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Sign Language Interpreters A Vital Part of Graduation Ceremonies

Sign Language Interpreters A Vital Part of Graduation Ceremonies

Playing the role of a sign interpretor on stage and being part of DUT’s graduation ceremonies has been the privilege of Nqobile Biyela, a junior Lecturer at DUT’s Media, Language and Communication Department.

Biyela had the expressive task of interpreting the formalities of the first session of the Faculty of Management Sciences graduation ceremony which took place at Crookes Sports Centre, Steve Biko Campus, at 9am. She is studying towards her Master’s degree in Media, Language and Communication at DUT and is currently working on her thesis which is looking into the provision of South African Sign Language (SASL) services at FET Colleges in Durban.

It is believed that there are about 70 million deaf people who use sign language as their first language or mother tongue globally. It is also the first language and mother tongue to many hearing people and some deaf-blind people (tactile sign languages). Each country has one or more sign languages, although different sign languages can share the same linguistic roots in the same way as spoken languages do. The first country in the world where sign language was recognised and passed into parliament was Uganda in 1995.

For Biyela this was her calling. “It’s my privilege and love for this profession which drive me to what I do. Sign language uses manual communication and body language to convey meaning. This can involve simultaneously combining hand shapes, movement of the hands, arms or body, and facial expressions to express a speaker’s thoughts. Being up on stage and interpreting to people looks easy but believe me it is not an easy task,” she said.

She also added that her love for the subject began in 2010 when she first registered to study Media, Language and Communications. After the first lecture, she fell in love with it and has never looked back.

“A parent can be sitting right at the back of the hall and he or she may not be able to hear what is being said, but they can see what is being interpreted, which is why my role is so important to me. Each session, there are two interpreters so we alternate (for each session) as it is physically exhausting. Apart from us, we also have two translators at each session who intrepret from English to Isizulu. There are headphones at the front desk for those who require this service. At each session there are 56 headsets which are available for usage. At Pietermaritzburg’s graduation last week, we had only three headsets that were not used, so it is a vital service at graduation ceremonies,” she added.

Dumiso Zama, who was at the Translation Desk at this session’s graduation ceremony, said there were 47 headsets that were borrowed (for the first session event today).

“To date, this is the highest number borrowed from the three graduation sessions that were already held in Durban last week. Because the headsets are expensive (about R1500 each) visitors (who borrow headsets) need to sign a register and leave their IDs at the desk and return their headphones after the end of each event. So far it has gone very smoothly,” he said.

Also at the ceremony, students were given a motivational talk from the keynote speaker. Addressing the students at the event was Mathuto Motumi; Head of the Office of the Deputy Minister: Women, Children and People with Disabilities. She spoke about work ethics, also reminding graduates that being in a workplace required one to be constantly creative. “Remember that employers are looking at what they can get out of you and not the other way around,” she said. “Know how to manage and conduct yourself well in a work environment. Also set goals for yourself and show your employers what you are made of,” she said.

All-in-all, this session had 419 graduates. Two students received Doctor of Technology degrees in Public Management, three obtained Master of Technology degrees and 152 their Bachelor of Technology degrees. Twelve (12) students graduated cum laude, with three (3) also recieving the prestigious Dean’s Merit Award for Academic Excellence at the graduation ceremony.

– Waheeda Peters

Pictured: Nqobile Biyela, a junior Lecturer at DUT’s Media, Language and Communications Department, doing sign language interpretations at the graduation ceremony.

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