At long last, a comprehensive overview and discussion of the demand-control schema (DC-S) and its application to interpreting! I am keenly aware of how much this text will benefit student learning and synthesis of the multi-faceted applications of DC-S to the work of interpreting practitioners. This textbook is a must for every interpreter education program and every interpreter educator.
I am impressed with the logic and organization of the text. Each chapter begins with a listing of the key concepts that will be addressed which I found very useful in moving from chapter to chapter as I searched for specific topics.
The breadth and depth of subject matter addressed is comprehensive. The content is clear and well-written. The range of interpreting practice examples offers clear and meaningful illustration of the concepts being addressed. This too contributes to the readability of the text and makes it fully accessible to both scholars and teachers. The practical, student-centered activities included at the end of each chapter guide students in the application of DC-S to their own contexts and experiences. And, the additional resources interspersed in the text ensure that both scholars and teachers can explore the implications of DC-S for the work of interpreters beyond the limits of the textbook itself.
This text is an important and exciting contribution to advancing the fields of interpreting and interpreter education! Bravo and thank you Robyn Dean and Robert Pollard!
Anna Witter-Merithew, M.Ed.
Director,
University of Northern Colorado — MARIE Center
It’s great to have this textbook for introducing DC-S to interpreters in Japan and other Asian countries who still do not know how to review or to discuss the work they are doing. It really helps to have a comprehensive explanation of DC-S in a single book with concrete examples which are applicable to interpreting situations in Japan as well as in other countries. This textbook provides the reader with all the answers to elements of DC-S that many have only had partial exposure to.
Machiko Takagi
English-Japanese-Japanese Sign Language Interpreter
Instructor, National Rehabilitation Center for Persons with Disabilities
Tokorozawa City, Saitama Prefecture, Japan
This greatly anticipated text by Dean and Pollard is the first book-length treatment of their groundbreaking demand control schema (DC-S). The volume is thoughtful, articulate and well-organized, drawing on the collective wisdom of Dean and Pollard and illuminating their extensive body of innovative work. The DC-S framework is presented in an aesthetically pleasing, highly user-friendly manner. The book provides a definitive roadmap for students, practitioners and interpreter educators and provides a comprehensive and coherent structure for engaging in reflective interpreting practice. The critical thinking activites and case scenarios for analysis that are peppered throughout the text are written in a lively, accessible style, and help to embed the readers’ understanding of DC-S guaranteeing the book’s position on the required reading list of interpreter education programs world-wide. Stimulating and original, Deand and Pollard’s textbook is an invaluable contribution to the field, offering a deeper and more profound understanding of interpreting as a practice profession.
Karen Bontempo, Ph.D
Macquarie University, Australia
This long-awaited textbook synthesizes the work of the authors over many years, where they have evolved their demand control schema through research and consultations with interpreting practitioners and educators. The DC-S framework is widely applied by practitioners and educators alike, and this textbook provides a convenient and well-written overview of all aspects of the schema, with practical applications in the workplace and classroom, through discussion of dialogic work analysis and approaches to supervision, and suggested teaching activities and reflective practice guidance. For people already familiar with the DC-S, this book will become a much loved and invaluable resource; for those who are exposed to the schema for the first time, they will be inspired by the engaging and clear writing style. Once you have begun to apply DC-S to your interpreting practice or teaching, there is no going back.
Jemina Napier, Ph.D
Chair of Intercultural Communication
Heriot-Watt University, Scotland
