The migration challenge in the modern world: the virtual class with the Comillas Pontifical University

On December, 20 the Caspian Higher School of Interpreting and Translation held the last virtual class this year within the project “Dissemination of best practices in conference interpreter training between EU and non-EU languages”. The VC covered quite a pressing issue of today – the migration in the EU countries and the USA. The teachers and the students of the Comillas Pontifical University (Madrid) took part in the virtual class this time, and our MA students had an opportunity to work with the German, French and English languages. Christina Linaae, the German speaker, told about the refugees who arrived in Germany and Switzerland in search for a better life.
The French speech delivered by Florane Arnaud was devoted to the main stereotypes related to migrants. Finally, Gretchen Fernholz told about the ambivalent attitude towards migrants in the USA and the situation unfolding in the country following the presidential elections. The second-year MA students Madina Kudabaeva, Dina Satkaeva and the first-year student Ilya Shuminov gave a consecutive interpretation of the German, English and French speeches respectively.
Every virtual class held within the project “Dissemination of best practices in conference interpreter training between EU and non-EU languages” is devoted to certain interpretation difficulties and the ways to overcome them. This time the VC addressed a very important interpretation challenge – figures. The speakers tried to use as many dates, statistical data, and percentages as possible in their speeches, which made it more difficult for the students to take their notes and do the interpreting. At the end of the VC a trainer of the Caspian Higher School of Interpreting and Translation Elena Yakovleva gave detailed information on why figures make the work of an interpreter more complex and difficult and how to tackle this challenge. The pieces of advice given by Elena Yakovleva were complemented by those of the Comillas Ponifical University trainers who gave advice on how to memorize and note down figures while doing consecutive and simultaneous interpreting.