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Reflection on Consecutive Interpreting Note-taking Textbooks Published in China

Received: 28 April 2019     Accepted: 30 May 2019     Published: 11 June 2019
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Abstract

Increasing international exchanges have made consecutive interpreting more and more prevalent nowadays, and the success of consecutive interpreting activities is, to a large extent, dependent on the interpreters’ memory of the speaker's source information, and in order to do that, interpreters need to take notes in a methodical manner, which helps interpreters to enhance their concentration, activate memory, ensure accuracy, and reduce memory burden, thus improving the overall quality of consecutive interpreting. However, note-taking skills do not receive a fair amount of attention in interpreting textbooks, previous studies on and textbooks of consecutive interpreting usually overemphasize the individuality of the note-taking method and symbols system while neglecting the regularity and universality underpinning the note-taking system. This paper addresses this neglected aspect of consecutive interpreting note-taking textbook research and chooses four major note-taking textbooks published in China, comparing and analyzing their merits and demerits in terms of their positioning, theoretical elaboration of note-taking skills and the choice of note-taking practice materials etc. Four suggestions are presented as the findings of this study: 1). Clarify textbook positioning. 2). Combine note-taking techniques with selected exercise topics. 3). Diversify training materials and training methods. 4) Offer audio or video practice material so as to form a three-dimensional note-taking textbook system, which may hopefully provide some food for thought for the further compilation, development and research of note-taking textbooks.

Published in International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation (Volume 5, Issue 1)
DOI 10.11648/j.ijalt.20190501.12
Page(s) 9-14
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2019. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Note-taking Skill, Textbook Positioning, Note-Taking Theory, Note-Taking Practice

References
[1] Gile, D. Basic Concepts and Models for Interpreter and Translator Training [M]. Amsterdam & Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing, 1995.
[2] Nolan, J. Interpreting: Techniques and Exercises [M]. Tonawanda: Multilingual Matters, 2005.
[3] Jones, Roderick. Conference Interpreting Explained [M]. Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, 2008.
[4] Seleskovitch, D. (1968). L’interprète dans les conférences internationales, Problèmes de langage et de communication. Paris: Minard. English translation (1978). Interpreting for International Conferences. Translated by S. Dailey and E. N. McMillan. Washington, DC: Pen & Booth.
[5] Mikasa, Michaela. Notation Language and Notation Text: A Cognitive-linguistic Model of Consecutive Interpreting [A]. In Yasumasa Someya (Eds.) Consecutive Notetaking and Interpreter Training. New York: Routledge. 2017.
[6] Someya, Yasumasa, A Propositional Representation Theory of Consecutive Notes and Notetaking [A]. In Yasumasa Someya (Eds.) Consecutive Notetaking and Interpreter Training. New York: Routledge. 2017.
[7] Ito, Hiromi, Theory and Practice of Notetaking – Cognitive-psychological Perspective [A]. In Yasumasa Someya (Eds.) Consecutive Notetaking and Interpreter Training. New York: Routledge. 2017.
[8] Wu, Zhongming. Practical Guidance for Note-Taking in Interpreting [M]. Wuhan: Wuhan University Press, 2007.
[9] Zhu, Qianlian. Effective Note-taking [M]. Beijing: People's Education Press, 2009.
[10] Wang, Tao. English-Chinese Interpretation Note-taking Course, Wuhan: Wuhan University Press, 2012.
[11] Gillies, Andrew. Note-Taking for Consecutive Interpreting: A Short Course [M]. Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, 2009.
[12] Wang, Jinbo & Wang, Yan. Characteristics of Interpreting and Interpreting textbooks: Problems and Prospects [J]. Foreign Language World, 2006 (5): 41-47.
[13] Yang, Cheng-shu, Semiology and Conceptual Schema in Consecutive Notes [A]. In Yasumasa Someya (Eds.) Consecutive Notetaking and Interpreter Training. New York: Routledge. 2017.
[14] Wen, Nianfang. Cognitive Analysis and Reflection on Interpreting Note-taking [J]. Shanghai Translation, 2008 (4): 43-46.
[15] Rozan, Jean-Francois. La Prise de Notes en Interprétation Consécutive [M]. Geneva: Georg, translated by Andrew Gillies as Note-taking in Consecutive Interpreting, Cracow: Tertium, 2003.
Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Jing Luo, Xiao Ma. (2019). Reflection on Consecutive Interpreting Note-taking Textbooks Published in China. International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation, 5(1), 9-14. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijalt.20190501.12

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    ACS Style

    Jing Luo; Xiao Ma. Reflection on Consecutive Interpreting Note-taking Textbooks Published in China. Int. J. Appl. Linguist. Transl. 2019, 5(1), 9-14. doi: 10.11648/j.ijalt.20190501.12

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    AMA Style

    Jing Luo, Xiao Ma. Reflection on Consecutive Interpreting Note-taking Textbooks Published in China. Int J Appl Linguist Transl. 2019;5(1):9-14. doi: 10.11648/j.ijalt.20190501.12

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ijalt.20190501.12,
      author = {Jing Luo and Xiao Ma},
      title = {Reflection on Consecutive Interpreting Note-taking Textbooks Published in China},
      journal = {International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation},
      volume = {5},
      number = {1},
      pages = {9-14},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ijalt.20190501.12},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijalt.20190501.12},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijalt.20190501.12},
      abstract = {Increasing international exchanges have made consecutive interpreting more and more prevalent nowadays, and the success of consecutive interpreting activities is, to a large extent, dependent on the interpreters’ memory of the speaker's source information, and in order to do that, interpreters need to take notes in a methodical manner, which helps interpreters to enhance their concentration, activate memory, ensure accuracy, and reduce memory burden, thus improving the overall quality of consecutive interpreting. However, note-taking skills do not receive a fair amount of attention in interpreting textbooks, previous studies on and textbooks of consecutive interpreting usually overemphasize the individuality of the note-taking method and symbols system while neglecting the regularity and universality underpinning the note-taking system. This paper addresses this neglected aspect of consecutive interpreting note-taking textbook research and chooses four major note-taking textbooks published in China, comparing and analyzing their merits and demerits in terms of their positioning, theoretical elaboration of note-taking skills and the choice of note-taking practice materials etc. Four suggestions are presented as the findings of this study: 1). Clarify textbook positioning. 2). Combine note-taking techniques with selected exercise topics. 3). Diversify training materials and training methods. 4) Offer audio or video practice material so as to form a three-dimensional note-taking textbook system, which may hopefully provide some food for thought for the further compilation, development and research of note-taking textbooks.},
     year = {2019}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Reflection on Consecutive Interpreting Note-taking Textbooks Published in China
    AU  - Jing Luo
    AU  - Xiao Ma
    Y1  - 2019/06/11
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    DO  - 10.11648/j.ijalt.20190501.12
    T2  - International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation
    JF  - International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation
    JO  - International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation
    SP  - 9
    EP  - 14
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2472-1271
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijalt.20190501.12
    AB  - Increasing international exchanges have made consecutive interpreting more and more prevalent nowadays, and the success of consecutive interpreting activities is, to a large extent, dependent on the interpreters’ memory of the speaker's source information, and in order to do that, interpreters need to take notes in a methodical manner, which helps interpreters to enhance their concentration, activate memory, ensure accuracy, and reduce memory burden, thus improving the overall quality of consecutive interpreting. However, note-taking skills do not receive a fair amount of attention in interpreting textbooks, previous studies on and textbooks of consecutive interpreting usually overemphasize the individuality of the note-taking method and symbols system while neglecting the regularity and universality underpinning the note-taking system. This paper addresses this neglected aspect of consecutive interpreting note-taking textbook research and chooses four major note-taking textbooks published in China, comparing and analyzing their merits and demerits in terms of their positioning, theoretical elaboration of note-taking skills and the choice of note-taking practice materials etc. Four suggestions are presented as the findings of this study: 1). Clarify textbook positioning. 2). Combine note-taking techniques with selected exercise topics. 3). Diversify training materials and training methods. 4) Offer audio or video practice material so as to form a three-dimensional note-taking textbook system, which may hopefully provide some food for thought for the further compilation, development and research of note-taking textbooks.
    VL  - 5
    IS  - 1
    ER  - 

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Author Information
  • Translation and Interpreting Department, Wuhan University, Wuhan, PR China

  • Translation and Interpreting Department, Wuhan University, Wuhan, PR China

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