Litnet

Abstract

This article is the second of three articles in LitNet Akademies reporting on a study from the first author’s PhD dissertation in Translation (Van der Merwe 2025). In this article, cognitive and metacognitive interpreting-learning strategies are discussed as they facilitate task performance and enable learners to coordinate the interpreting-learning process.

Interpreting learners must continuously hone their interpreting skills throughout their careers using learning strategies. Oxford’s (1990) three types of direct (memory, cognitive and compensation) and indirect (metacognitive, affective and social) language-learning strategies are utilised for interpreting. Direct interpreting-learning strategies relate directly to the interpreting process between two languages, while indirect strategies support the interpreting-learning process without necessarily involving interpreting. We propose that language-learning research can reveal insights into learning strategies that can be valuable for interpreter education. The following research question was investigated: To what extent can language-learning strategies be utilised for process-oriented interpreter training?

Two theoretical lenses are thoroughly discussed, namely process-oriented interpreter training and language-learning strategies.

Process-oriented interpreter training investigates the nature of the cognitive processes underlying interpreting. In this section, the following components are addressed: the Effort Model and cognitive load (regarding the extent to which tasks require cognitive resources to be executed); professional and strategic interpreting competence (knowledge that can only be mastered through specialised training); interpreting expertise (with phases beginner, apprentice, journeyman, expert and master); preparation phases and strategies after the interpreting assignment (such as updating the glossary); and simultaneous and consecutive interpreting-learning (strategies) (such as note-taking skills development).

Research on language-learning strategies aims to develop self-regulated learners. This section discusses the historical development of language-learning strategy research (such as early models of the good language learner), and Oxford’s (1990) cognitive and metacognitive language-learning strategies. Oxford (1990) created four categories with 15 individual cognitive strategies in her model: practice, understand and produce messages, analyse and reason and create structure for input and output. The three categories of metacognitive strategies are centre your learning process, manage and plan your learning process and evaluate your learning process, comprising 11 individual strategies.

A qualitative descriptive research methodology was implemented where interpreting-learning strategies were interpreted as a phenomenon using research on process-oriented interpreter training and language-learning strategies. The methodological approach was to theoretically investigate Oxford’s (1990) cognitive and metacognitive language-learning strategies and advancement in process-oriented interpreter training research in order to create an interpreting-learning strategy model. Data collection and analysis were conducted simultaneously.

An interpreting-learning strategy model with 26 cognitive and metacognitive interpreting-learning strategies was motivated from Oxford’s (1990) 26 language-learning strategies using associated interpreting theory and concepts.

With the interaction between cognitive language-learning strategies and process-oriented interpreter training, cognition in interpreting was discussed, referring to components such as effort in the Effort Model and sense according to Interpretive Theory. Cognitive interpreting-learning strategies are used before or during the interpreting task (or throughout life) to process information and facilitate task performance to improve mainly communicative and subject area competence. This enables the interpreting learner to mitigate cognitive load, free up processing capacity for other tasks and extract meaning. In this way, effort is regulated in the Effort Model, items in the Gravitational Model become more available, and meaning is prioritised according to Interpretive Theory.

Furthermore, a definition is provided for each strategy.

Practice

1. Practice purposefully: Practice interpreting and interpreting skills with a goal in mind, such as playing excerpts from a film for twenty minutes daily, stopping it to interpret consecutively, or letting it play to interpret simultaneously.
2. Practice sounds and language forms formally: Practice sounds and language forms such as accent comprehension and pronunciation by saying challenging proper nouns or useful vocabulary out loud, writing it down or recording it in a glossary.
3. Anticipate and learn formulaic language: Anticipate and learn formulaic language and text conventions for application in specific interpreting contexts, such as introductions, toasts, closings, etc.
4. Chunk and recombine: Chunk speech segments by focusing on the key concepts and recombine them using neutral sentence openings and coherent words.
5. Get natural exposure to your working languages: Get natural, passive exposure to all your working languages ​​by reading newspapers, watching television and listening to the radio.

Understand and produce messages

6. Get the idea quickly: Skim through interpreting material such as presentations to identify key concepts and derive the main idea, starting with the who, what and why.
7. Use resources: Use human resources (interpreting colleagues), documents (glossaries and dictionaries), the internet, computer-aided interpreting tools (Intragloss and InterpretBank) and artificial intelligence (ChatGPT, Simplif.ai and Gemini) to facilitate understanding and production.

Analyse and reason

8. Reason fluidly: Reason deductively by selecting pertinent information to reach a rational conclusion, and inductively by applying premises that worked in other circumstances to a new interpreting context.
9. Analyse logical associations: Determine the essence of an expression or text by marking the argument structure (main and secondary ideas) within two minutes.
10. Analyse contrastively: Conduct a contrastive analysis to raise awareness of syntactic and stylistic similarities and differences between the source and target languages using transformation or sight interpreting.
11. Paraphrase: Paraphrase interpreting material such as speeches, TV interviews and presentations to prioritise semantic equivalence.
12. Transfer: Apply skills and knowledge of interpreting task conventions (such as anticipation in sight interpreting) to other contexts (such as simultaneous interpreting).

Create structure for input and output

13. Take notes: Develop a personal note-taking system by creating multi-meaning symbols that include several concepts belonging to the same semantic field.
14. Summarise: Capture the target text concisely, accurately and with maximum relevance by omitting redundant information, such as interpreting 75% of the source text.
15. Emphasise: Use a variety of emphasising techniques (including highlighting and underlining), such as highlighting important information in interpreting material within five minutes.

With the interaction between metacognitive language-learning strategies and process-oriented interpreter training, light was shed on metacognition in interpreting in the form of metacognitive knowledge (declarative, procedural and conditional knowledge) and metacognitive regulation (planning, monitoring and evaluation). Metacognitive interpreting-learning strategies are used before, during and after the interpreting task (and throughout life) to acquire knowledge about the interpreting (learning) process to improve mainly professional and strategic competence. This enables the interpreting learner to control cognitive processes. In this way, metacognitive knowledge (declarative, procedural and conditional knowledge) and metacognitive regulation of such knowledge (with the help of planning, monitoring and evaluation) are promoted. The definitions of the strategies are provided below.

Centre your learning process

1. Get an overview of the work and link it with already known material: Get a comprehensive overview of a key concept or set of material in an upcoming interpreting assignment and associate it with already known material, such as updating a generic glossary.
2. Pay attention: Pay general attention to an interpreting task and ignore distractions (focused attention) by researching one topic, or pay attention to specific aspects of the interpreting task (selective attention) by determining whether performance is aligned with the communicative goal.
3. Delay interpreting in order to focus on active listening skills: Postpone interpreting either completely or partially until active listening skills are better developed by selectively practicing listening comprehension for one hour a day (initially on the gist, later including details).

Manage and plan your learning process

4. Find out about interpreting: Find out how interpreting works by reading books or articles about interpreting models, phenomena, problems, challenges and strategies, and use this information to improve your interpreting-learning process.
5. Organise: Create conditions associated with optimal interpreting-learning and performance by organising your physical environment (such as creating a productive study area) and time management (such as planning logistics).
6. Set goals: Set task-specific short- and long-term goals, such as avoiding the same mistakes in a future exercise or interpreting for a specific number of hours per year.
7. Identify the purpose of an interpreting task: Think about the purpose of an interpreting task by analysing the situation and carefully following instructions on task execution.
8. Plan for an interpreting task: Plan for an upcoming interpreting task by identifying problems, determining competence and complexity, consulting sources, planning time allocation and determining the context.
9. Seek and create practice opportunities: Seek and create opportunities to practice interpreting in natural contexts, such as in the community through internships.

Evaluate your learning process

10. Self-monitor: Identify online comprehension or production errors and decide whether to adjust strategy use, leave the interpretation unchanged, or correct a segment by restarting the sentence or correcting it later.
11. Self-evaluate: Evaluate your progress over time by recording your performance and drawing comparisons to reflect on strengths (e.g. language use) and weaknesses (e.g. delivery).

The study concluded that language-learning strategies can be used extensively for process-oriented interpreter training since Oxford’s (1990) 26 cognitive and metacognitive language-learning strategies were recreated into 15 cognitive and 11 metacognitive interpreting-learning strategies. The proposed research-informed model offers interpreting learners a structured framework within which they can operate both cognitively and metacognitively.

Keywords: cognitive strategies; interpreting-learning strategies; language-learning strategies; metacognitive strategies; process-oriented interpreter training

• This article’s featured image was created by Chalermsuk Bootvises and obtained from Vecteezy.

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