Working with interpreters is crucial in a multilingual environment. Knowledge and experience on how to work with an interpreter can be a highly effective tool for you as a client. By taking an active role to facilitate the interpretation process and make the interpreter feel comfortable can help you achieve the goal of communication. Therefore, it is important to maximize the effectiveness of hired interpreters. Here are some thoughts.

1. Choose the right interpreter: Effective interpretation starts by choosing the right interpreter. Ensure that the interpreter has the necessary skills and experience to interpret accurately between the languages involved. Consider their expertise in the subject matter and their cultural sensitivity as well, as these factors can greatly impact the accuracy of the interpretation.
2. Provide background information: Background information such as subject matter, names and titles of participants, context and purpose of the event can greatly help with the accuracy of the interpretation. The more information interpreters have before the event, the better their performance will be. To provide and gather background information is considered a necessity in the interpretation process. To be exact, the interpretation process starts before the event itself.
3. Create favorable environment: Ensure that the interpreter has a clear line of sight and sound to all participants in the conversation. Experienced clients usually treat interpreters with courtesy and thoughtfulness in order to provide a favorable environment for the interpreter to work in. The goal is to help the interpreter enhance their performance and ensure that the interpretation is as accurate as possible.
4. Speak clearly and at a moderate pace: Interpreters must be able to understand the language they are interpreting. Speaking clearly and at a moderate pace can help the interpreter accurately convey the intended message. Avoid using overly complex language, because it can reduce the processing time in interpreter’s brain, help the interpreter render interpretation in an easy and smooth way.
5. Avoid distractions: Interpreters must concentrate to accurately convey both the content and tone of a conversation. Any distractions or interruptions can disrupt the flow of the interpretation process and impact interpretation in a negative way. For instance, if video interferes with audio output, then refrain from asking interpreters to appear on video. Asking interpreters to be on video usually is more distracting than not to be on video. Also avoid any activities that may be distracting, such as talking on the phone or texting.
6. Provide feedback: If there is any confusion or misunderstanding during the interpretation process, it is important to provide feedback to the interpreter. Collaboration rather than confrontation is more conducive to the outcome you would like to achieve in a communication event.

Artificial Intelligence has been in the spotlight. Let’s start with one of the most famous AIs right now, Chat GPT. Currently, it is open for free use to anyone. It is a very versatile AI that can actually have a sustained conversation with the user. All you need to do is simply enter a query and it’ll answer it accordingly. Teachers have begun banning chat GPT due to students using it to write entire essays for them. The fact that students are able to pass it off as if a human actually worked is amazing and also perhaps a little frightening.

How does AI apply to the language industry? AI has always been a constant question mark in the back of our minds especially regarding automatic translations. Now that AI can do so much, is it time for translators to become worried?

Today, translators use machine translation programs such as Trados or MemoQ to give them a baseline to work from, so called post-editing machine translation (PEMT). PEMT can greatly improve translation times especially for longer translations. For translators, it has been recognized as a valid strategy and working method. However as we all know, the translations that machine translation programs produce aren’t perfect. They are often more than not flawed. But what happens if you begin using AI such as Chat GPT which is designed to produce fluent and natural sounding language? Would a translator have a more powerful tool? Or would you have a competitor?

Translators will find that the answer is the same as it always has, ever since machine translation was introduced into the world. A machine will most certainly not remove the need for a translator. Language is always so fluid, full of nuance and possibilities that it’s almost impossible for a machine to pick up on every last detail. On the flip side though, translators may find a new ally with AI as it can cut their work time, allowing them to work on more projects. For example, translators can enter questions into Chat GPT, maybe have it check for fluency or suggest different ways of phrasing things, or even come up with new ideas.

If you’re an interpreter, you probably have even less to worry about. Though AIs such as Google Assistant are popular for quick and easy phrases, it still runs into the same problems as it is pulling from Google Translate. Interpretation especially is a field where accuracy and nuance is important and a lot of that is easily lost with AI translations.

Overall, in the language field, whether the advancement of AI would replace the role of human translators and interpreters is nothing to be concerned about, at least not in our life time. If anything, we should be excited about it. As the technology advances, translators and interpreters may find a powerful ally that will help them advance their work efficiently.

Introduction

Our first blog of the new year includes guest writing from one of our past colleagues, who picked two of his favorite movies of 2022 to review for us. These movies are, of course, fun to watch and come to us highly recommended by our guest writer. But also, as a language services provider and a small business, we like to find bits of ourselves and our work in the things we enjoy. For example, in our first movie, we take great interest in the use of social media and videos, and in the second, we were greatly affected by how the same people can have so many different circumstances.

Scream 5

Scream 5 is not just the latest entry in the Scream series, but also a question. How loyal are fans to a franchise? Though there’s a different director at the helm, the same tone as the other entries in the franchise are present, but with a modern twist.

Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) and her acquaintances, are still being stalked by someone in a Ghostface outfit. This time though, social media is at the center of everything. There are online videos of people complaining about the recent Stab movies (the in-universe movies about the murders in the previous Scream movies), saying that they don’t follow the “right” path. This movie focuses on the opinionated fans who openly complain about the “wrong” directions that franchises have taken.

Overall, this is a movie that anyone who’s paid attention to social media or YouTube in the past decade will have fun watching. It’s not the best movie in the franchise, but it’s an enjoyable one!

Everything Everywhere All at Once

This is probably the most surprising movie of the year. It starts out with an ordinary situation where a family goes to social services for help with a topic. It’s as surprising for the audience as it is for the main character when everything changes in the next moment. Just like someone snapped their fingers, you’re brought through several different dimensions. The fun part? Each dimension has the same characters, but in different roles. In short, it’s a movie centering around a multiverse.

The protagonist is a Chinese-American woman (Michelle Yeoh) who experiences her life in several ways across the dimensions, all with the same people, but always different. The best part about the movie is how it managed to be original, funny, and surprising all at the same time. Your instinct might make you try to relate the movie to all the superhero movies from the past decade or two, but don’t. This is a unique movie that has no comparison, and you’re bound to love it. Also be sure to check out the movie if you’re fans of Jamie Lee Curtis and Ke Huy Quan (best known for his appearances in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and The Goonies)!

With travel restrictions loosening up, it has become less complicated to visit other countries whether that is for work or vacation. Entry restrictions vary by country, but generally, it is best to be fully vaccinated and bring proof of that wherever you go.

Overall, traveling to other countries isn’t as simple a process as it used to be pre-pandemic, however, it is still very much doable. For instance, Japan allows travelers to use their website to go through their customs declaration, immigration, and quarantine. It makes things very convenient because when you arrive, all you have to do is scan a QR code instead of having to take time to go through the potentially lengthy process with an immigration officer.

The only con to this process is that they require you to show you the QR code from the website itself. You are not allowed to screenshot and show the QR code, meaning that you need to have an internet connection. However, as some might know, airport WiFi isn’t exactly the most reliable. This can lead to some frustration, but it is overall a small hiccup in an overall very smooth process.

One other thing to be aware of is the masking culture of the country. Countries like the United States have removed their mask mandate, meaning that you do not have to wear a mask unless you want to. While countries like Japan, still require masks indoors. In general, you should always be on the safe side and wear a mask. Even in Japan, though masks aren’t required outdoors, it’s very rare that you see anyone not wearing a mask.

It’s always best practice to be considerate of others and make them feel comfortable. You can also help other fellow foreigners be sure that they are following local safety guidelines and cultural common sense. As translators and interpreters, we have the advantage of being more aware and understanding of the country whose language we know.

Most tourists will not have that same knowledge. For example, in Japan there is no tipping culture, so it may be strange for tourists coming from countries such as the United States. They also provide storage options for bags, coats, and other belongings. There are some restaurants that provide storage in the benches, but it isn’t immediately obvious to anyone who isn’t looking for it. As a translator or interpreter, you’re in a unique position where you can help them, telling them exactly what needs to be done, and by doing that, you help bridge the gap between two cultures.

However, being a language professional doesn’t mean that you have to spend your entire vacation helping others. You should enjoy your visit by fully enjoying the things in that country that you can’t experience where you live. Just be sure to be mindful of any kind of regional language differences and customs. For instance, in Japan, the same food can have different seasoning and tastes depending on where you are in the country.

Traveling to different countries is a very exciting experience, but be sure to stay safe and courteous no matter where you go.

Happy New Year to everyone from Monterey Language Services! We wish you all the greatest in the coming year – Good Health, Happiness, and Success!

May all the challenges and adventures you tackle give you knowledge and wisdom for the next ones! Please join us in greeting the year 2023 wholeheartedly with all our colleagues, friends, and loved ones! Happy New Year!

Happy holidays from Monterey Language Services! Time flies, we have found ourselves in the holiday season again! This year we would like to shine a light on holidays that take place in December. Let us know in the comments about any others you know about.

Christmas

A major holiday in the US and the world is Christmas, where Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ by giving gifts to friends and family members. It is a great time to remember what to be thankful for, repaying gifts, and giving kindness to others. Being such a significant holiday, December is often filled with Christmas imagery like trees, sparkling ornaments, and songs that fill malls, supermarkets, and radio stations.

Hanukah

Also written as Hannukah or Chanukah, this holiday celebrates the famous story about how, during a days-long fight against Syrian Greeks, candles continued to burn for eight nights rather than just one as was expected. Subsequently, Jerusalem was recovered by the Jewish, and the Second Temple was rededicated to the Jewish people. The significance of the holiday symbolizing resistance and religious freedom cannot be overstated.

Hanukah is observed by lighting the candles. On each of the holiday’s eight nights, one additional candle is lit by the ninth candle, called shamash (“helper” or “attendant”), until all eight candles are lit together on the final night of the celebration. Hanukah has attained major cultural significance in North America and elsewhere, due to often occurring around the same time as Christmas.

Kwanzaa

Like Hannukah, imagery around Kwanzaa also includes candles, one of which is black, three are red, and three are green. The black one, which represents the African people, is used to light the others; red represents the struggle that Blacks have gone through, and the green represents hope and future.

Kwanzaa is actually a newer holiday that began in 1966, created by Dr. Maulana Karenga after the Watts riots in Los Angeles. The holiday celebrates Black heritage and lasts for seven days, with each day highlighting a different principle: Unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith.

Las Posadas

Spanish for “The Inns,” Las Posadas is a Christmas-adjacent holiday that is celebrated in Mexico and some other parts of Central and South America such as Colombia, Venezuela, and Ecuador. The holiday takes place between the 16^th and 24^th, and acts as a reenactment of Mary and Joseph’s journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem, searching for safe lodgings for Mary to give birth to Jesus. The holiday highlights the importance of faith, prayer, and pilgrimages.

The nine days interval for this holiday represents Mary’s nine-month pregnancy. Each night, a child dressed as an angel leads others through the community, where they stop and ask for lodging. When they are refused lodging, those in the procession sing Christmas carols. At the end of every night, after the group is accepted into one of the homes or a church, mass is held, and children break a pinata that is usually shaped like a star—the one that led the wise men to Jesus’s birthplace.

Multi-Cultural Celebration

December is a wonderful month of the year; people from all over the world are taking multi-cultural celebration of holidays. The holidays bond us together as a family, a community, a nation, and even a whole world. Throughout the holidays, we can feel a sense of belonging and reflect on what is important to us. At Monterey Language Services, we will continue doing what we believe in—that is, to help community communication through translation and interpretation. We are thankful for having you to make our work meaningful and enjoyable. Happy holidays from the Monterey Language Services team, we send you our warmest wishes for a wonderful holiday season!

Monterey Language Services is looking for Spanish medical interpreters to provide in-person interpretation services to federally funded productive health care facilities in Richmond and Antioch, CA (2 locations).

We need someone who is living or willing to relocate to either Richmond or Antioch (2 locations) in California for in-person interpretation. Part time, full time, or contract employment are available for six months with possible extension.

If you are available and meet the below requirements, could you share with us your experience, rate, and how far you are from both CA 94804 and CA 94509, so we can follow up with you? You will find our contact information at the end of this post.

If you are looking to relocate, please also let us know. Please also feel welcome to refer colleagues by sharing this post.

Requirements:

1. Have completed 100 hours of CCHI approved interpreter training
2. Experienced with patients who typically have below sixth grade literacy and may also have limited vocabularies
3. Enjoy working with young children and pregnant women/mothers
4. Female interpreters preferred
5. Reliable and committed
6. Work well with others and in a team
7. Professional in conduct and appearance
8. Entry-level is welcome
9. Authorized to work in the US
10. Willing to undergo livescan background check
11. Willing to undergo some training to ensure that all guidelines will be followed
12. Willing to follow hospital immunization and safety procedures

If you are interested, please go to our website and answer the questions about your medical interpreting experience and rate, so we can follow up with you.

https://www.montereylanguages.com/send-a-resume.html

Thank you and we look forward to hearing from you soon!

Often, we at Monterey Language Services are requested to provide interpretation for Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings concerning children’s education in school. Interpreting at these meetings often requires the interpreter to facilitate communication between parents/guardians and members of the specific child’s IEP team, such as teachers or counselors.

As an IEP interpretation provider, we often think about what we can do or what information we can put out to improve the lives of the people we serve. In today’s blog, we will be going over techniques to create a growth mindset in your child, rather than a fixed one.

Fixed Mindset vs. Growth Mindset

Stanford University professor of psychology, Carol Dweck, has written extensively about mindsets and their effect on learning. Carol’s research is often based on the difference between a “fixed” mindset and a “growth” mindset, with “fixed” meaning that the person thinks that their abilities are static and can’t be changed, and “growth” meaning that the person sees setbacks as a chance to learn and improve from their mistakes.

As an example, consider a person who wants to become an artist. She may draw a picture and see only her flaws in it; and any constructive criticism from others makes her think, “I will never be able to get better, unlike the people who have natural talent.” This person would have a “fixed” mindset.

On the other hand, a person with a “growth” mindset would see the flaws and constructive criticism and think, “There is plenty of room for improvement. It might be difficult, but with enough practice and learning, I can become better.” While she might not become the next Michelangelo, this person might find joy in the challenge of improving herself and become a great artist in her own right.

How to Promote a Growth Mindset

1. Praise Effort and Perseverance

Even if your child doesn’t achieve “success” in project or endeavor, it’s still important to praise their attempts at success. For example, say your child wants to read a book aloud, but they read slowly or mispronounce words. It’s the act of doing something, often repeatedly, that allows many of us to improve and hone our skills. Encouraging your child for their effort and perseverance even through failure is vital.

You might do this by giving their efforts genuine interest—such as listening to their reading aloud, or watching them as they paint or color—and saying things like “I’m proud that you don’t give up,” “You’ve improved a lot,” or pointing out specific successes, even minor, like, “Good job on remembering how to read that word!”

2. Teach Leadership and Cooperation

It’s important to remember that, with humans being social creatures, we often have successes, growth, or otherwise positive impacts on ourselves and others through working as a team. While everyone has a different level of comfort with teamwork, teamwork is often a necessary skill in life. Talk with your child about what it took to work in a group, and what they may have done to help take responsibility for their team.

When encouraging leadership, remember that leadership does not correlate 1:1 with authority or a position of power. Rather than praising your child for giving terse, blunt commands, you should praise kindness, calm explanations, or presenting ideas.

3. Encourage Organization and Thoughtfulness

Organization is key in helping your child maintain good habits and mindsets. When a child has good organizational skills, they can keep better track of homework, chores, and the like, which gives them more room to grow. Thoughtfulness and intention are key to starting and keeping good organizational habits. Encourage your child to keep homework in special folders, put clothes away in the correct drawers, or to practice an instrument or sport at routine times, and praise them when they do.

Remember that each child is different. What works for your oldest child might not work for your youngest child, and some might need special assistance if they have a disability. Regardless, remember that your child is growing and learning every day, and that includes making mistakes or not knowing how to do things. Children need not only encouragement, but models to follow. If you’re not particularly good at organization, perhaps your partner or friend is. There’s no harm in asking for help.

While remote interpretation was certainly not unheard of before March 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic greatly increased the frequency of these types of meetings and appointments. Modern technology has incredibly increased the quality in which we can provide interpretations.

Technology can make remote interpretation as easy as 1-2-3, but at the same time, there can be any number of technical problems that can interfere with an interpretation assignment. Even though problems do happen, it’s our responsibility to minimize them. Having the prudency to keep an eye out for any problems and their solutions is a key skill for interpreters and everyone to have in modern days. In today’s blog, we will be highlighting some common connection issues and what to do in those circumstances.

Interpretation Links

Occasionally, the link you use to log into the meeting may be incorrect. The most common scenario is probably due to a separate meeting being created, causing you to wait in an empty room. If you as an interpreter find yourself in this case, it is best to get in contact with the language service provider you are working with as quickly as possible to ensure that you receive the correct link.

Interpretation Times

The appointment time may be mistakenly written by any party involved in the scheduling, causing the interpreter to be either early or late. To prevent this from happening, it is best to set a reminder that’s sent 24 hours before an interpretation event starts, so all parties including the client and interpreter can double-check on the proper start time and the right link.

Updates

Many of us have experienced this situation. As soon as logging into a conferencing application, you were notified that the application requires an update. This can cause you to be nervous about being late to the meeting. Testing your application at least 30 minutes before logging into the appointment to make sure everything is up to date is a good way to ensure that you aren’t affected by any sudden updates.

Sudden Change of Interpretation Methods

For various reasons, there may be a sudden change in the method for remote interpreting, such as resorting to the telephone or another type of video conferencing service. In such circumstances, make sure to keep your email and phone ready and handy to see if any notification of changes come to you.

Power or Internet Fluctuations

Fluctuations in power or internet can be unavoidable and unpredictable. You may be able to circumvent power outages or battery shortage by planning ahead as much as possible. Charge your phone, laptop, and computer fully. Always think of a backup plan. If occasionally, things just can’t be helped. In these cases, be apologetic and contact your language service provider or the meeting host for contingency.

Since the Covid-19 pandemic began, one of the most consistently talked about topics was the vaccine. With Covid-19 so easily transmissible, it was prudent to turn to lockdowns and remote work to prevent the spread.

Remote work deeply affected the language services industry as well, of course. While many translators who already performed their work remotely were able to adapt well, interpreters who were used to going to events in-person suddenly found themselves having to figure their ways around new video or phone systems and rely on their clients’ ability to use technology as well. By now, in late 2022, these interpreters probably have a good handle on remote work now, but we have a hunch that they’re happy about the recent return to in-person meetings and gatherings.

According to USA Facts, 68% of the United States’ population have been fully vaccinated as of November 2022, while roughly a third of the whole population has had a booster dose as well. While 21% of people in the United States seem to have not had any doses of the vaccine at all, the number of those who at least have some protection is still high. While there is still some risk to in-person meetings, the vaccine helps prevent particularly adverse cases of Covid-19.

With the increase in in-person meetings, wherever possible or requested, we at Monterey Language Services like to send interpreters to on-site meetings. In-person meetings provide less of a risk of missing information due to shaky internet connections or not being able to see the speakers clearly, and we fully support that our interpreters go in-person so long as they are vaccinated and feel safe. Many patients need the in-person support of an interpreter so that they feel comforted in a situation that they might otherwise feel very tense in.

We recently posted about sending Spanish interpreters to a school board event, but we also regularly send interpreters to other places as well, such as medical institutions like major county hospitals, children’s hospitals, large medical groups’ health centers, and even clinics under the State of California’s innovative and research contracts. It is our honor and privilege to be able to provide safe service so many community healthcare facilities, and we admire these places for being able to provide safe, clean spaces for staff, patients, and interpreters to interact.