Module Catalogue 2024/25

Pre Requisite Comment

N/A

Co Requisite Comment

N/A

Aims

This module aims to enable students to further develop their professional skills to support interpreting through sight translations of more complex written documents (CILT National Occupational Standards in Interpreting, E1 and E2).

This module is designed for students to develop their professional skills to support translation and interpreting training through sight translation exercises of written documents, from routine to complex texts. Interpreters are often required to produce translations of written documents at sight into spoken language, within the context of an interpreting assignment when one of the users presents a document, such as correspondence, personal status certificates or information leaflets, executive summaries, legal or business letters, medical case studies, or conference papers/speeches. In this module, various sight translation skills and exercises will be introduced to enable students to develop their professional skills for these tasks, from basic to more advanced level.

Outline Of Syllabus

1 Introduction to the Sight Translation – what, why and how. (PIP 2 hours)
2 Reading behaviour and ST – turbo-charge your reading speed for ST. (PIP 2 hours)
3 Segmentation and mark-up (PIP 2 hours)
4 Scanning while speaking. (PIP 2 hours)
5 Pauses and pace (PIP 2 hours)
6 ST directionality (PIP 2 hours)
7 Linear/incremental processing (PIP 2 hours)
8 Complex sentences - adverbials (PIP 2 hours)
9 Complex sentences – modifiers (PIP 2 hours)
10 Idioms in ST (PIP 2 hours)
11 ST in simultaneous interpreting (PIP 2 hours)

Intended Knowledge Outcomes

•       knowledge and understanding of commonly used sight translation practices and strategies;
•       awareness of the distinctions between written and spoken registers (frozen, formal, informal, colloquial
and intimate), styles and implicit discoursal organisation in different topic areas;
•       the cultures of the languages in which to interpret and their conventions for communication, and the
implications of these aspects for the production of sight translations;
•       awareness of research skills and preparation techniques for interpreters;
•       sight translation is a skill in its own right, but also one that helps students develop interpreting
skills.

Intended Skill Outcomes

• the ability to assess and provide a sight translation of the document within a reasonable time.
• the ability to give an accurate sight translation of the contents of the document, including factual
information as well as concepts and opinions, reflecting the language, register and tone used in the
document.
• basic research skills and preparation techniques for interpreters, building up the base of background
knowledge and skills of monitoring, peer- and self-evaluation.
• flexibility in applying different strategies to sight translation according to its different purposes.

Teaching Rationale And Relationship

Sight translation (ST) exercise is a skill in its own right. It is also thought to be a foundation for interpreters’ training and development in interpreting. To adapt different requirements of sight translation for different purposes, its teaching methods has a few focuses as follows,

- Blocked teaching: Different definitions, approaches, techniques are introduced to students for two different purposes of ST. Teaching focuses on the core skills in ST as a skill in its own right. They include speed reading, fast text analysis, segmentation and mark-up. The aim is to have natural-sounding target language production. ST is regarded as a step stone to developing students’ interpreting skills. Therefore, the focus shifts to students’ flexibility in phrase and word class transformation in dealing with the grammatical differences between source and target languages.

- Variety in the topics of class materials: To expand students’ knowledge base as a preparation for all tasks in their programme, the selection of class and self-practice materials has a focus on topical issues, current affairs, and general challenges in the 21st century. To maximise students’ learning efficiency across different modules, the selection of material also takes considerations of the topics of other modules (e.g., translation, consecutive interpreting, etc) in the same week. In so doing, students are exposed to materials with as many different styles, register and formats as possible, and they can increase the width as well as the depth of their knowledge in a particular area.

- Practice under time pressure: To help students in becoming assignment ready and more employable when they finish their module, students are always practising ST under time pressure. This applies to the time for a preview of a text and also to the duration within which they must complete their oral translation.

- Feedback: Feedback is given by the lecturer to every student immediately after their individual performance during the practical session. During this practice, the lecturer always brings students’ attention to the areas where students most often find difficult. Students are also made aware how peer-observation and review is done to have the most constructive group work.

Assessment Rationale And Relationship

The examination assesses key skills introduced to and practiced by students in both English-Chinese and Chinese-English sight translation. A considerable level of attention is paid to the selection of material to ensure that the examination assesses students’ skills, rather than encyclopaedic knowledge per-se. Therefore, the topic of the test material is released in advance for students to prepare for the examination. When the exam material contains very low-frequency words, their target language equivalents may be provided. As one of the intended skill outcomes is the ability to provide oral translation within a reasonably short period of time, a time limit is set for the examination.

General Notes

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