Newsletter Policy About Services and Products
We do not accept paid advertisements. Our focus is not on commercial products but practical resources. If you have news that may be of interest to our audience, please send it to INTERSECT.
I Do Not Eat Rocket
Now that the Queen of England has broken the record for a monarch's years of reign there, the U.S. and England are once again two countries divided by a common language.
 
In the case of this article by a British journalist, the language barrier comes down to food. Rocket, for example, is what the British call arugula (a dark green salad plant). I would have failed that translation test...
 
Here are more examples. You can test yourself by covering up the column of your weaker, or non-native, language...
 
U.S.                                                                England
 
Canadian bacon                                          Back bacon
Broccolini                                                   Tenderstem broccoli
Eggplant                                                    Aubergine
Spring onions                                             Scallions
Zucchini                                                     Courgettes
Cookie                                                       Biscuit
Biscuit                                                       Scone
English muffin                                             Muffin!
 
Now enjoy the article: it's a treat!

Speak American
If you're a fan of Sarah Palin, a former U.S. Vice Presidential candidate, perhaps you agree with her statement this week that we all need to "speak American."
 
I don't. Here's why:
 
  1. I was joking in my story above that American and British English are two different languages. "American" is not a language.
  2. One person in five in the United States speaks another language at home.
  3. We are a nation of immigrants--who have made this country a cultural and linguistic treasure.
 
In addition, here is a personal story.
 
Decades ago I was married to a French Canadian. (White.) We lived in Quebec City when it was 96% French speaking. Long before we were married the following happened to him.

One day when he was ten years old, at a train station in Quebec, running around as little boys do, he knocked down a little old lady's packages. Horrified, he picked them up for her and apologized profusely. In French.
 
The little old lady pulled herself up, looked down at him and said in English, in a withering tone of contempt, "Speak white."
 
When I read today that Sarah Palin told us all to "speak American," I shivered.

September 11, 2015
IN THIS ISSUE
QUICK LINKS
NCI
CONTACT US
Address:
Cross-Cultural Communications
10015 Old Columbia Road
Suite B-215
Columbia, MD 21046

Phone: 410.312.5599

Email: Click here


Like us on Facebook     Follow us on Twitter     View our profile on LinkedIn     View our videos on YouTube


BOOK(S) OF THE WEEK
The Community Interpreter®: An International Workbook of Activities and Role Plays
Marjory A. Bancroft, MA, Sofia Garcia Beyaert, MA, Katharine Allen, MA, Giovanna Carriero-Contreras, Denis Socarras-Estrada, MA, Hank Dallmann, MA
Culture & Language Press, 2015

For the fourth time since 2010, we are plugging one of our own books here. Forgive us for being proud of our latest publication!

Authored by six credentialed specialists, this workbook can be used in both in universities and colleges or basic training programs. Educators who need interactive activities focused on interpreter skills building and decision-making will grasp the quality of this work. Interpreters who seek self-study materials will find these activities easy to follow, whether working alone or with "study buddies." (Take a look inside here.)

The core audience for this workbook is community and medical interpreters and their trainers and educators. The activities center on medical, educational and social services interpreting. Legal interpreting is also addressed. 

The exercises here provide opportunities for practice, discussion and insight. Following a carefully articulated pedagogical flow designed for entry-level or early-intermediate programs, the activities are engaging and practical. Because this workbook will be used extensively for medical interpreter education, every activity, exercise or role play that includes non-medical content is immediately followed by a pedagogically equivalent activity with all-medical content.
ON THE CALENDAR
Calling for Papers for..."Non-Professional Interpreting and Translation"
 
No. This is not a joke.
 
It's not every day that you get a call of papers for an "International Conference on Non-Professional Interpreting and Translation"-and the third such conference at that (NPIT3).
 
But check it out. It's a serious conference.
 
It will be held in a suburb of Zurich, Switzerland, at Zurich University's Institute of Translation and Interpreting on May 5-7, 2016. Topics include:
 
  • Language brokering by children
  • Faith-based interpreting
  • Non-professional translation/interpreting in crisis situations and war
  • Interpreting in prisons
  • Training non-professional interpreters and translators
  • Professionalization, certification, and para-professionalism (?)
 
The call for papers deadline is September 30.

Join the Grand Rounds at Christiana

On October 1, in Delaware, Christiana Care Health System will celebrate International Translator and Interpreter Day by holding a full day of interpreting workshops.
 
Topics include ethical case studies, note-taking techniques, interpreting for neurological rehabilitation, with the day "culminating in 'Medical Interpreter Grand Rounds. Advocacy and Mediation for Medical Interpreters.'" (Disclaimer: Marjory Bancroft is the invited speaker for the Medical Interpreter Grand Rounds.)

Register here!  

A Correction We're Happy to Make
Last week we got a call right after the newsletter went out. It came from our first native American trainer for The Community Interpreter®, Armida Hernandez. A certified Spanish interpreter in Mexico, she does not speak Hopi (as I mistakenly said)--but Southern Tiwa.
 
Not Northern Tiwa. She's not fluent in that. Southern Tiwa--a language I'd never heard of until she came to Maryland.
 
I'm excited. At a time when experts predict that half the world's 7,000 languages will be dead by the end of this century, Armida and others keep languages like Southern Tiwa alive. According to a research article published in 2013 (Nordhoff et al), in 2007 this language had only 1600 native speakers--mostly older individuals.
 
More power to you, Armida!

CCC CORNER
Get The Training You Need This Fall!

Yes, the kids are back in school, summer is virtually over and the leaves are beginning to fall -- meaning this is your chance to do something for you! We're offering stellar programs October--November for community and legal interpreters -- plus the corresponding TOTs. See our Fall 2015 Training Calendar for details and course descriptions below.
 
The Community Interpreter® International

Are you looking to use your language skills to work in community settings such as hospitals, social services and public school systems? Then join us for the only national 40-hour program in community interpreting.

Dates: October 16, 16, 23, 24, 31 (2 Fridays, 3 Saturdays)
Time: 8:30am-5:30pm
Cost: $650 (+ $70 language proficiency testing fee)
Registration deadline: October 2
Register here.
 
The Language of Justice

Designed for community and legal interpreters, this unique program enables both groups of interpreters to safely and professionally interpret in legal settings outside of the courtroom. Expand your job opportunities by taking this second-level training program!

Dates: October 26, 27, 28 (Monday-Wednesday)
Time: 8:30am-4:30pm
Cost: $500
Registration deadline: October 12
Register here.
The Community Interpreter® International: Training of Trainers

With over 130 licensed trainers in 28 U.S. states, the District of Columbia and six other countries, The Community Interpreter® is already the leading national 40-hour community interpreter training program. Why not join a growing group of extraordinary professionals?

The program is designed to train interpreters in medical, social services or educational settings -- or can be adapted to focus on any combination thereof (fulfilling, for example, the 40-hour pre-requisite training to apply for national medical interpreter certification).

Join us -- and contribute to the increasing professionalism of our field!

Dates: November 16-21 (Monday-Saturday)
Time: 8:30am-4:30pm
Cost: $2,100
Registration deadline: November 2
Register here.
The Language of Justice: Training of Trainers

Take part in the only training of trainers for an already unique program. Have your interpreters completed a 40-hour foundation program? Then take them to the next level with The Language of Justice. Train your interpreters to work comfortably and safely in legal settings such as: worker's compensation appointments, immigration hearings and attorney-client interviews.

Please note: we only offer this specialized TOT every other year. Register now to reserve your spot!

Dates: October 29, 30 (Thursday-Friday)
Time: 8:30am-4:30pm
Cost: $650
Pre-requisite: previous attendance of The Language of Justice
Registration deadline: October 12
Register here.
CULTURE & LANGUAGE PRESS
For a LOOK INSIDE all our publications visit our sister website: thecommunityinterpreter.com and go to Books and Products.


For more information about Cross-Cultural Communications, please go to our website at: www.cultureandlanguage.net

For more information about The Community Interpreter®, please go to our website at: www.thecommunityinterpreter.com

Sincerely,

Marjory A. Bancroft

Marjory A. Bancroft, CEO & Founder
Cross-Cultural Communications, LLC
10015 Old Columbia Road, Suite B-215
Columbia, MD 21046
Phone: 410.312.5599, Fax: 410.750.0332

                                                     
                                                      Like us on Facebook        Follow us on Twitter        View our profile on LinkedIn        View our videos on YouTube