ABSTRACT
In this contribution we consider the evolution of the training of sign language interpreters from short courses to interpreter education programs (IEPs). Initially we describe efforts in the European Union and the United States to create program guidelines and then go on to outline innovative curricula and teaching practices that can be found in sign language interpreting (SLI) IEPs. These include blended approaches, discourse approaches, and situated learning. Finally, we outline some of the critical issues that face SLI IEPs such as crowded curricula, the increase in the prevalence of Deaf interpreters, and that of video-mediated interpreting. Ultimately there are fewer differences between spoken and signed language IEPs and PSI practice than many think, although the issue of sign languages being languages of limited diffusion is a spectre that more readily haunts SLI IEPs.
