I led a week-long training session with the help of an interpreter. The audience’s understanding of English varied, and so the interpreter translated my words into Georgian. When you use a second language, your range of expression narrows because you lack all the nuances that your native language provides. And the translation of such non-native speech into a third language can reduce the power of expression further; even a skilled interpreter will inevitably change the meaning.
The trickiest issue, however, was creating interaction. Discussions become very slow when all the contributions have to be translated. I was also caught off balance when a funny story I told was met with silence—until the interpreter finished retelling it in Georgian, at which point people did laugh. This sort of delay hampers interaction, much like asking a question and not getting an answer till the following day.
Fortunately, the subject of my session was online tools and activities, which made it possible to create multi-lingual environments and foster interaction there. At the same time, my week clearly illustrates how essential a solid knowledge of English is, if you want access to global networks. When presenting MIT‘s open learning resources, the deputy director of the Georgian agency commented with wry humor: If we want to keep our jobs, we either have to stop teaching English, or stop teaching anything except English.