ENGLISH-CHINESE /CHINESE-ENGLISHTRANSLATION WORKSHOPS

WORKSHOP OBJECTIVE

WORKSHOP FEATURES

The two English-Chinese/Chinese-English translation workshops (two days of Basic Workshop and two days of Advanced Workshop) are specially designed and developed by the Master of Arts in Translation and Interpretation (MTI) Programme of the School of Humanities (SOH) of Nanyang Technological University (NTU) to enhance government officers’ English-Chinese/Chinese-English translation/vetting skills, which will help ensure quality translations and facilitate effective government communications. The training will also help participants develop critical thinking skills through presentations, discussions, and hands-on practice. English and Chinese are given equal emphasis in terms of source language (SL) and target language (TL).

The workshops explore a wide spectrum of key issues in the field of translation, with a focus on accurately and effectively translating/vetting various genres of materials used in mass communications and internal communications by government agencies, such as news reports, news advisories, commentaries, public speeches, posters, brochures, print and TV advertisements, and video scripts. All the materials for the workshops are carefully selected with the considerations of registers, styles, and topics relevant to the Singapore context.

Each workshop includes case studies, peer review exercises, and scenario-based learning activities. Participants will learn to apply appropriate translation strategies and methods to the practice of translation and reflect on critical translation issues from a theoretical as well as a functional perspective. Upon successful completion of the workshop, each participant will be awarded a certificate.

Conducted by highly trained and experienced professionals engaged by the MTI programme, the workshops provide a theory-informed understanding of translation methods and, more importantly, of how these methods can be applied to improve the productivity and quality of translation output in government agencies.

WORKSHOP CONTENTBasic English-Chinese/Chinese-English Translation Workshop (Day 1):

1. Introduction to Translation and Translation Studies • Divisions in translation studies and nature of translation• Rapid changes in translation studies and translation practices• Understanding translation criteria

2. Translation: Errors and Competence• Translation competence• Qualities of a good translator• Errors in translation (e.g. in posters, brochures, and advertisements)

3. Language, Culture and Translation• Language comparison and translation strategies• Cultural differences and translation strategies• Identity in translation

4. Revisiting Translation Criteria

Basic English-Chinese/Chinese-English Translation Workshop (Day 2):

1. Language comparison and basic translation techniques• Polysemy of English and Chinese words, and translation strategies• Functional differences in parts of speech between English and Chinese, and

translation strategies• Differences in sentence structures between English and Chinese, and translation strategies• Parataxis versus hypotaxis in Chinese and English, and translation strategies

2. An analysis of governmental communication materials and their translation• The skopos (purposes) of texts of different genres• Main types of meaning in language• Language registers and text styles

3. Approaches to translating advertisements and communication materials• Accuracy, clarity, nuance and felicity of language• Differences in syntax between English and Chinese• Common translation issues

4. Trans-editing and news translation• The structure of news• Translating headlines and quotes• Principles of trans-editing

WORKSHOP CONTENTAdvanced English-Chinese/Chinese-English Translation Workshop (Day 1):

1. Linguistic differences• Lexical Semantics – How the meanings of words and the meaning relationships among words

can be viewed and interpreted in terms of translation.• Phrasal/Sentential Semantics – How the meanings of syntactic units larger than a word are

understood from one language to another; the principle of compositionality from translation perspective.

• Pragmatics – How context affects meaning and how meaning can be interpreted in specific contexts or situations; application of the pragmatic principles in language use for the practice of translation.

• Syntactic Structures – The sentence patterns of language; the syntactic complexities and categories of English and Chinese that require different strategies to achieve the meaning match in translation.

2. Cultural differences• Beyond mastery of the two languages (as systems) – Why acute awareness and sensitivity

towards the specific contexts (situational, textual and cultural) of language use are required in handing both source texts (STs) and target texts (TTs).

• Looking at STs and TTs from a cultural perspective – How the underlying (e.g. political or ideological) positions, viewpoints, attitudes, and tones expressed in STs should be interpreted and how they can be expressed in TTs with appropriate consideration given to all crucial and sensitive issues.

• Domesticating versus Foreignising – Under what conditions should domesticating or foreignising be chosen as a translation strategy; what can be lost and what can be gained in terms of cultural value and influence in making either choice.

Advanced English-Chinese/Chinese-English Translation Workshop (Day 2):

1. Translation of sentences• Differences in sentence structure between English and Chinese• Long and complex sentences involving multiple clauses and their corresponding presentation in

the target language• English hypotaxis and Chinese parataxis: Guidelines in sentence and paragraph construction in

the target language• Division, combination, and integration as techniques for the translation of sentences

2. Maintenance of paragraph dynamic • Comparison of translated versions against their original with regards to paragraph organization• Ways to achieve paragraph unity in English and Chinese• Consideration of paragraph dynamic in translation editing/vetting

The topics listed above are subject to change and adaptation based on the needs of the participant

WORKSHOP TRAINERSDr Helena GaoDirector, the MTI Programme, NTUSenior Lecturer, NTU

Dr Helena GAO worked as an Assistant Professor, Lecturer, Associate Professor of English and linguistics in three different universities before she joined NTU in 2006. She has designed and taught 20 courses in Chinese linguistics and translation studies for the graduate and undergraduate programmes at NTU. She has been the supervisor of PhD, MA, and BA students in the fields of Chinese linguistics and translation studies.

Dr Gao is the founding Director of the NTU’s MTI programme and former Director of the Graduate Diploma in Translation and Interpretation (GDTI) Programme. She also worked as a translator and senior interpreter for international collaboration programmes in the early years of her career. She maintains her interest in teaching and supervising students in translation studies and developing her research in bilingual development, with a goal of understanding how translation and interpretation competence can be achieved as a result of the improvement of bilingual competence through conscious learning. The details of her research can be found at http://web.hss.ntu.edu.sg/gaoresearchteam/

Dr Cui FengLecturer, NTU

Dr CUI Feng is a lecturer and the coordinator of the Minor in Translation Programme in the Division of Chinese at Nanyang Technological University (NTU). He received his Ph.D. in Translation Studies from NTU. His research focuses on the history of translation and translation theories. Dr Cui worked as freelance translator for over 10 years before he joined NTU. Apart from the publication of research papers in Translation Studies, Dr Cui has published two translated books and several translated articles.

Dr Cui has accumulated ten years of teaching experience and has been teaching courses for undergraduate students and graduate students, including “Language Foundation for Translation”, “Linguistics, Culture, and Translation”, “Translation: Appreciation, Criticism, and Evaluation”, “Translation Theories”, and “Cross-cultural Communication, Marketing, and Transcreation”.

WORKSHOP TRAINERS

Dr Kuo Szu-Yu AristaAssistant Professor, NTU

Arista Szu-Yu KUO is an Assistant Professor of Translation Studies in the Division of Chinese, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Prior to that, she carried out her PhD studies at Imperial College London and worked as a visiting lecturer at City University London and a teaching fellow at the Centre for Translation Studies, University College London (UCL).

Arista also worked as a freelance translator, interpreter, and subtitler for over 10 years before she joined NTU, and was involved in a variety of projects in diverse fields, including finance, business and commerce, law, politics and diplomacy, innovation and technology, and cultural and creative industries. Her research interests include audiovisual translation, translator training, translation quality assessment, and cross-cultural communication.

Dr Ho Chee LickGuest Lecturer, the MTI Programme, NTUSenior Lecturer, NUS

Dr HO Chee Lick obtained his PhD in linguistics from Kansas University, USA, in 1989. Since 1990, he has been teaching in the National University of Singapore (NUS), first in the Department of English Language and Literature, and currently in the Department of Chinese Studies. His teaching in recent years focuses on cross-cultural communication and translation.

He contributes passionately to literary translation in Singapore, having taken part in a number of major projects including Rhythm: A Singaporean Millennial Anthology of Poetry (2000) and Selected Poems of Pan Shou: With Translations in Modern Chinese and English (2000).

WORKSHOP TRAINERS

Dr Wang ShengyuGuest Lecturer, the MTI Programme, NTU

Dr WANG Shengyu obtained her PhD in English Literature from the National University of Singapore (NUS) in 2008. She began teaching English language and literature and English-Chinese translation as a faculty member in China in the 1980’s. Her scope of teaching in Singapore includes English for Academic Purposes (for postgraduates in NUS), courses in the Minor in Translation Program (for undergraduates in NTU), English-Chinese Interpretation courses (for undergraduates in UniSim), and English-Chinese Interpretation and Integrated Translation Skills (for diploma students in the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce Institute of Business and Confucius Institute). Dr Wang has a proven track record in teaching various courses and is well versed in comparing and contrasting the English and Chinese languages and their related cultures.

Besides teaching translation and interpretation, Dr Wang has been a freelance translator and interpreter for a range of clients, including government institutions, companies, banks, and publishers.

Dr Tham Wai MunGuest Lecturer, Confucius Institute, NTUGuest Lecturer, the MTI Programme, NTU

Dr THAM Wai Mun is a practitioner of Translation and Interpretation for over 20 years, and she is capable of handling a diverse range of subject matters. She has also been working as copywriter & editor for newsletters, annual reports, exhibitions and events.

Dr Tham has provided translation and interpretation services for both public and private sectors, and her clients include National Heritage Board, Singapore History Museum, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, National Healthcare Group, SPRING Singapore, Temasek Foundation, Changi Airport Group, Singapore Cable Vision, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, etc.

Dr Tham has taught courses on translation in various institutions, such as Confucius Institute of NTU, Shanghai Maritime University, Singapore Institute of Management University (UniSIM), and National University of Singapore (NUS).

TESTIMONIALS

WORKSHOP DETAILS

CONTACT INFOEmail: mtiworkshops@ntu.edu.sg | Tel: (65) 6904 7242 | Website: www.mti.soh.ntu.edu.sgMaster of Arts in Translation and Interpretation ProgrammeSchool of Humanities, Nanyang Technological UniversityHSS-02-19, 14 Nanyang Drive, Singapore 637332

WORKSHOP DATES, TIME & VENUEBasic Workshop: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm, 19th & 20th June, 2018Advanced Workshop: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm, 21st & 22nd June, 2018NTU@one-north Executive Centre, SR902 (Seminar Room 902 on Level 9)11 Slim Barracks Rise (off North Buona Vista Road), Singapore 138664*The next run of the translation workshops will be held tentatively at the end of November, 2018.

The materials were very good and relevant. I gained a lot from the trainer’s presentation

and insightful explanation. Will surely recommend the course

to my colleagues.

The sharing of translation theories

illuminates the path of translation.

The pace and the localization of examples,

the practicality of the entire course is really worth our time here.

Thank you.

The practice exercises are the best, especially

when the instructor provided constructive

feedback on the translated texts.

The knowledge is very useful for marketing

and programme development staff.

Advanced Translation Workshop Registration https://bit.ly/2rybRtM

WORKSHOP FEES & ONLINE REGISTRATION$800/person (for the two-day Basic/Advanced workshop)*Two coffee breaks and a lunch per day are provided.Seats are limited and will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.Please visit the following websites or scan the QR codes to register for the workshops:

Basic Translation Workshop Registration https://bit.ly/2G6xuWy

*Please register with your HR contact information if you are sponsored by your organisation.