For the purpose of teaching interpreting it is useful to proceed from the very
basic assumption that what has not been understood can for the most part not be
correctly interpreted. Most students exbibit some weaknesses in tbeir working
languages, and particularly in their passive Ianguages, be they signed or oral
languages. As a result, training should focus first and foremost on honing
comprebension skills before expecting the student to execute simultaneously ali
parts of the interpreting process. This requires, on the one band, a solid
understanding of the interpreting process itself, its cbronology and simultaneity,
as well as the way in which resources are allocated, and, on the other, how
novices approach complex cognitive skills, sucb as interpreting. This article
argues for a systematic initiation to the interpreting skill that reflects the
cognitive requirements of novices on their way to becorning experts.
