Mediating between discourse worlds: developing the symbolic competence of advanced-level bilingual learners of Japanese through translation

Abstract

This paper explores the role that translation may play in developing the symbolic competence of advanced-level bilingual learners. To this end, it examines how a group of bilingual learners engaged with a translation task that was assigned to them as part of their study in an advanced-level Japanese language class at an Australian university. Analysis of the students’ translations and their translation processes showed that they were engaging in a complex process of intercultural communication that prompted them to reflect on the symbolic dimensions of the text: how the text is framed, how the author is positioned, and how prior discourses shape the production and reception of the text. The paper thus argues that translation may be an effective approach for developing advanced-level bilingual learners’ symbolic competence to mediate between interlocutors who belong to different ‘discourse worlds.’

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