The effect of memory training on consecutive interpreting performance by interpreter trainees

Yenkimaleki, M.; Heuven, V.J.J.P. van (2017)

Article / Letter to editor

The present study investigates the effect of memory training through story retelling exercises and imagination tasks and their effect on the quality of interpretation by Farsi-to-English interpreter trainees. The effect of treatment on decreasing the rate of message omissions is studied as well. Two groups of student interpreters were formed. Participants were assigned to groups on the basis of their overall performance on a TOEFL pre-test, but with equal division between genders. The control group was then taught interpreting skills by the routine curriculum, while the other, experimental, group spent part of the time on memory training tasks and exercises, e.g. imagination and story retelling. Three raters assessed quality measures of accuracy, omissions, additions, grammar, expression, terminology, pace and accentuation of the interpreter trainees in pre-test and post-test performance. Statistical analysis shows that the memory training had a positive effect on the quality of interpretation and also on decreasing the rate of message omission. The results have pedagogical implications for curriculum designers, interpreting programs for training future interpreters, material producers and all who are involved in interpreting studies and its pedagogy.

• memory
• interpreting
• omission
• interpreter training

• All authors: Yenkimaleki, M.; Heuven, V.J.J.P. van
• Date: 2017
• Journal: Forum
• Volume: 15
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 157 - 172