Note taking training in studying consecutive interpreting among third year students at felte ulis vnu hanoi

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION TRANSLATION AND INTERPRETATION DIVISION GRADUATION PAP

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION

TRANSLATION AND INTERPRETATION DIVISION

GRADUATION PAPER

NOTE-TAKING TRAINING IN STUDYING CONSECUTIVE INTERPRETING AMONG THIRD- YEAR STUDENTS AT FELTE, ULIS, VNU, HANOI

Supervisor : Nguyen Ninh Bac, M.A

Name of student : Nguyen Hoang Cuc Year of enrolment : QH.F1.2009.E25

HANOI – May 2013

ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ KHOA SỰ PHẠM TIẾNG ANH

HỆ BIÊN DỊCH

KHOÁ LUẬN TỐT NGHIỆP

NGHIÊN CỨU ĐÀO TẠO KỸ NĂNG GHI CHÚ TRONG DỊCH ĐUỔI ĐỐI VỚI SINH VIÊN NĂM THỨ BA TẠI KHOA SƯ PHẠM TIẾNG ANH, ĐHNN, ĐHQG HÀ NỘI

Giáo viên hướng dẫn : Th.s Nguyễn Ninh Bắc Sinh viên : Nguyễn Hoàng Cúc Khoá : QH.F1.2009.E25

HÀ NỘI – THÁNG 5 NĂM 2013

Signature

Nguyen Hoang Cuc

Date: April, 25th, 2013

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to express my special thanks to Mr Nguyen Ninh Bac, my supervisor for his suggestions, useful advice, instructions and his encouragement from the beginning

to the end of my thesis writing process

My thanks also go to Ms Nguyen Cam Linh, Ms Ngo Ha Thu, Ms Nguyen Thi Dieu Thuy, Ms Vuong Thi Thanh Nhan and other lecturers in Translation and Interpreting Division for helping me building the thesis‘s sketch, carrying out the Test and conducting the Questionnaires

I am grateful to all the members of two classes QH.F1.2010.E20 and QH.F1.2010.E21 for their cooperation and enthusiasm during the Test Had it not been for their participations, this thesis would not be completed

I would like express my gratitude to my family and all my classmates, especially Tran Thi Minh for her nonstop encouragement and precious comments in the process of implementing this graduation paper

Without their help, this dissertation would not be accomplished

ABSTRACT

Note-taking is an essential skill to any interpreter in interpretation and especially consecutive interpretation With the hope of figuring out the way to improve note-taking training at universities, the researcher carried out a research on Note-taking training at University of Languages and International Studies among interpreting third-year students With the participation of 46/50 interpreting third-year students, all Questionnaires and notes from the Test on note-taking training have been collected for analysis It is found out that students are aware of some basic features in note-taking but lack the foundation of the theory of note-taking The sessions for teaching of note-taking in class seem to be inadequate There are 14 typical problems based on note-taking theory by Roderick Jones, encountered by third-year students, in which, using few symbols and having no margin are the two most popular ones It is recommended that there should be an official lesson on note-taking theory and lecturers are recommended to spend more time reviewing their student‘s notes

2.2 Note-taking in Consecutive Interpreting 9

2.2.1 Note-taking as one basic principle of Consecutive Interpreting 9

3.4 Data Analysis Method 28

5.1 Overview of the findings of the research 43

5.3 Suggestions for further research and final comments 44

TABLE OF FIGURES AND TABLES

3 Figure 3 - Note-taking language in English recording 34

4 Figure 4 - Note-taking language in Vietnamese recording 34

5 Figure 5 - Proportion of words and ideas that third-year student take note (from

6 Figure 6 - What third-year student write in their notes (from real student‘s

7 Figure 7 - Proportion of note-taking techniques used by third-year students

8 Figure 8 - Proportion of note-taking techniques used by third-year students

Table

1 Table 1 – Types of problem in student‘s note and Proportion of notes having

TABLE OF ABBREVIATIONS

FELTE – Faculty of English and Language Teaching Education

ULIS – University of Languages and International Studies VNU – Vietnam National University

CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION

With the trend of globalization, all nations in the world are increasingly interdependent and the demand for communication among people in different countries is increasing Even though more and more people are able to use English in communication, the language gap remains relatively big in many countries, especially

in developing countries like Vietnam Therefore, interpreters are vital for integration in Vietnam nowadays

Many interpreters originate from students who have chosen interpretation and translation division at universities as the start of their career paths This means the teaching of interpretation and translation at universities is critically important and has influence on a great number of interpreters Nevertheless, studying and teaching interpretation is not an easy task This subject requires not only advanced linguistic skills but also high cognitive strategies, broad background knowledge and quick reaction Additionally, being a fairly new subject in comparison to others, there are a lot of deficiencies in interpretation training areas which need improvement One of those areas is note-taking, an essential skill to any interpreters in interpretation and especially consecutive interpretation Kohn and Albl-Mikasa mentioned the role of note-taking in ―Note-taking in consecutive interpreting‖ – On the reconstruction of an individualized language: ―Note-taking is commonly regarded as some kind of supporting technique, developed by practitioners for practitioners to help them retrieve part of their source text understanding from memory.‖ (n.d., p.257) Realizing the significance of note-taking through theory and personal experience, I decided to carry out a study on note-taking in consecutive interpreting

There have been some research papers of note-taking done by students at University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University Those researches concern issues such as Note-taking skills in consecutive interpreting

by N.T.M Thuong (2005), How does note-taking improve the interpreting students‘ performance by N.T Thoa (2006) and Note-taking problems encountered by third-year students in consecutive interpreting by N.T.M Hai (2010), etc Note-taking, however, has not yet been studied from the point of view of training in class Teachers at ULIS, VNU do spend a great concern on training skills of taking-note in their everyday lesson Even though note-taking is very much a question of personal taste (Jones, 2002, p.44), it is seen to be personal and each person‘s note differs from each other, there are certain principles to follow

With the intention of exploring how students as potential interpreters are taught

to take note and what do they actually get from the lessons, what mistakes are often

committed, ―Note-taking training in studying consecutive interpreting among

third-year students at Faculty of English Language Teacher Education, University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi,‖ has become the topic of this research

1.2 Research Objectives, Research Questions, and Scope of the Study

1.2.1 Research Objectives

With such topic, first of all, major issues concerning characteristics of the taking training in interpretation course for third-year students at the University of Languages and International Studies (ULIS), Vietnam National Universities Hanoi (VNU) are going to be cited Therefore, the interpretation course for students at ULIS, VNU could be improved in terms of note-taking training aspect In addition, the study, which provides a broader view in note-taking training and learning, would help indicating general problems encountered by students in studying consecutive interpreting This will not only shows what students get from lessons in class but also improve students‘ performance in studying interpreting by helping them avoid typical mistakes Last but not least, this study is expected to become a valuable contribution for further study as well as better note-taking lessons in interpreting course at

note-University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National note-University, Hanoi

1.2.2 Research Questions

To achieve these goals, the research aims at answering the following questions:

1 In what way is note-taking taught in class for third-year interpreting students

1.2.3 Scope of the Study

The study could have been done in a large scale in order to have better findings However, due to some limitations such as the researcher‘s lack of experience, difficulties in accessing resources and time limit, the study does not cover all of the concerning issues but the major points relating to note-taking training

At first, the researcher wanted to chose both third-year students and fourth year students studying interpreting at ULIS, VNU, which would provide the research with a more precise result Nonetheless, it was soon found to be difficult to approach forth year students in the intended time for the research due to their own busy schedules Otherwise, third-year students have been introduced to interpretation for one semester They would be the perfect subject to see whether the first part of the training course has the positive influence on students‘ performance or not Hence, the researcher decided to choose a group of 40 third-year students for this study

The study will concern the techniques in note-taking which have officially been taught in class, figure out which techniques are most commonly used and what problems most students encounter during their interpreting practice Hence, the students‘ performance in learning note-taking in interpreting classes could get better and the training of note-taking at FELTE, ULIS, VNU could improve on the strength and shortcomings mentioned in the study

1.2.4 Structure of the Study

Chapter 1: Introduction

This chapter will provide the over view of the study involving the reasons for choosing topic, purposes and the scope deployed for implementation of the research

Chapter 2: Literature Review

This chapter will discuss theoretical background relating to consecutive interpreting, note-taking and training of note-taking in class

Chapter 3: Methodology

This chapter will concern all the methods applied in this research

Chapter 4: Findings and Discussion

This chapter will analyze and discuss from the materials collected to answer for the research questions

Chapter 5: Recommendation and Conclusion

Basing on the findings, this chapter will present the recommendations for improvement of note-taking training and give a brief overview, strength and shortcomings of the thesis

CHAPTER 2 – LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Interpreting Review

2.1.1 Definitions

Interpreting is defined in a variety of ways The easiest way that many scholars use to characterize Interpreting is through Translating According to Munday (2001, p.5), translation is the process in which translator changes an original written text (the source text or ST) in the original verbal language (the source language or SL) into a written text (the target text or TT) in a different verbal language (the target language or TL) In this definition, translation is the activity of re-express the text in a different language called target language in written form Another description of translation is given by Catford (1965, p.1): ―Operation performed on languages, a process of substituting a text in one language for a text in another.‖ From these two definitions, translation relates to the act of writing and its subject is written texts Hence, interpretation can be simply understood as ―immediate oral translation‖ (Jones, 2002, p.3), which means interpretation relates to the act of speaking and its subject is usually speeches

A more detailed characterization of interpretation can be found in the postgraduate research tittled ―Note-taking in consecutive interpreting‖: Interpretation

is not a matter of substituting words in one language for words in another It is a matter

of understanding the thought expressed in one language and then explaining it using the resources and cultural nuances of another language so they can express the source text or speech so that it sounds natural in the target language (Lisianti, 2010, p.2) Being expressed not in written but spoken form, the function of communication of interpreting is much more obvious than that of translating While translators have plenty of time to naturalize his/ her version, interpreters have only less than a second

In short, the interpretation must be produced not only instantly but also precisely and naturally

2.1.2 Modalities of Interpreting

There is not a single way to classify interpreting genres However, many famous references share the same categorization The classification in ―Liaison Interpreting – A Handbook‖ is a typical example: ―There are two basic modes, in which interpreting is performed, the first being consecutive interpreting and the second, simultaneous‖ (Gentile, Ozolins, Vasilakakos, Ko & Ton-That, 1996, p.22)

The researcher decided to follow the above way of categorizing as it is well recognized in many sources as well as it is very easy to understand and analyze

 Consecutive Interpreting

Consecutive Interpreting is defined as a process in which the consecutive interpreter ―listens to the totally of a speaker‘s comment, or at least a significant passage, and then reconstitutes the speech with the help of note-taking while listening; the speaker is thus speaking consecutively to the original speaker.‖ (Jones, 2002, p.5)

In other words, in consecutive interpreting, interpreter delivers the interpreted versions during the pauses that the speaker provides during his/ her speech

In the article ―Memory Training in Interpreting‖, Wei HeZhong mentioned Daniel Gile‘s views in his work in 1992 and 1995 that consecutive interpreting is a process consisting of two phases: a listening and reformulation phrase and a reconstruction phase

Phase One: (Listening and Reformulation) I=L+M+N

I=Interpreting

L=listening and analyzing the source language speech

M=short-term memory required between the time information is heard and the time it is written down in the notes

N=note-taking

In this phase, interpreter first, listens to the original speech Then, s/he remembers the information in order to note down key points as well as numbers and so

on Even though short-term memory can well function for some interpreter, if the conference takes too long, note-taking would play a vital role in terms of aiding the memory which could be now overloaded with information This process requires absolute focus because all ear, brain and hands have to collaborate smoothly

Phase Two: (Reconstruction) I= Rem+Read+P

In this Phase Two of Consecutive Interpreting, interpreters retrieve messages from their short-term memory and reconstruct the speech (Rem), read the notes (N), and produce the Target Language Speech (P)

The second phase is the performance of interpreter From the notes and his/ her memory, s/he recalls the message and delivers it in the target language This process requires good and clear voice which is to avoid causing difficulties for the listeners In addition, interpreter‘s public speaking ability is also required because s/he is considered as the voice of the speaker and his/ her persuasion and performance does affect the result of the speech

 Simultaneous Interpreting

Simultaneous interpretation, in one sense ―is the same thing as consecutive interpretation They are the same in that both mean listening, understanding, analyzing and re-expressing.‖ (Jones, 2002, p.66) Most of the required skills for both types of interpreting are similar The process that an interpreter has to be through are also the same, even the order is alike

However, from another perspective, simultaneous interpreting is considered the harder mode of interpreting compared to consecutive interpreting because of ―two added difficulties, an acoustic one and an intellectual one.‖ In simultaneous, the fact that interpreters have to listen and speak at the same time is ―an unnatural activity and

has to be cultivated‖ (Jones, 2002, p.66) It is true that when someone is speaking, his ear must also hear his own voice to control the volume as well as other aspects This action itself makes it terribly difficult to hear the voice of others, in this case, the speaker The thing is that if interpreter fails to hear and understand the speaker‘s next sentence, s/he fails to continue interpreting The second factor given by Jones (2002, p.67) is that interpreter in simultaneous interpreting does not know what the speech is trying to convey and what goals are reached as s/he does in consecutive This definitely causes trouble for interpreter in choosing words, using positive or negative form, etc

Due to the nature of the work which has to be done in simultaneous interpreting,

it is very rare for professional interpreters to listen comprehensively at the same time with producing a perfectly natural interpreted version of the speech As interpreter is required to listen and speak continuously Hence, only the main message is kept in the interpretation in most cases Even so, it is impossible to simultaneous interpret smoothly without years of experience, consistent practice and in many cases, inborn talent For the above reasons, numerous people who see interpreters working in the booths think that being an interpreter is awfully demanding and challenging

Simultaneous interpreting is most common seen in cabin interpretation, in which interpreter sits in a separate cabin, hears the speech through the headphones and simultaneously interprets (Phelan, 2001, p.6) Only the audience with the headphone can listen to the interpretation This mode of interpreting is designed to be as unobtrusive as possible with the hope that everyone will be able to follow the speech

no matter what language is being spoken

Another form of simultaneous interpreting besides cabin interpreting is whispering The intended audience for whispering is much smaller, ranging from one

to three people Interpreter in this case also has to give the interpretation instantly

while listening to the next sentences ―Whispered interpreting or chuchotage is used

when one or two people do not understand the source language‖ (Phelan, 2001, p.12)

In other words, whispered interpreting is often used when only a limited number of people do not speak the language that the majority does

2.2.1 Note-taking as one basic principle of Consecutive Interpreting

As mentioned above, although short-term memory is the key point for a good interpreter, no one can deny the importance of note-taking in consecutive interpreting

In a long conference, using only short-term memory can easily lead to memory being over loaded with information If this happens, interpreter will probably perform less professionally and even fail to interpret Note-taking is usually seen as a useful aid for any interpreter, from new practitioners to senior ones

First of all, note-taking helps interpreter relieve the memory as cited in the previous paragraph Remembering all the information in the speech is hardly possible because short-term memory lasts only for a limited amount of time By recording the specific details and data such as numbers, ―proper names‖, figures, lists, technical or specialized terms, etc notes release interpreter from bearing very detail in his/her mind Moreover, taking note improves concentration; helps avoid distraction, hence, improve the understanding of the speech Thirdly, with notes, the main ideas, the secondary elements and the links among them become clear and easier for interpreter to follow in his/her re-expression of the speech

In order to achieve the above goals there are three basic principles identified that are largely undisputed in specialist literature (Kohn, n.d., p.258):

- Economy: to minimise the processing effort any notation should be as scarce and brief as possible

- Instantaneous seizability: the strain on the memory can be effectively relieved only if interpreter can read the notes at a glance

- Individuality: note-taking is not governed by any obligatory rules or regulations Generally speaking, anything that supports its function or that is subjectively felt to do so is admissible

The fact that taking note is very personal and does not need any rule to follow is claimed not only in the above principles but also in other materials such as ―The Interpreter Resources‖: Practicing interpreters develop their own techniques for note-taking (Phelan, 2001, p.9) All the qualifications that notes need to meet are short, easy-to-read and flexible

In short, note-taking is very supportive Both the content and structure of a speech are clearly reflected in notes, and the notes in turn are used to re-express the original speech

2.2.2 Note-taking techniques

 What to note

It is obvious that interpreter cannot and should not take note of everything s/he hears from the speech In many references, interpreters are not encouraged to notes as much as possible either By paying too much attention on taking note, interpreter will probably miss the information and more dangerously, fail to understand the logical flow of the speech

The question here is ―What should we note?‖ According to Phelan (2001, 12) answering such question is not hard at all We should note main ideas rather than the exact words used Some people might suppose that the main ideas will be remembered anyway so there is no need to note them down Jones (2002, p.41-44) argued that the notes used for main ideas are not made to help interpreter with the skeleton outline of the speech but to reproduce the speech without faltering, moving swiftly to one idea to the next without having to search in their mind for the next idea And notes are also a record of each idea in detail The danger in taking note of all the

p.10-exact words is that interpreter may fail to understand what is truly being communicated under the surface meaning of the words used Therefore, the interpreted version is likely to be vague and valueless Otherwise, writing down the main ideas in interpreter‘s own words enable him/ her to see if the message is understood by him/

her or not Rozan (2006, p.1) in 7 Principles of Note-taking said that the interpretation

would be even truer since the interpreter must be free of the often misleading constraints that words represent It is through the analysis and notation of the ideas that interpreters will avoid mistakes and a laboured delivery In other words, once interpreters understand the speech, with this first paraphrasing, it would be much easier for the second re-expression of the message In fact, taking-note of ideas requires listening comprehension, which is very helpful for short-term memorizing Once the idea has been recorded into short-term memory, with very little words in notes, the whole sentences still can be remembered and re-expressed

Secondly, it‘s the link between ideas that should be noted down Links are normally short and written in form of ―symbols‖ Why such small details like links are important? The function of links is much significant than how it looks on paper Jones (2002, p.41) explained: With the aid of links in notes, interpreter can identify the separation between ideas to give a logical flow of sentences Knowing the development of ideas is among the most important things in interpreting in general and

in consecutive interpreting in particular Given that interpreters usually have little time for brainstorming of what to say but have to rapidly response to the situation, the links should be able to highlight the logic of the speech Sometimes, the speech is of a complicated topic, which requires full understanding for good re-expression, especially in another language With such kind of speech, links is also helpful in letting interpreters know which sentences support the others and make sentences which seem to be unrelated

Thirdly, notes should contain the point of view being expressed (Jones, 2002, p.41-42) If the speaker added his/her attitude or personal opinions into the speech,

which is not well-expressed in the words themselves, interpreters should have a little notice in the note of that attitude or opinion in contributing to bring to the audience the best re-expression of the original speech In the work of Jones (2002, p.42), he called it the act of delivering the speech faithfully to the audience, which can create better effects for the speech

In addition, the tense of verb and modal verbs should be noted correctly (Jones,

2002, p.42) The tense of verb noted down enable interpreter to have a better idea of

―what happened when,‖ which is so important in any kind of speech Thanks to this, even without the time preposition in many cases, an interpreter is able to infer from the speech what happens before or after the others

Last but not least, any elements such as figures, numbers, dates, ―proper names‖, list of things, etc should be noted precisely (Jones, 2002, p.42) Different from main ideas, which may or may not be noted in the exact words used by speakers and could

be remembered by interpreter effortlessly, the above elements requires accuracy In fact, it is not easy for anyone to remember all the numbers, figures or ―proper names‖, etc at once Moreover, such kind of information does not last long in one‘s memory With little time given, noting them down is a way to relieve memory and enhance precision

All in all, according to the materials mentioned, here are the things that interpreter should bear in mind of what to note in a speech The first thing to be noted down is ―ideas‖ rather than ―exact words used‖ Second, it is links between ideas that should appear in the notes, connecting and separating ideas The point of view given

by the speaker should also be written down as it contributes to faithfulness of the expression Fourth, the tense of the verb and modal verb should also be noted correctly

re-to know ―what happens when.‖ And finally, all number, dates, figures, ―proper names‖, etc should be accurately written in the note for relief of memory Knowing these 4 fundamental things, the act of taking note would become much easier and the notes

would become an effective tool for interpreter Without struggling to take note of everything, interpreter still does not have to worry about lack of information or accuracy

As mentioned in the previous part of ―What to note,‖ it commonly agreed among many researchers that interpreters should note down ideas, not necessarily exact words used And listening comprehension is employed if interpreter would like

to understand ―ideas‖ expressed, which means interpreters should take time for hearing

At the same time, the possibility of interpreters being left behind by the speaker is very high That is why interpreter needs to take note as soon as possible So, when should note-taking be actually deployed?

As cited on many sources, most of the opinions suppose that interpreters in consecutive interpreting should start the notes as soon as possible without having to wait for a complete ―unit of meaning‖ (Jones, 2002, p.61-62) If the wait is prolonged,

it would be very dangerous that interpreter would not be able to jot down sufficiently what has come earlier Hence, the meaning of a sentence which might has not been completed can be sensed or noted down In addition, with taking note early, interpreters allow themselves more time for writing, and even can write the last half of the utterance even before the speaker finish it

However, as note-taking depends on personal styles and can be different among interpreters, it can be inferred that not every interpreter would deploy the same technique of the time to start taking note Some interpreters may prefer taking note when s/he can get the point of the speaker The act of taking note will be performed slower than the suggestion above No one should say this approach is right or wrong as note-taking is very personal and has no fixed rules

The two points of view are pretty different from each other While one suggests that note-taking should be done only when interpreter knows the mentioned idea, the other encourages interpreter to note down as soon as possible It can be assumed that the idea when to note depends largely on interpreter‘s own ability and habit If s/he finds it easier to note instantly, she should take note soon right after the speaker says

If it is s/he finds his/herself perform better with the note of full understanding, s/he should not note too soon

 How to note

Even if all the necessary information is noted down, if the organization of the notes is not logical, it is still hard for interpreter to re-express properly There are some basic principles for How to note effectively:

With such way of noting down, interpreter will be able to build in other details

in the notes if they desire The ―diagonal layout‖ also forces interpreter to separate components of a sentence on a page in a way which avoids all confusion Additionally,

the beginning of each new idea can be clearly marked and notes must be taken in a concise and non-literary manner

For example, here is an extract from the article ―Can you train yourself to get

by on less sleep?‖ posted on BBC:

―We waste a third of our lives sleeping – or that‘s how some people see it When there doesn‘t seem to be enough hours in the day, you yearn to be like the former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who was said to get by on just four hours sleep a night, or the artist Salvador Dali who wasted as little time as possible slumbering‖ (Hammond, 2013)

The note of the above paragraph in other kinds of note might be like:

We waste – 1/3 life sleep (people see)

When not enough hour in a day

Yearn – like – former British PM Margaret Thatcher – 4 hours/ night

Or artist Salvador Dali – slumber as little as possible

This note contains enough information but it has too many words If there is any adjustment that interpreter would like to make, there is too little space for him/her

to write Also, with quick glance, identifying ideas is not easy

The note of the above paragraph in ―diagonal layout‖ would be like:

We

- waste

1/3 sleep (ppl c)

Not enough h/ day

 Like ex Brit PM Margaret Thatcher 4

or Salvador Dali sleep alsap

In ―diagonal layout‖, all components are put in their own positions, which create a short and concise note for easier understanding It can be seen that there are plenty of space for interpreter to supplement or adjust if s/he wishes to such as combining the last three lines into one sentence or make a small symbol for separating the two sentences Furthermore, it is more convenient for interpreter‘s eyes in reading from left to right and top to bottom with the above diagonal lay out (in English, Vietnamese or any language that apply that order.)

 The Left-hand Margin

In co-ordination with the ―diagonal layout‖, in which, components in a sentence are clearly separated The ―left-hand margin‖ would be the perfect space for interpreter

to add any detail to the note as well as the link between ideas Such links are: therefore, thus, hence, thus, thence, consequently, as a result, on the one hand, on the other hand, however, nevertheless, but, yet, and, or etc The link should be noted at the same level

on the page as the subject of the sentence it is introducing If we have the link lying in the left margin, it would be so easy to track the flow of the speech as well as to read back notes (Jones, 2002, p.46)

Let‘s take another extract from the article on BBC for example:

―You might be disappointed to find you need more sleep than you‘d hoped, but don‘t see it as a waste This is time spent valuably allowing your body and mind to function at their best during waking hours It may use up a third of your life, but it makes the other two thirds so much better‖ (Hammond, 2013)

Below is an example of how the ―left-hand margin‖ can be used for links and other elements in a particular note It is noticed that there is a short line for separating ideas and sentences for better effect of the note There are two conjunctions in the above extract, which will be placed in the ―left-hand margin‖ In this case, they are put before the colons

You

Disappointed

More sleep

But: no waste

For mind and body

Function best when wake

1/3 life

but: 2/3 better

 Symbols and Abbreviation

―Symbols‖ and most ―abbreviations‖ are not words ―Abbreviations‖ are words shorted or the combination of the lead letters of phrases or ―proper names‖ While

―abbreviations‖ are in character level, symbol is not A symbol is sign, mark or any simple but not random drawing substituted for a word or phrase

A large portion of notes, as discussed in previous parts, would be in ―symbols‖ and ―abbreviations‖ Due to the fact that these two factors are short and pictographic (especially ―symbols‖), they are employed for more convenience and saving time For instance, in ―7 Principles of Note-taking‖ (2006, p.5), Rozan suggested some simple

―symbols‖ and abbreviation for links in note-taking:

Abbreviation

as, why and that is because, this is the reason why, since, given the fact

that, (in some instances) given that; to convey explanation

tho although, despite the fact that; to convey opposition

but on the other hand, but, nevertheless, however; to convey

limitations

if it is possible that, assuming that; to convey supposition

as to as far as x is concerned, on the matter of; to convey reference

tfe therefore, one can then conclude; to convey conclusion

From the example above, even though interpreter use the symbol  or but to express the idea on the other hand, what is noted down is much shorter than the phrase

yet the meaning is still fully conveyed

Each interpreter can develop his/her very own system of ―symbols‖ and abbreviation The one and only thing that interpreter should bear in mind is that the

―symbols‖ and abbreviation used should be familiar to the interpreter him/herself In addition, once decided to use any abbreviation and ―symbols‖, the interpreter must consistently use it from the beginning to the end of the note-taking All the samples of

―symbols‖ and ―abbreviations‖ to be mentioned below are just suggestion from the related references

o Symbols

Phelan (2001, p.10) in ―The Interpreter Resources‖ showed some useful

―symbols‖ for frequently used expressions:

Symbols of expression

: to express thought or belief

❞ to express what is said, declared or affirmed

ʘ symbol of discussion

OK symbol of approbation

Symbols of movement

→ A horizontal arrow indicates movement or communication

It can also be used to express leading to or providing with

↗ to express increase, development or progress

↘ to express decrease, reduction or decline

Symbols of correspondence

= to imply equality or correspondence

≠ unlike, as against + moreover, in addition

―symbols‖ are simplified, stylized and shortened pictographic signs whose denotational meaning is recoverable from their iconic form

Here are some examples which have the motivations and origins showing why such ―symbols‖ – notation lexeme are chosen:

Interpreter can even combine two or more symbol when necessary:

I

o Abbreviation

For ―proper names‖, interpreters should have certain knowledge of names of famous organizations, titles or ―proper names‖ in order to have short but fully informed notes The below organization names, which is originally long, can be shorten thanks to using abbreviation:

Wildlife Conservation Society WCS

Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources IEBR

Association of Southeast Asia Nations ASEAN

International Monetary Fund IMF

Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI

North Atlantic Treaty Organization NATO

For some certains words, as suggested in ―Note-taking in consecutive interpreting‖ by Pham Hong Hanh (2006), below is a group of principles for abbreviation:

- Write what is heard Interpreter can write a word by recording its sound only

For example: high- hi; know- no; free- fre; fee- fe; night- nite; etc

- Drop medial vowels

For example: build- bld; legal- lgl; bulletin- bltn; save- sv; budget- bjt; etc

- Write initial and final vowels

For example: office- ofs; easy- ez; follow- flo; value- vlu; open- opn; etc

 Languages in which to note

There is a little confusion in choosing the languages in which to note: source language, target language or even some third language Noting in source language helps interpreter avoid being held up or bothered by questions of translation while taking the notes (Jones, 2002, p.60) Such questions of translation are: How to deal with culture-specific words when there are no such words in the target language that interpreter have knowledge of?; Is there any word in the target language for the

―proper names‖ or organizations‘ names in the source language?; or Is there any equivalence of the idioms, popular phrases in the target language for the one used by the speakers; etc Interpreter will reply on his/her own interpreting ability to deal with such issues later in the process of re-expressing The taking note, therefore, will not be burdened with these and to some extent, become easier

However, taking note in the target language also offers interpreter a lot of benefits According to Phelan (2001, p.9), most interpreters take notes in the target language rather than the source language as this approach saves time and effort when the time comes to deliver the interpretation This approach also helps interpreter to make a conscious effort to move away from the structures and expressions of the source language There are always distinctions of grammars, syntax, collocations, etc between the source and target languages In English and Vietnamese, for example, the use of passive voice and noun phrases are different While passive voice and noun phrase are preferred in English, Vietnamese sentences are often in active voice and have verbs rather than noun phrases With notes already in target languages, the interpreting would be more natural and beautiful In addition, interpreter will put him/herself into the mood of interpreting right from the process of taking note, not until re-expressing This can be an advantage because all the information written down has been processed once As a result, what actually are noted down would be ideas rather than words, which is likely to happen in noting in source language Therefore,