Why is the interpreter writing things down?

Interpreters have great memories – right? So why do so many of them insist on writing stuff down? It freaks the non-English (and sometimes the English) speakers out on occasion – perhaps the notes will be passed on to someone who will use the information against them. What’s the deal?

Before we continue, ask yourself: can you do a good job of remembering a message of around 35 words so that you can pass it on accurately to someone else? That’s what we aim for our interpreters to manage as an average, although when there are difficult concepts or precise instructions that number could be too high.

In fact, experienced interpreters usually do have pretty good memories, but even they need to make sure that they’re not going to miss something important. Any user of interpreters knows that accuracy is paramount, and taking notes is one way of being sure the message gets across as intended.

Interpreter note-taking isn’t the same as Police note-taking or student note-taking or doctor note-taking: in these cases all of those people use their notes for future reference, to remember back to the detail much later, to write up case notes, perhaps. For the interpreter the notes are very brief, and useful only in the very short-term. If you looked at an interpreter’s note pad, you would be hard-pressed to read anything meaningful at all – the notes are just memory-joggers. If you asked the interpreter a day later about what was said during the assignment, even referring to their notes they may remember little of the detail.

And that leads on to reassuring clients about interpreters’ notes. They are little use to anyone else, and not much long-term use to the interpreter. However, if you find your non-English speaking client is still worried, you can ask the interpreter to hand over the pages from their notebook before they leave the room. The interpreter will happily consent to having them thrown out or destroyed. Before the interpreting starts, you may like to explain (or ask the interpreter to do so) the reasons for their taking notes.

In the early stages of an interpreter’s experience, they may rely on notes rather more than later. As with any new professional, they’re anxious to do the job well, and may do more writing than you’d like. If you are concerned, ask them – but remember, you rely on them to pass the message on accurately, and at least at the beginning this may be their best chance of doing so.

There’s a fine balance between not enough note-taking and too much, and it can take a little adjusting to get it right. Certainly the taking of notes should not interfere with the interpreting process – in other words, you shouldn’t feel as though you’re having to wait ages for your message to be translated, and nor should your client. If you think it’s getting in the way of the flow, talk to the interpreter to see if things can be improved.

Think of interpreters taking notes as a good sign – an indication that they’re truly concerned about accuracy and doing the job to the best of their ability.