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² Mentorship Defined  ² Who Qualifies? ² What’s in it for Me? ² How do I Get Involved? ² What’s Expected? ² Training ² Working Together ² Providing Feedback
According to RID, “mentoring is a goal-oriented relationship between two interpreters: a mentor and a second individual…who seeks to learn and grow through association with that mentor…The mentor has more experience, skill or knowledge, either of interpreting in general, or of some specific aspect of interpreting.” The purpose of ACC’s Mentorship Program is to give less experienced Sign Language Interpreters, called “Protégés,” an opportunity to improve their skills through partnerships with more experienced interpreters, or “Mentors.” Through such partnerships, ACC hopes to increase its pool of competent professional interpreters.
Mentors must:
Protégés must be either:
Mentors:
Protégés:
Mentors and Protégés:
Mentors:
Protégés:
All individuals interested in a mentorship at ACC are required to attend a two-day, 15-hour “Mentorship Workshop”. Workshops are offered once a year during the first 2-weeks of August. Both RID and TCDHH CEUs will be provided to all participants. Purpose It is not unusual for interpreters to have many years of experience in the field without having the language to communicate what it is they do. The Mentorship Workshop will provide ACC’s interpreters with the knowledge and skills necessary to talk about their work with other professionals. There will be several activities to promote team building and problem solving. Additionally, participants will have an opportunity to practice what they learn during structured feedback sessions. Topics
Brown Bags Throughout the semester, IS will be scheduling 2-hour mini-workshops called “Brown Bags”. These workshops will cover a variety of interpreting and content related topics and will be free to all ACC interpreters. Similar workshops will be provided on several campuses and dates. Mentors and Protégés are expected to attend at least 2 Brown Bags each semester; however, Protégés are strongly encouraged to attend as many workshops as possible. Most workshops will provide TCDHH CEUs. It is highly recommended that Mentors and Protégés attend the same Brown Bags so that they share a framework and vocabulary for discussions about their work.
Communication The most important trait for any professional is the ability to communicate effectively. How we communicate is not something we are born with; it is rather a set of skills, beliefs and habits that we acquire throughout a lifetime of interactions and relationships. Because communication behaviors are learned, they can be “relearned”, if necessary. During the initial training, Mentors and Protégés will explore their specific communication & personality styles and will use that information to develop a “Communication Action Plan”. To begin thinking about your plan, ask yourself the following questions:
Learning Styles It is not unusual for two people to approach and organize new information very differently. While this may seem obvious in theory, it is easy to become frustrated by those differences in practice. As we become more aware of our own learning styles, we can appreciate the styles of others and find that their learning strengths may compensate for our own weaknesses. Becoming a team In addition to communication and learning styles, adults bring a wide range of life experiences and training to each new situation. How they organize information will be impacted by their prior knowledge. It may also be affected by gender or generation. It is imperative that a Mentor respect the Protégé’s approach to learning. By assuming the Protégé learns in the same way, a Mentor runs the risk of misinterpreting the Protégé’s needs and providing too much or too little feedback and support. Likewise, a Protégé who does not acknowledge the differences may neglect to communicate his/her needs effectively or may even become defensive to feedback provided by the Mentor. By taking the time to learn about each other, a Mentor and Protégé become a team that not only facilitates personal and professional growth but more importantly, meets the linguistic needs of the deaf student.
For many years the interpreting profession has used terms such as “product” or “work” to describe an interpretation rather than focusing on the interpreter as an individual. While this is a noble goal, interpreters continue to have difficulty separating themselves from their work, for there is no denying that our “product” is created in our brains and produced on our bodies as a result of our knowledge and skills. As previously discussed, we should be sensitive to the communication and learning styles of our partners in order to provide feedback that can be readily heard, understood and incorporated. But as professionals, we must be open to feedback and willing to look at our work in order to provide consumers with the most effective interpretation possible. There are simple strategies to help interpreters evaluate their product from a place outside of themselves. Some of these strategies may feel awkward and even humorous at first. With continued practice, however, the act of objectively talking about an interpreter’s work decreases the tendency to personalize feedback and increases the chance of observing patterns within the production. During the Mentorship Training, interpreters will have an opportunity to create a safe environment for observing different interpretations and providing feedback using “Responsible Language” *. Interpreters will practice the following behaviors:
For more information contact the Lead Interpreter at (512) 223-6176 or mgould@austincc.edu Home, Disability Laws, Related Links, Link to OSD, Contact Us |
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