The EMT Translator Trainer Profile Competences of the trainer in translation

Transcription

1 Version 12 September Introduction The EMT Translator Trainer Profile Competences of the trainer in translation This document, produced under the auspices of the European Master s in Translation (EMT), outlines the competences that translator trainer staff should possess or acquire throughout their professional career. The EMT Network is concerned with the training of highly qualified translators. In 2009, the EMT Expert Group published a list of competences for professional translators, experts in multilingual and multimedia communication. 1 These competences provide a framework for the description and development of Master s level translation 2 programmes. They relate to competences that are to be acquired by trainee translators. There are two main sets of participants in the teaching and learning process however: students or trainees, and teachers or trainers. It is now time to consider training teachers/trainers. 3 Very few publications deal with the different areas of competence required in order to be a qualified translator teacher/trainer. We can mention, for example, work by Sonia Colina (2003), Dorothy Kelly (2005, 2008), Daniel Gouadec (2002, 2007), and the project paper by the Consortium for Training Translation Teachers (CTTT). Also of note are the needs analysis carried out in 2009 by Gouadec, and the curriculum of the Postgraduate Diploma in Translation and Interpreting Pedagogy (Macquarie University). What is clear, however, is that training courses for teachers/trainers vary depending on the needs and profiles of particular target groups, for example: language teachers, professional translators, Translation Studies academics, full-time university lecturers, or subject-field experts (lawyers, engineers, etc.). This means that careful attention must be paid to institutional and local contexts. In compliance with local legislation, translator trainers/teachers are expected to possess an academic qualification (e.g. formal requirements depending on national regulations), set at a minimum level of bachelor s degree, and relevant professional practice (e.g. work experience in translation or specialist domain of teaching, e.g. terminologist, monolingual reviewer). Depending on national regulations, teacher training, either as a formal qualification or additional, bespoke, or specialised teacher training relevant to the course(s) taught is highly desirable. Knowledge of Translation Studies scholarship, such as textbooks, research papers, and teaching materials in the field pertinent for any course taught, is equally highly desirable. Any member of staff involved with training translators should have all competences listed in the EMT reference document 4. Where appropriate in terms of teaching 1 The document of the EMT Expert Group (2009) can be found at programmes/emt/key_documents/emt_competences_translators_en.pdf. 2 The definition of translation used here refers to the multiple facets and areas of operation in which translators currently tend to operate and encompasses, without intending to be comprehensive, terminology, localization, multilingual technical writing, and so on. 3 The use of the two terms teachers and trainers here does not imply a particular didactic approach; rather it represents an attempt to overcome the traditional view which sees education and training as polar opposites, a view perceived today as promoting an unhelpful dualism. We recognize the value of training as a subcomponent of a wider conception of education. 4 See Note 1 above. 1

2 roles and allowed by the local legislation, affiliation to professional associations would also be desirable. The following pages set out a general reference framework for competences applied to a translator teacher/trainer staff. A translator teacher/trainer staff is to be encouraged and should aim to acquire the competences proposed in each of the five areas (as well as meeting the fundamental requirements specified above academic qualification and relevant professional practice). Their universities or teaching contexts should support individuals in acquiring these competences. This proposal, however, does not prescribe how, when or where this should be done, because training is a continuous process (you are not at once and forever a teacher, a translator, a Translation Studies (TS) scholar and a course designer). 2 Competences The competences listed below are not presented in order of importance. They have each been classified into one domain for the sake of clarity, although some competences may be argued to belong to more than one domain. In addition, the question of their certification remains open. One of the major objectives of the EMT Network is to promote and ultimately to implement this set of competences. 1. Figure 1. Competences of translator teachers/trainers. Field Competence Ability to perform any task assigned to the students according to the quality standards required in professional practice, in particular, language proficiency and intercultural competences. Knowledge of the professional field including: o Translation-related professions; o Constraints of translation projects (e.g. time/budget/qualities); o Domains of specialization in translation-related professions; o Market requirements; 2

3 o Operating procedures and tools used in professional translation; o TS scholarship and research relevant for the course; o Foreseeable development of the professions. Translation-service provision competence (see Appendix): o Knowledge of the existing standards and specifications; o Ability to critically analyze these standards and specifications; o Ability to perform the tasks and sub-tasks involved in the translation-service provision (including planning, preparing the material for translation, quality assurance, document management, terminology management, etc.). Interpersonal Competence Ability to integrate into a teaching team and work as part of a team. Ability to identify, adopt, apply and critically assess a code of professional ethics for translators and for trainers. Ability to teach students how to apply and critically assess codes of professional ethics for translators. Ability to establish suitable learning environments for students. Ability to manage time and resources. Ability to teach students time and resource management. Ability to manage stress. Ability to teach students how to manage stress. Ability to take decisions and justify them. Ability to train students in decision-making and how to prioritize. Ability to take into account all the relevant constraints depending on the situation, and explain them clearly (specifications, deadlines, budgets etc.). Ability to introduce students to the relevant constraints depending on the situation (specifications, deadlines, budgets, etc.). Organizational Competence Ability to understand students needs and expectations in relation to the overall programme. Ability to design a translator-training curriculum or an understanding of the rationale for an existing translator-training curriculum. Ability to articulate the learning progression assumed by the programme (e.g. as manifested in the order in which modules are taught). Ability to design a course syllabus or an understanding of the structure of an existing course syllabus especially in relation to the EMT competences benchmark. Ability to update the programme or a course in anticipation of and in response to changes to the profession. Instructional Competence Ability to specify the tasks to be performed in relation to each course or module component: o Ability to explain the learning objectives of the subjects taught; o Ability to break down the educational components into tasks and sub-tasks (e.g.: terminography, document mining, quality control) drawing on the relevant theoretical knowledge; 3

4 o Ability to encourage students to become aware of the challenges and issues involved in the task and sub-task in the relevant field(s), e.g. drawing on the relevant theoretical knowledge. Ability to draw up a lesson plan by integrating TS scholarship and research relevant into teaching: o Ability to create a list of all the tasks relevant for a given lesson and organize them in terms of priorities, sequences, time available and overall syllabus; o Ability to create the course or module materials; o Ability to create content and choose the appropriate teaching method (e.g. virtual learning environments, seminars, tutorials, etc.). Knowledge of the findings of translation didactics and the ability to integrate them into training (e.g. ability to use appropriate methods for teaching and learning). Ability to incorporate the process and outcomes of relevant TS research and scholarship. Ability to use existing professional and specialist tools and integrate them into training. Ability to motivate students. Ability to encourage students to develop: precision, a focus on quality, curiosity, learning strategies, and their ability to analyse and to summarize. Ability to encourage students to develop a critical approach during the execution of tasks Ability to stimulate reflective thinking (i.e. self-reflexivity). Assessment Competence Ability to define assessment methods and criteria to evaluate each task relevant to the course. Ability to assess students entry level. Ability to assess student s level of attainment (competences they have acquired and competences they lack in relation to the EMT benchmark). Ability to evaluate a curriculum, syllabus and lesson as a self-reflective practitioner, reassessing practices, knowledge, and competences at regular intervals. Ability to adapt to the results of the evaluation of a curriculum, syllabus and a lesson. References Colina, Sonia (2003) Translation Teaching: From Research to The Classroom, New York/San Francisco: McGraw Hill. Consortium for Training Translation Teachers (CTTT) Project Papers, Available from: EMT Expert Group (2009) Competences for professional translators, experts in multilingual and multimedia communication, Available from: translation/programmes/emt/key_documents/emt_competences_translators_en.pdf. Gouadec, Daniel (1994) qualitrad.net - Projet PERFEQT. Gouadec, Daniel (2002) Profession: traducteur, Paris: La Maison du Dictionnaire. Gouadec, Daniel (2007) Translation as a profession, Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company. Kelly, Dorothy (2005) A Handbook for Translator Trainers: A Guide to Reflective Practice, Manchester: St. Jerome. Kelly, Dorothy (2008) Training the Trainers: Towards a Description of Translator Trainer Competence and Training Needs Analysis, TTR: traduction, terminologie, redaction, 21(1): Available from ar.pdf. 4

5 Macquarie University Postgraduate Diploma in Translation and Interpreting Pedagogy, 5

6 Appendix (see Gouadec 1994) Translation-provision service tasks and sub-tasks: Finding and getting business Negotiating Specifying the translation project File management Managing quality Planning (time, finance, resources) Choosing tools and aids Assigning tasks Optimizing use of resources Quality assurance of the process Preparing the material for translation and setting it up Translation Analysis Information mining Document management Terminography Transfer Indexing Quality control systems Proofreading Revision Tests, on-line Q&A Assessment and response to feedback 6