Electronic Corpora and Other Information and Communication Technology Tools

Abstract

Integrating corpora and other related Information and Communication Technology (ICT) applications into the translation classroom is not simply about explaining how these tools work or using them to translate. A successful integration requires the acquisition of translation competence in the highly structured and contextualized pedagogical environment that proponents of the task-based approach to translator training advocate. This paper focuses on the development of trainees’ (sub)competence to use electronic corpora to translate, one of the (sub)competences that make up the wider construct of translation competence. The purpose of the article is twofold: to showcase the advantages of using electronic corpora when undertaking a specialized translation project at different levels of linguistic and textual organization and to illustrate how the synergies between electronic corpora/ ICT tools and other instructional resources can be exploited to maximum pedagogical effect. The author begins by placing the (sub)competence to use electronic corpora to translate within the broader conceptual map of translation competence and delimiting its scope vis-à-vis other instrumental competences. This is followed by an explanation of how different types of electronic corpora are currently used in translation teaching, with emphasis on those that, rather than simply furnishing ready-made solutions, encourage trainees’critical reflection. The final section outlines a sample teaching unit on specialized translation in an attempt to illustratehow trainees’(sub)competence to use electronic corpora to translate can be developed in a task-based environment through a number of sequentially interrelated activities involving the use of corpora and other related ICT tools.

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