What is a Qualified Sign Language Interpreter?
The goal of interpreting any language, spoken or signed, is to create a successful interaction between parties who do not share, or chose to share, a common language. “The process of interpreting includes taking a source language message, analyzing the linguistic and para-linguistic elements of the message, making a cultural and linguistic transition, and producing the message into the target language” (Alcorn 152). In simpler terms, this means listening to a message in one language, applying linguistic and cultural requirements, and producing an equivalent message in another language. Interpreting involves much more than the ability to sign. Merely knowing both sign language and English does not qualify a person as an interpreter. “Interpreting is a complex process that requires a high degree of linguistic, cognitive, and technical skills” (Alcorn 153). Interpreting involves a complex process, which was explained in the above paragraph. While an interpreter is applying the linguistic
