ACHIEVING TRANSLATION COMPETENCE
THROUGH TRANSLATION CLASSROOMS
Maria Agatha Rina Widiastuti
valent.faithfull@gmail.com
Harris H. Setiajid
harris@staff.usd.ac.id; rissetiajid@yahoo.com
English Letters Department, Sanata Dharma University, Yogyakarta
Abstract
Since the world becomes global, international relationship is becoming more and more intense. The world becomes smaller and international community needs a language that can be used as a means of communication. However, for millions of world population to master one global language needs a quantum leap to materialize that dream. In this situation translators are needed to bridge the gap between cultures and countries to ease the flow of communication.
Nevertheless, the number of competent translators is very limited. A competent translator is the one who transfers one language into another adequately, involving not only a mastery of both languages but also an awareness of the diversity of cultures of both languages. For a competent translator, a transfer of language is not the final destination.
To be a competent translator, one must possess procedural and declarative knowledge, they are, bilingual, extra linguistic, instrumental, knowledge about translation, strategic, and psycho-physiological competences, as modeled by PACTE (Process in Acquisition of Translation Competence and Evaluation) 2003.
Universities as education institutions are responsible to supply competent translators who are badly needed. Attempts have begun to create competent translators in many university classrooms across the country. Curriculum is designed to meet the need.
The paper tries to compare the translation competence as modeled by PACTE with the curriculum of translation classes in the English Letters Department,
Introduction
In an era in which the world is getting smaller and more global, communication among nations is getting intense. The need to communicate each other becomes something inevitable. However, the communication which is badly need has to face an obstacle: the diversity of language across the world. To speed up and smoth a communication among nations of different language, therefore, it is needed a person who can bridge the communication gap. The person, who is entitled to a “culture mediator”, is named translator.
In this bilingual communication, the role of a translator is very important. Translators are needed to make the bilingual communication flow smoothly. William Weaver, for example, a well-known translator, translated abundance of great literary texts written in Italian, French, Russian into English. His translations are read by people all over the world so that the texts becomes famous. Weaver’s role does not stop there. His translations eventually are translated by many translators, who do not know Italian, French, Russian, into various languages. Through Weaver then, the people live on one part of the world might understand the text created by a writer who live on the other part of the world.
However, becoming a translator, a competent one, is not easy. Some requirements are needed because the act of translating is not simple. The act of translating works within a framework called “the Translation System”, that is, the system which is “real, and dynamic” which “brings together two separate language system, SL and TL” (Darwish, 1999: 9). In this bilingual communication, the role of a translator is important because s/he becomes the bridge that makes both parties to come to an understanding.
Therefore, producing a competent translators is an urgent task. Universities are then called to contribute in producing competent translators. Curicula are designed to nurture students’ skill in tranlastion. Even in some universities, translation studies becomes an independent department, not only a small part of English Department.
This paper tries to explore the competences that should be mastered by a translator and how the competence can be taught and learned in classrooms of the English Department. A case study is done in the classes of translation in the English Department, Sanata Dharma University, Yogyakarta, to give a clear picture.
Translation Competence Revisited
In essence, translation can be viewed from outside (the user/client) or from inside (the translator). From the outside point of view, translation is considered as a product or commodity, while from the inside point of view, a translation is “a complicated activity of receiving and handling requests to do specific translations, doing research, networking, translating words, phrases, and registers, editing the translation” and many more chores until the translator is getting paid (Robinson, 1997: 7).
The task of a translator as Walter Benjamin puts it is to “express the central reciprocal relationship between languages” (Munday, 2001: 169). The translator becomes the mediator of the two languages who is able to convey the SL sent by sender to the receiver in the TL. The central role of the translator in a bilingual communication has made him/her crucial to the understanding of two different languages and culture. The following diagram pictures the place taken by a translator in a bilingual communication:
Code 1
Channel Channel
SENDER SIG[message]NAL 1 TRANSLATOR
Content 1
Code 2
Channel Channel
RECEIVER SIG[message]NAL 2
Content 2
Diagram 1. Translator as a mediator in a bilingual communication
(Bell, 1991: 19)
Considering the pivotal role of a translator in a bilingual communication, a translator must be equipped with a competence. Beeby and his friends in PACTE Group have tried to model the competence the translators should have in order to translate texts adequately and culturally accepted. Through his research in 1997, Beeby was successful in trying to discriminate and classify the competence that a translator must possess.
Translation competence, quoting Beeby, is “the underlying system of knowledge needed to translate...It consists of the ability to carry out the transfer process from the comprehension of the source text to the re-expression of the target text, taking into account the purpose of the translation and the characteristics of the target text readers” (Beeby, 2003: 92).
According to PACTE, a translator must possess two knowledge, they are procedural (operative) knowledge and declarative knowledge. The procedural knowledge is the “know-how”, while the declarative knowledge is the “know-what”. Therefore, beside knowing “how to translate”, a translator should also know “what translation is”.
The following is a translation competence as modeled by PACTE Group.
Bilingual Extra linguisctic
sub-competence
sub-competence
Strategic
sub competence
Instrumental Knowledgde about
sub-competence translation
sub-competence
Psycho-
physiological
component
Diagram 2. Model of translation competence (PACTE 2003)
From the diagram above, the translation competence is specified into five sub-competencies. The bilingual sub-competence is a procedural knowledge required in a bilingual communication. It is made up of socio-linguistics, pragmatic, textual, grammatical and lexical knowledge in the two languages.
Extra linguistic sub-competence is a declarative knowledge about “the world in general and special areas”. It includes bicultural knowledge (about the source and target cultures), encyclopedic knowledge (about the world in general), and subject knowledge (in special areas).
Knowledge about translation sub-competence is a declarative knowledge about what translation is aspects of the profession. It includes knowledge about how translation functions, and knowledge related to professional translation practice.
Instrumental sub-competence is a procedural knowledge related to the use of communication technologies and tools applied to translation, such as, dictionaries, search engine, transtool, encyclopedias, etc.
Strategic sub-competence is a procedural knowledge to make the translation process controlled. The strategic sub-competence functions:
- to plan the process and carry out the translation project
- to evaluate the process and partial results obtained in relation to the final purpose.
- to identify translation problems and apply procedures to solve them
Psycho-physiological components are different types of cognitive and attitudinal components and psycho-motor mechanisms that affect the translation process.
Achieving Translation Competence through Translation Classrooms
Based on the above competence model, there are some aspects of competencies that can be taught in the class. The competencies can be taught using two methods: theory and practice. Theory is related with the declarative knowledge and practice is related with the procedural knowledge. Therefore, a translation syllabus must cover these two aspects.
The Declarative Knowledge
In translation classes, this knowledge can be gained through the extensive exposure of translation theories. Students must be encouraged to learn the theories very well so that they will arrive at an understanding that to translate well and competently, a translator should also keep in his/her mind that there are some rules or theories that govern his/her activity.
There is an argument that people are able to translate without knowing the theories of translation. This argument is true in a part. However, the proponents of the argument are not aware that when a translator is doing his/her activity, he/she is actually governed by some set of rules of theories, which he/she unconsciously complies with.
The syllabus of the Translation A Class of the English Department, Sanata Dharma University, Yogyakarta is designed in such away that the declarative knowledge takes a certain amount of portion to equip the students with basic declarative knowledge that they can develop by themselves. The alloted time for the declarative knowledge can be seen in the following table.
Table 1. The alloted time for the declarative knowledge
| Week | Basic competencies | Materials | Hours |
| 1 | mention and clarify various concepts of translation | Basic processes of practical translation | 2 |
| 2 | understand and clarify grammatical elements and units of various linguistic levels | Grammatical elements and units | 2 |
| 3 | understand and mention special terminologies in Indonesian equivalence | Terminologies | 2 |
The first 3 weeks of the class dedicated to equip students with some theoretical concepts of translation that can be used as their basic knowledge to further pursue other compotencies. One key concept of translation theories that the students must undertstand by heart is that translation is not only transferring one language into other language, but it must also convey what is inside the language, i.e. cultural aspects. Therefore, students have a certain awareness that when they are translating a text, they are not only changing the language, they must also be responsible to the underlying meaning of the language.
The Procedural Knowledge
In our previous research about students’ expectation towards the translation subject, most students expect to learn how to translate English into Bahasa Indonesia well. When asked “how well”, they answered that at least they know the strategies to translate various English texts into Bahasa Indonesia so that they will have sufficient equipment to be a translator. This will eventually be the same with the choice “to learn how to be a translator”.
The students’ expectation seems worrying because according to ATA (American Translators Association) “completing a translation program does give a student skills but does not provide any assurance that these skills will find a ready market” (our emphasis, Tinsel, 1973 in Hubscher-Davidson, 2007). The ATA further advises “institutions to provide students with as much ‘real-world’ practice as possible” (in Hubscher-Davidson, 2007) to anticipate the uncertain job-market.
Sewell and Higgins (in Hubscher-Davidson, 2007) state that “in recent years universities have been increasingly aware of the needs and practices of professional life”. Consequently, the students expect the course will equip them with the skills needed for their future career. That is why ‘experiencing’ real-life situations with the real life-life tasks is imperative.
Therefore the syllabus of Translation A class is designed in such a way that it provides students exposure to the real-life tasks that force them translate various texts of different contexts and registers, such as legal documents, manuals, fiction, textbooks, academic texts, etc. This course is meant for fourth-semester students whose English proficiency should be in advanced level. The materials include grammatical and cultural difficulties, strategies to overcome difficulties, and translation of texts of different registers. The allocation of time for the procedural knowledge can be seen in the following table.
Table 2. The alloted time for procedural knowledge
| Week | Basic competencies | Materials | Hours |
| 4,5 | adopt the right technique to deal with grammatical problems | Techniques to deal with grammatical problems | 4 |
| 6,7 | adopt the right technique to deal with cohesion problems | Techniques to deal with cohesion problems | 4 |
| 8-11 | apply translation strategies on various different texts | Translation strategies | 6 |
| 12-14 | translate various texts of different contexts and registers | Context-based translation | 6 |
With these exposures of the two kinds of knowledges to the students for one semester, students are expected to achieve translation competences that will be useful for them. The followings are examples of short texts of various registers given to the students to be translated:
1. We cannot accept liability for any resulting loss, damage or expense. Any refund will be to deduction of reasonable expenses. (Extract from ‘Booking condition’ in a brochure from Pan Adriatic Travel).
2. Simmer gently until the peel is nearly soft. (Marguerite Patten: 500 Recipes –Jams, Pickles, Chutneys)
3. Moderate Muslims urged to join war on terrorism (newstitle).
4. When I bathe in Lux, my whole body is caressed by a protective , creamy moisture, leaving my skin silky soft and sensuously smooth. (Advertisement for Lux bath oil)
5. I should also like to acknowledge the assistance of my colleagues, and lastly of my wife, whose common sense have been invaluable throughout. (Acknowledgement in a paper).
Students will get used to the real-life texts so that they will not be surprised when facing real-life jobs in the real-life world. The translation competence nurtured in the translation classroom will equip the students with the useful skill needed in the job market.
Concluding Remarks
In this globalized world, bilingual communication is very essential. A competent translator is needed to bridge the gab between two different languages. Universities as educational institution are responsible to produce competent translators. The competencies can be taught through the exposure of the declarative and procedural knowledge as suggested by PACTE group. The declarative knowledge is related with the theories, whereas the procedural knowledge has something to do with the practice. With these exposures to the knowledges, the students are expected to gain a competence they learn from translation classrooms.
References
Basnett, Susan. 1991. Translation Studies.
Beeby, A., et. al. 2003. “PACTE 2003. Building a Translation Competence Model”. In Triangulating Translation: Perspective in Process Oriented Research.
Bell, Roger T. 1991. Translation and Translating: Theory and Practice. London: Longman.
Darwish, Ali. 1999. Towards a Theory of Constraints in Translation. Unpublished dratf.
Hubscher-Davidson, Severine. 2007. “Meeting Students’ Expectations. Translation Journal. www.accurapid.com/journal. Accessed 13 Feb 2007.
Khan, Khader Nawaz and Mahija Nambiar Veetil. 2006. “Portfolios and Learner Self-Assessment”. Paper presented in TEFLIN International Conference 2006. Salatiga.
Munday, Jeremy. 2001. Introducing Translation Studies. London: Routledge.
Robinson, Douglas. 1997. Becoming a Translator. London: Routledge.
Venuti, Lawrence. 2002. “The difference that translation makes: the translator’s unconsious”. Translation Studies: Perspectives on an Emerging Discipline editor Alessandra Riccardi. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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