Interpreter training during COVID-19: Emergency remote teaching experiences of trainers

Abstract

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has brought an unprecedented shift to the mode of educational programs, from face-to-face to online, all over the world. Interpreting courses, being no exception, had to face various challenges as well. This study aims to investigate the impacts of emergency remote teaching on interpreting courses from the trainers' perspectives. To this end, semi-structured interviews were conducted online with a study group consisting of 16 interpreter trainers with at least three years of experience in teaching face-to-face at the undergraduate level, who had to move their courses online during the pandemic. Observation, another qualitative method, was used for the second stage of data collection to ensure triangulation. In all, four online interpreting courses held by three different trainers at separate universities in Turkey were observed by the researchers. Data analysis in reflexive thematic form was conducted using the MaxQda software. The findings are discussed with specific emphasis on course design, student motivation, technical challenges, and the additional workload of trainers to inform both in-person and further online teaching practices.