires that all city services, including law enforcement, have interpreter services established in places with a high percentage of non-English speakers. For years, there were complaints that Mattawa, a predominately Latino farming town of about 3,200 people, did not have such services. At a 2006 state Commission on Hispanic Affairs meeting, a group of women testified about long waits and general disinterest when they called 911 or when they went to the local police. However, it was not until a botched domestic violence investigation and the resulting complaint that the Justice Department got involved. Attorneys with the Northwest Justice Project filed a complaint following a domestic violence case in which police let the suspect go to find a Spanish interpreter. He never came back. In the agreement, Mattawa and the federal government established steps that the town must take, including maintaining a roster of on-call interpreters for police to use at any hour. The agreement is expected to cost the town about $4,000 this year. Latino activists hope the federal action against Mattawa will encourage other local jurisdictions to take notice and make changes where appropriate.
Return to Headlines
From "Mattawa Program a Matter of Interpretation"
Yakima Herald-Republic (WA) (04/28/08) Muir, Pat
North Carolina Hospitals Seek More Interpreters
Even while the economy weakens and various sectors start to announce job cuts, interpreting is still a growing profession, with companies and organizations looking to hire interpreters. "The needs are all the time, during the day, at night, and during the weekends," says Graciela Namihira-Alfaro, an interpreter at the Family Practice Clinic of Moses Cone Health System, in Greensboro, North Carolina. "We need interpreters all the time." Interpreters are seeing greater job security and helping more patients. Hospitals across the region continue to hire more interpreters, mainly for Spanish. Patricia Luna, who interprets for the Forsyth County Health Department, has noted a 2 percent increase every month in the number of patients requiring an interpreter. She says it is common for interpreters to see about 25 to 30 patients in a day.
Return to Headlines
From "Interpreters Wanted"
Piedmont Triad (NC) (04/28/08) Bagg, Julia
Michigan Translation Businesses Thrive in Global Economy
Michigan-based translation businesses are thriving as more companies export goods and services abroad. Expert Language Services' Lori Ann Elzerman says the slowing U.S. economy is prompting many companies to focus on international sales. She says the industry is seeing the most growth in Arabic, Asian, and Eastern European languages, with Web site translation and interpreting for business meetings being some of the popular services offered. Domestic translation companies are growing despite increased competition from China and India. Other challenges include the strength of the euro and British pound compared to the dollar, which has hurt earnings on European projects. Time zone and holiday issues can also make it difficult to schedule teleconferences.
Return to Headlines
From "Michigan Translation Businesses Thrive in Global Economy"
Oakland Business Review (MI) (05/08/08) Blodgett, Laura
California Needs More Court Interpreters
California needs more court interpreters, says Lucy Smallsreed, supervisor of the court interpreter program of the Administrative Office of the Courts for the Judicial Council of California. Court interpreters must go through a rigorous testing and training program, and the 1,600 certified and registered court interpreters in California are struggling to keep up with demand, primarily because of the state's growing population of non-English speakers. Smallsreed says Spanish interpreters are the most commonly requested, but the state tests and certifies interpreters for 13 languages. People who speak other languages may become registered interpreters by taking an English fluency test. Interpreters of less common languages may be asked to temporarily relocate for a period of time to work on a trial. In addition to speaking two languages, court interpreters must learn the legal terms used by attorneys as well as the street slang used by defendants, victims, and witnesses. "You need to know idioms, colloquialisms, weapons terminology, and forensics," says Barstow, California, court interpreter Carmen Cordova. She says interpreters must be able to explain the legal process to defendants who may not know anything about the American court system.
Return to Headlines
From "Court Interpreters Help People Speak the Language of the Law"
Desert Dispatch (CA) (05/15/08) Sewell, Abby
ATA News
Business Smarts
The school of hard knocks is no way to learn business management skills – but many translators and interpreters try to do just that. The monthly "Business Smarts" column published in The ATA Chronicle aims to change this approach with practical advice from working translators and interpreters. From finding clients to setting rates and collecting payment, the column addresses common problems faced by newcomers and old-timers alike. Now these columns have been collected on the ATA website. With an easy-to-use index, ATA members can learn what experience has taught other translators and interpreters. Don't recreate the wheel! Check out the new online collection of "Business Smarts."
Click to learn more
|
Return to Headlines
Joint National Committee for Languages
In 1976, the Joint National Committee for Languages, known as JNCL, began as an informal coalition of eight national language teaching associations. It now represents 64 national and regional organizations – ATA is a longtime member – encompassing virtually all areas of the language field: the major and less-commonly taught languages, including English and English as a second language, bilingual education, the classics, linguistics, exchanges, research, technology, and translation. The goal? To help plan and promote national language policies. Why? Only 9% of Americans can speak a second language. This failure to learn foreign languages and culture threatens U.S. security and the country’s ability to compete in a global marketplace.
At the recent JNCL-NCLIS Assembly, which ATA President Jiri Stejskal attended, there was good news. Foreign languages are now definitely on the radar screen of the U.S. government. The 1st Session of the 110th Congress considered 53 bills dealing with language and international education. Now in its 2nd Session, an additional dozen related bills are being considered. Visit the JNCL website to learn how you can lend your support to ensuring that all Americans have the opportunity to learn at least one foreign language.
Click to learn more
|
Return to Headlines
Who’s an ATA Institutional Member?
Currently, ATA has 99 Institutional Members. This less known membership category is available to nonprofit institutions with an interest in the translation and/or interpreting professions and includes social service programs, school systems, medical centers, colleges, universities, and government agencies at all levels. Some ATA Institutional Members are easily recognizable, such as the Monterey Institute of International Studies and the Mayo Clinic. Others are much less well known; for example, the Alaska Immigration Justice Project and the Mohawk Valley Resource Center for Refugees. But regardless of size or name-brand recognition, each has a story to tell and a public service to provide. So who are these ATA Institutional Members? Find out by selecting Institutional Membership type in the online Corporate/Institutional Membership Directory.
Tip: ATA Institutional Members who offer courses in translation and interpreting have their own web page under Careers on the ATA site. Each program listing offers the school’s location, website link, and email point of contact.
Click to learn more
|
Return to Headlines
S. Edmund Berger Prize for Excellence in Scientific and Technical Translation
The annual S. Edmund Berger Prize is awarded by ATA and the American Foundation for Translation and Interpretation (AFTI) in recognition of an ATA member’s accomplishments in scientific and technical translation. The recipient will receive $1,000 in honor of this achievement.
Individual translators or translation companies wishing to nominate a translator for this prestigious award may obtain a nomination form from the AFTI website. Nominations will be judged by a three-member national jury, and the recipient of the award will be announced during the ATA 49th Annual Conference in Orlando, Florida (November 5-8). The deadline for nominations is September 18, 2008.
Click to learn more
|
Return to Headlines
Abstract News © Copyright 2008 INFORMATION, INC.
subscribe :: unsubscribe
|
