Resource Documents
Reference and Testing Web sites
- Consortium for Language Access in the Courts (CLAC)
This is the site of the Consortium which Pennsylvania joined and whose model was adopted for implementing the certification program. It has many resources for learning about court interpreting and becoming familiar with the necessary knowledge, skills and abilities interpreters must master. Here you will find links to additional sources of information and training.
- Federal Court Interpreter Certification Examination This is the site of the federal certification program. It has valuable information and an oral practice test for the federal examination.
Consortium Practice Exam Kits
Both the All English and the Spanish Consortium Practice Exam Kits come with an instruction manual, a CD with audio files containing the practice exam and hard copies of the test scripts. Both are designed to give candidates an idea of what a real examination is like, explain the scoring methodology, provide a sample passing performance, and allow candidates to make a self-assessment of their skill level and readiness to take a Consortium exam. The English kit is suitable for interpreters of all languages while the Spanish kit is specific for Spanish interpreters.
Self-Study Materials
These companies produce and sell practice exercise CDs, self-study materials, offer training (both on location and online) and resources for preparing for oral exams for interpreters of all languages:
New Jersey AOC Simultaneous Interpreting Practice Exercises
The Language Services Section of the NJ Administrative Office of the Courts produced these practice exercises to help candidates prepare for the oral examination. The accompanying manual provides the necessary instructions in order to obtain the maximum benefit from these exercises. Please follow the instructions to print the manual and download the audio file.
Glossaries
Colleges & Universities
Colleges and universities that offer courses, certificates and training in court interpretation
References
Practical Ideas for Learning about Court Interpreting
In order to learn about interpreting and gain knowledge and information about the kind of skills required in order to become a professional interpreter do the following:
- Become familiar with courtroom settings, procedure and legal vocabulary by visiting your local courts. Observe different kinds of proceedings and practice your interpreting skills by following the hearing and trying to interpret what you hear.
- Watch the local and national news, or TV shows like Law and Order and CSI, and try to simultaneously interpret what you hear. This will give you a sense for the speed required to interpret in the simultaneous mode and the vocabulary you will be expected to master.
- Clip any article on current events or a court case from your local newspaper and have a friend or colleague read it to you while you interpret out loud and record your rendition. Afterward, listen to the recording and take note of any words you missed or did not know. Look the words up, learn their meaning, and repeat the exercise. Practice your delivery so your rendition flows naturally and smoothly without sounding rushed or halting. Repeat this type of exercise as often as necessary with different source material until you can do it without leaving out any content or information while keeping up with the speaker.
- Borrow books from your local library that explain our legal system, the various types of criminal and civil cases and how they proceed through the courts. You can also obtain books about interpreting in legal settings and developing interpreting skills.
- Start developing your own glossaries by keeping track of vocabulary and legal terms you come across in all the previous activities and learn the equivalent meanings of legal terms in your working language.
- Review the Glossary of Legal Termsin this web site to start familiarizing yourself with legal terminology used in the Pennsylvania courts.
Professional Organizations
Professional organizations provide information about interpreting and translation, training resources, workshops and professional development through annual conferences and publications.
Court Interpreter Programs in Neighboring States