Patricia Rodríguez-Inés

Investigating translation competence : conceptual and methodological issues

The PACTE group uses empirical-experimental research methods to investigate translation competence and how it is acquired. This article presents the design of our Translation Competence research project and the first results of a pilot test carried out to evaluate our research design and the instruments that will be used in the experiment. The first results of the pilot test are related to decision-taking in the translation process and the interrelation between the use of internal and external support. The results point to differences in the processes followed by professional translators and other language professionals. Furthermore, the pilot test has proved the reliability of our instruments

Electronic Corpora and other information and communication technology tools

Abstract Integrating corpora and other related Information and Communication Technology (ICT) applications into the translation classroom is not simply about explaining how these tools work or using them to translate. A successful integration requires the acquisition of translation competence in the highly structured and contextualized pedagogical environment that proponents of the task-based approach to translator training advocate. This paper focuses on the development of trainees’ (sub)competence to use electronic corpora to translate, one of the (sub)competences that make up the wider construct of translation competence. The purpose of the article is twofold: to showcase the advantages of using electronic corpora when undertaking a specialized translation project at different levels of linguistic and textual organization and to illustrate how the synergies between electronic corpora/ ICT tools and other instructional resources can be exploited to maximum pedagogical effect. The author begins by placing the (sub)competence to use electronic corpora to translate within the broader conceptual map of translation competence and delimiting its scope vis-à-vis other instrumental competences. This is followed by an explanation of how different types of electronic corpora are currently used in translation teaching, with emphasis on those that, rather than simply furnishing ready-made solutions, encourage trainees’critical reflection. The final section outlines a sample teaching unit on specialized translation in an attempt to illustratehow trainees’(sub)competence to use electronic corpora to translate can be developed in a task-based environment through a number of sequentially interrelated activities involving the use of corpora and other related ICT tools.

Using corpora for awareness-raising purposes in translation, especially into a foreign language (Spanish–English)

Translating into a foreign language is no simple task, but, in Spain at least, it is not uncommon for professional translators to be asked to do so. Translation trainees in Spain therefore ought to acquire competence in translating into the foreign language(s) with which they work, a goal that most of the countrys university translation programmes seek to fulfil. This paper presents a wide range of corpus-based language and translation exercises designed primarily to highlight issues that translating into English entails for non-native speakers of the language, but also to introduce the use of electronic corpora for guidance on language usage (natural equivalents, appropriate collocations, frequency data etc.). The exercises have been designed for native Spanish-speaking trainees translating into English, but are perfectly adaptable to other language combinations.Translating into a foreign language is no simple task, but, in Spain at least, it is not uncommon for professional translators to be asked to do so. Translation trainees in Spain therefore ought to acquire competence in translating into the foreign language(s) with which they work, a goal that most of the countrys university translation programmes seek to fulfil. This paper presents a wide range of corpus-based language and translation exercises designed primarily to highlight issues that translating into English entails for non-native speakers of the language, but also to introduce the use of electronic corpora for guidance on language usage (natural equivalents, appropriate collocations, frequency data etc.). The exercises have been designed for native Spanish-speaking trainees translating into English, but are perfectly adaptable to other language combinations

Competence levels in translation : working towards a European framework

ABSTRACT This paper presents the research project the PACTE group is carrying out on ‘Establishing Competence Levels in the Acquisition of Translation Competence in Written Translation’. A continuation of PACTE’s previous experimental research on translation competence and its acquisition, the project aims to propose level descriptors as a first step towards developing a common European framework of reference for translation’s academic and professional arenas, both of which are represented among its participants. The project is organized into three stages, the first of which involved the production of a first level descriptor proposal, including a three-level scale with sub-levels and five descriptive categories (language competence; cultural, world knowledge and thematic competence; instrumental competence; translation service provision competence; and translation problem solving competence). In the second stage, the proposal produced is to be evaluated by experts from the academic and professional arenas. In the third stage, the data obtained through the expert judgement process will be analysed and the proposal revised. This paper sets out the project’s objectives, our grounds for undertaking it, its conceptual framework and its methodology, as well as the results obtained in the first stage and the future direction of the research.

The TREC network – Past, present, and future inquiries into translation process research

This is an exploratory inquiry into signed language interpreters’ perceptions of interpreter e-professionalism on social media, specifically Facebook. Given the global pervasiveness of Facebook, this study presents an international perspective, and reports on findings of focus groups held with a total of 12 professional signed language interpreters from the United States of America, the United Kingdom, and Denmark, all of whom are also Facebook users. The findings reveal that Facebook is seen to blur the traditional boundaries between personal and professional realms – an overlap which is perceived to be compounded by the nature of the small community in which signed language interpreters typically work –necessitating boundary management strategies in order to maintain perceptions of professionalism on the site. Facebook is considered a valuable professional resource to leverage for networking, professional development, problem solving and assignment preparation, but it is also perceived as a potential professional liability for both individual interpreters and the profession at large. Maintaining client confidentiality was found to be the most pressing challenge Facebook brings to the profession. Educational measures to raise awareness about e-professionalism were generally viewed favourably.The study probes into translation students’ perception of the value of online peer feedback in improving translation skills. Students enrolled in a translation degree in Australia translated a 250-word text on two separate occasions. On each occasion, the students were given another fellow student’s translation of the same text to mark and provide anonymous peer feedback. The original translations from all the students, together with any peer feedback, were uploaded onto an online forum. The students were encouraged to download their own translation to review the peer feedback in it. They were also encouraged to download and peruse other students’ peer reviewed translations for comparison. Upon completion of the project, the students were surveyed about their perceptions and appreciation of their engagement in the process in the following three capacities: (i) as a feedback provider, (ii) as a feedback recipient, and (iii) as a peruser of other students’ work and the peer feedback therein. Results suggest that translation students appreciate online peer feedback as a valuable activity that facilitates improvement. The students found receiving peer feedback on their own translation especially rewarding, as it offered alternative approaches and perspectives on tackling linguistic/translation issues. In comparing the three capacities, students perceived reviewing feedback on their own work and perusing other students’ work as more beneficial than engaging in giving feedback to others.Title: Tarjamat al-khadamaat al-’aammah ( Community Interpreting and Translation) Author: Dr. Mustapha Taibi (University of Western Sydney) Year of publication: 2011 Publisher: Dar Assalam , Rabat (Morocco) ISBN: 978-9954-22-088-7 191 pagesIn this study we examine linguistic features produced by interpreters and deaf bilingual physicians when translating medication instructions from English into American Sign Language (ASL). In the U.S. healthcare system, signed language interpreters are frequently called upon to facilitate communication between deaf individuals who use ASL and their non-signing physicians. A small but growing number of deaf individuals are now pursuing medical training, creating a situation in which deaf patients can communicate in ASL with their healthcare providers. Numerous practical and perceptual barriers affect patients medication intake behaviors, including comprehension, memory of instructions, and language differences between physicians and patients. Research indicates that language concordance increases patients compliance to prescription treatment. It follows that direct communication in ASL between deaf patients and deaf physicians will positively impact treatment compliance of patients and may result in better recall of medical instructions. We examined the linguistic features used in English to ASL translations of two medication directions as produced by experienced ASL-English interpreters (n=3) and deaf bilingual physicians (n=3). Results showed the absence of a standard approach for translating medication directions into ASL; however, both groups incorporated the same linguistic devices to promote emphasis within the translation, including repetition, emphatic lexical signs, and prosodic markers, presumably to promote recall of key concepts by deaf patients. Lexical variability in the translations is discussed, as well as information gaps between the ASL and English versions of the medication instructions. The results hold implications for healthcare professionals, interpreters, and interpreter educators for building effective communication for deaf patients.Accent is known to cause comprehension difficulty, but empirical interpreting studies on its specific impact have been sporadic. According to Mazzetti (1999), an accent is composed of deviated phonemics and prosody, both discussed extensively in the TESL discipline. The current study seeks to examine, in the interpreting setting, the applicability of Anderson-Hsieh, Johnson and Koehlers (1992) finding that deviated prosody hinders comprehension more than problematic phonemics and syllable structure do. Thirty-seven graduate-level interpreting majors, assigned randomly to four groups, rendered four versions of a text read by the same speaker and then filled out a questionnaire while playing back their own renditions. Renditions were later rated for accuracy by two freelance interpreters, whereas the questionnaires analysed qualitatively. Results of analyses indicated that 1) both phonemics and prosody deteriorated comprehension, but prosody had a greater impact; 2) deviated North American English post-vowel /r/, intonation and rhythm were comprehension problem triggers. The finding may be of use to interpreting trainers, trainees and professionals by contributing to their knowledge of accent.The title Conference of the Tongues at first sight raises questions as to the particularities of its pertinence to translation studies, i.e. the range of possible subject matters subsumed, and is somewhat loosely explained in the preface by a short and factual hint to its historical origins (in sixteenth-century Spain in a paratext to a translation of Aesop). There is no further elaboration on the motivation for the choice of this title however.The market for translation services provided by individuals is currently characterized by significant uncertainty because buyers lack clear ways to identify qualified providers from amongst the total pool of translators. Certification and educational diplomas both serve to reduce the resulting information asymmetry, but both suffer from potential drawbacks: translator training programs are currently oversupplying the market with graduates who may lack the specific skills needed in the market and no certification program enjoys universal recognition. In addition, the two may be seen as competing means of establishing qualification. The resulting situation, in which potential clients are uncertain about which signal to trust, is known as a signal jam . In order to overcome this jam and provide more consistent signaling, translator-training programs and professional associations offering certification need to collaborate more closely to harmonize their requirements and deliver continuing professional development (CPD) that help align the outcomes from training and certification.Interpreting is rather like scuba diving. With just a bit of protective equipment, we interpreters plunge for a short time into an often alien world, where a mistake can be very serious, not only for ourselves but for the other divers who are depending on us to understand their surroundings. And as all who dive, we interpreters find this daily foray into a new environment fascinating, exhilarating, but also at times, challenging. One of the high-risk dive sites into which we venture often is the sea of healthcare, where the strange whale-song of medical dialogue, the often incomprehensible behavior of local denizens such as doctors, and the tricky currents of the healthcare system itself require special knowledge and skill to navigate successfully. Did you ever wish for a dive manual for unique world of healthcare? Well, here’s a good one, from linguist, RN and interpreter trainer, Dr. Ineke Crezee of New Zealand.Among all the difficulties inherent in interpreting, numbers stand out as a common and complex problem trigger. This experimental study contributes to research on the causes of errors in the passive simultaneous interpretation (SI) of numbers. Two groups of Italian Master’s degree students (one for English and one for German) were asked to interpret simultaneously a number-dense speech from their respective B language into their mother tongue, Italian. Note-taking was allowed during the test and both the study participants and their lecturers completed a questionnaire afterwards. Data analysis was conducted with statistical and qualitative methods, combining the cognitivist and contextualist approach. The objective was to ascertain whether one main variable may be held responsible for the high error rate related to interpreting numbers and the difficulty perceived by students in the task. The analysis quantifies the relative impact of different causes of difficulties on participants’ delivery of numbers. It stresses the crucial role of the subjective variable represented by interpreters’ skills. Didactic implications and directions for future research are discussed in the conclusion.

Investigating translation competence

The PACTE group uses empirical-experimental research methods to investigate translation competence and how it is acquired. This article presents the design of our Translation Competence research project and the first results of a pilot test carried out to evaluate our research design and the instruments that will be used in the experiment. The first results of the pilot test are related to decision-taking in the translation process and the interrelation between the use of internal and external support. The results point to differences in the processes followed by professional translators and other language professionals. Furthermore, the pilot test has proved the reliability of our instruments