IT-COMMIT: an interactive tool for community interpreter training

Community interpreters interpret conversations between migrants and professionals in hospitals, public institutions or at asylum hearings. Despite the responsibility of their role, they often receive only basic training in interpreting. As part of the project, an app was developed that uses AI to generate bilingual conversations in 21 languages between two avatars, allowing users to practise interpreting conversations more effectively.

Users actively translate these conversations in one of three realistic scenarios: witness testimony in court, appointment with a GP and asylum hearing. In order to create conversation situations that are as realistic as possible, the app was initially developed for virtual reality (VR).

A user observation with 11 community interpreters showed that the conversations were largely coherent, meaningful and authentic, and therefore suitable for interpreter training. However, weaknesses in user-friendliness were identified. For these reasons, a web version of the app is currently being developed. In addition, its use in teaching will be examined.