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Translation Class | ||
 Language Learning Forum : Languages & Work |  | |
| Altaica Triglot Newbie Estonia Joined 4807 days ago 9 posts - 13 votes Speaks: Estonian*, EnglishC2, French Studies: German, Russian | Message 9 of 11 19 March 2011 at 6:05pm | IP Logged | ||
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I've got an MA in written translation. The first term was all about general subjects - eceonimics, law, the EU, the native language, translation theory, philosohy of language, etc. Three semesters were about practical work. We translated texts, sent them in by the deadline (as actual translators do) and got them back later, corrected. As we kind of specialised on three fields - law, economics and technical transaltion - we had three types of texts. We had to translate the texts into our best native language and back up each and every term we had used (internet links, discussions why we had chosen this term or expression). We did peer revising, looked for funnily translated web-pages and other materials and commented on them in class. All in all, I got a really good practical language grasp and writing skills from this programme. The actual work as a translator was something completely else, though. I learned how to use MemoQ, Trados, tagEditor completely on my own. I learned how to deal with crappy texts, killer deadlines and never-happy customers (my secretary knows English- she noticed that you haven't translated this word - why? - I want 25% discount - stuff).
I have given up the profession for now - it's too monotonous for me. I need people around me not the computer and terminology bases. In addition, translators and interpreters are not appreciated in the country where I live and the pay is very low (sth like 5-7 euros gross per 1800 characters). It is probably because every person who knows a little English considers herself a competent translator/ interpreter and ruins the market. 2 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| wenevy Bilingual Pentaglot Newbie China Joined 4872 days ago 28 posts - 36 votes Speaks: Spanish, Mandarin*, Cantonese*, Catalan, EnglishC1 Studies: French, Italian | Message 10 of 11 19 June 2011 at 1:52pm | IP Logged | ||
Thank you so much for the website logo.it! 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| Arekkusu Hexaglot Senior Member Canada bit.ly/qc_10_lec Joined 5176 days ago 3971 posts - 7747 votes  Speaks: English, French*, GermanC1, Spanish, Japanese, Esperanto Studies: Italian, Norwegian, Mandarin, Romanian, Estonian | Message 11 of 11 20 June 2011 at 5:36pm | IP Logged | ||
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I'm skeptical about how translation could help people be better language teachers.
From my experience as a language teacher and a translator, I'd say those professions require very different sets of skills. Good translators can capture the essence and nuances of a message and render that same message in another language while keeping potential cultural differences in mind. They are good, concise writers who are detail-oriented and meticulous. On the other hand, good language teachers understand how spoken language works, how learners learn, how L1 influences L2, etc. They can anticipate learners' mistakes and reflexes because they understands the process. In other words, extensive contact with foreign learners and experience learning a foreign language would be much better exercices than translation. Nevertheless, I think future language teachers would get the most out of a translation class if it forced them to translate into their second language, so that they are made aware of how languages express things differently. This would also give them insight into the sort of problems their students are likely to face. 2 persons have voted this message useful |
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