Exploring Curricular Aspects of Dialogue Interpreter Training: A Report on Two Surveys

The last few decades have seen considerable growth in the availability of formal training opportunities for dialogue interpreters. These training opportunities range from post-graduate university courses to undergraduate certificates to short courses and workshops offered by non-governmental or community organizations. Although many publications have reported on training opportunities and courses, they generally provide high-level overviews of programs. There is little available information provided by individual instructors on the theoretical frameworks informing their work as trainers and the didactic materials that students are exposed to. This paper reports on two exploratory surveys of teachers of dialogue interpreting, encompassing both academic and non-academic training contexts, aimed at increasing our knowledge of these aspects of interpreter training. The results illustrate commonalities and differences in teachers’ backgrounds, the didactic materials they employ, and the theoretical frameworks that inform teaching and are encountered by learners. The authors argue for strengthening of collaboration among those involved in teaching dialogue interpreters and for continued research efforts focused on teaching and learning of dialogue interpreting.