NIC PreparationInterview and Performance

UMCP

January 29, 2011

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RID Website Materials

• Historical background of the NIC exam• Sites • Test application• Cancellation policy – regular and

emergency

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NAD-RID NIC Candidate Bulletin

• Test Format – Each task lists knowledge and skills needed. Tasks 6-10 apply more to the performance portion of the exam.

• Test candidates have 5 years from passing the knowledge exam to pass the performance part.

Three LevelsInterview Performance

NIC Pass Pass

NIC High Pass Pass

NIC Advanced Pass High Pass

NIC Master High Pass High Pass

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Extensions & Appeals

• Can be granted for up to one year.• Reason must be a “sudden and unforseeable

traumatic, catastrophic, or incapacitating life altering event.”

• If proper testing procedure was not followed, a candidate may appeal a failure via certified mail. If approved, a retake must occur within a calendar year.

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NAD-RID NIC Suggested Reference Materials

• The complete list is on the RID webpage.

Scheduling an Appointment

• Send in application and payment to RID• Must show proof of degree.• When the Authorization to Test letter is

received, contact a supersite coordinator to make an appointment.

• A list of supersites appears on the RID webpage and in the Views.

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Exam Format

• DVD Orientation and equipment check• Recording of candidate ID• May pick interview or performance first• May sit or stand for entire interview or

performance portion

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Interview Format

• Choose one of five Deaf presenters• Scenarios are also given in printed English

on the screen• Five minute limit• Must sign responses, but signing will not be

evaluated

Rubric

• Three domains – • Identification of the conflict• Construction of a solution• Short and long-term consequences

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Helpful AcronymsPEPSI

• P Problem• E Ethics• P Perspectives• S Solution• I Implications 

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DECIDE

Dilemma – state the conflict between the situation and the interpreter; what is the problem?

Ethic – which part of the CPC apples? do you have other resources? (laws, research, standard practice papers, etc.)

Choices – list the options for possible solutionsImpact – who are the stakeholders? how are they impacted

by the possible choices?Decision – what would you do? (CLEAR decision – this D

does not stand for “it depends”!)Effects – long-term and short-term effects of your decision

(cultural, political, and/or sociological implications) 12

VERSE

• Viewpoints on the problem• Ethical considerations• Resources• Solutions• Effects 

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CPC-ASL

• Conflict• Perspectives• Community Resources• Approach (Solution)• Short-Term• Long-Term

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STAR

• Situation• Tenet and People• Action• Result

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Helpful Hint 1

1.  Remember to include resources in your discussion of the ethical scenarios.  While you do not have to quote chapter and verse from the CPC, it would be helpful to mention how a scenario relates to the CPC.  BTW, being very familiar with the tenets and sub-tenets is a must.  In one of the scenarios, many of you stated that it is against the CPC to perform a certain function, but the CPC specifically allows for this.   It is important to cite at least 2 resources in your discussion of the solution(s).  

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Helpful Hint 2

2.  It is advisable to provide 2 solutions and indicate which one you would choose.  Organizationally, it would work best if you follow each solution to the end, giving perspectives, consequences, etc. of the first before discussing the second.  Save the second as the one you would choose.  

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Helpful Hint 3

.  While I am not a rater, I feel like one after viewing students’ videos!  It is so helpful when you label each part of your ethical discussion identifying the conflict, perspectives, resources, solution 1, perspectives, short term consequences, long term consequences, solution 2, etc.   

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Helpful Hint 4

It’s nice to start the ethical discussion with a confident smile (altho not a cocky smirk!).  David Evans in his workshop tells how he did the same thing, and signed "interesting" before starting his discussion.  Exuding confidence is crucial!  

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Helpful Hint 5

For the performance portions, really try to own the message, so it looks/sounds like a source message.  Being able to self-monitor is a vital skill needed to accomplish this.     

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Helpful Hint 6

The two scenarios we will practice on seem to be pretty good predictors of performance success. Those who did exceptionally well on them scored high in the performance portion. When you go for testing and get your results, please let me know how it went and what your results were.

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Performance Portion

• No separate warm up period• Introduction by the NIC committee• Introductory materials before each of the

five segments. Five minute limit to review materials in each section.

• Becoming familiar with the presenter(s), audience, and written materials.

• More emphasis on voicing.

NIC Performance Criteria• Articulation refers to the production

quality of signing and the production quality of speech that is displayed during the interpretation.

• Affect measures the extent to which the interpretation accurately conveys the speaker’s affect. Affect is the emotive tone used by the speaker and is demonstrated by the speaker’s use of intonation, rhythm and stress, sign size, and non-manual behaviors. 23

• Grammatical Structure measures the degree to which the information in an interpretation is grammatically acceptable in the language choice made.

• Intent measures the extent to which the goal(s) of the source language is represented in the target language. It includes message equivalence and neutrality of the interpretation.

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• Content measures the accurate and consistent interpretation of equivalent information from the source language to the target language. Effective conveyance of information is dependent upon information being conveyed in context.

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• Constructed Action/Dialogue is the identification of who is acting and their actions or who is speaking and their speech. In ASL, this is commonly done through the use of body shifting, eye gaze, facial expressions, sign size and style, head movement and body postures and pauses. In English, this is commonly done through the use of vocal inflection and other modulations, such as speed, style, volume and pausing.

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• Language Match is influenced by the consumer and includes lexical preferences. In the case of multiple consumers of the same language, the language match may also be influenced by multiple lexical and grammatical preferences of the consumers.

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Use of Space is a general category of devices that are used to demonstrate physical and/or grammatical relationships. These devices are frequently influenced by the actual surroundings or through the manipulation of imaginary items in the signer’s environment. Examples of use of space in sign language include: pointing for pronominal reference, movement of the verb to identify the subject and object, and various uses of classifiers. Also included in this category is the use of various strategies for listing items and the possible subsequent comparison or grouping of those items.

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Results Letter

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