INTRODUCTION TO TRANSLATION STUDIES
Sp 391
Professor: Christian Degueldre
Office: Building AL 159
Office Phone: (619) 594-1245
Office hours: Monday 2-3:15pm and online
e-mail: cdegueld@mail.sdsu.edu
Class time: Tuesday 4 pm-6:40 pm
Classroom: LL410 and online
Online modality:
The first 2 weeks [weeks of August 26, September 2] will be taught in the regular
mode in a classroom, the 3rd week [September 9] will be taught in LARC SH205 –
Mac lab- using the technology that will allow us to continue teaching and learning
online. The next 11 weeks of the semester will be taught online in an asynchronous
mode using Elluminate and Moddle. The last 2 weeks [December 2 and December 9]
will be taught in traditional mode]. This will allow for the final exam to be taken in a
regular classroom environment. This hybrid/ online mode requires that the students be
present at the beginning and at the end of the semester. Students will have the
opportunity to ask questions related to the content of the class by e-mail and also in a
synchronous mode on the day the class is taught from 8-9am.
Important
If you are a student with a disability and believe you will need accommodations for
this class, it is your responsibility to contact Student Disability Services at (619) 5946473. To avoid any delay in the receipt of your accommodations, you should contact
Student Disability Services as soon as possible. Please note that accommodations are
not retroactive, and that accommodations based upon disability cannot be provided
until you have presented your instructor with an accommodation letter from Student
Disability Services. Your cooperation is appreciated.
Course Objectives
To improve language ability by working on the four basic skills (reading, writing,
listening and speaking) plus Hispanic culture.
To expose students to the various regional usages in the Spanish-speaking world.
To provide a contrastive analysis aims at potential problems arising from the different
structures of English and Spanish.
To gain exposure to cultural issues in the Hispanic World.
To help students become knowledgeable in the different political, social, economical
and legal systems of the Spanish-speaking countries.
To focus on the necessary Spanish skills to become a successful translator or interpreter.
To help students start a glossary building habit by working together on different fields.
Course Organization
Class will meet on Tuesdays from 4 pm to 6:40 pm. The course will focus on listening
activities, conversation over readings, discussions on the topics of the day and current
events.
Students are encouraged to read Hispanic newspapers as well as to listen to Hispanic
news. During the course we will also read 2 books in Spanish. One book will be
common to the group and the other will be a book chosen by the student. Please see
reading guidelines.
Students are responsible for the oral presentations on topics of their choice and on
Hispanic countries and culture.
Assignments
I- There will be various written assignments i.e. books summaries, analysis of various
topics, discussions of current events (each week, students must be ready to talk about
a topic of their choice and about the current events of week. Duration: 3 minutes)
II- There will be one group oral presentation
During the semester, the students working in small groups [3-4] will select a topic
[ex: agriculture/rice production, a historical event in one country, food prices,
unemployment, an international organization] and will prepare a portfolio consisting
of reference texts [min. 10 texts in Spanish]. They will build a glossary for the
selected topic [min 100 terms in Spanish]. The oral group presentation will be
towards the end of the term (Choose a date ASAP!). Students are responsible for
scheduling meetings with the professor for questions and advice on their work. The
following deadlines should be observed:
- Sep 16, 2014: students will submit a proposal of the group presentation
stating group name, group members, topic of the presentation, amount of time
needed, and responsibilities of each member and source text selected for
translation project. Students may choose to use outside editors.
III- Discussion on readings and written summary [no more than 2 pages]
Due dates:
Common book: Sep 30 (answers Ch. 1), Oct 7 (answers Ch. 2) and
Oct 14, 2014 (Answers Ch.3 and written summary)
Individual book: Nov 4, 18, 25 Dec 2, 2014
IV- Regular oral and written exercises during the semester
V- Final Exam [Dec 2, 2014]
VI. CD/DVD of individual presentation of researched topic. Duration: 5-10 minutes
Course Evaluation
The course will be based on the following:
In-class participation [class attendance, participation, homework]
Written reports on readings and other activities
Presentations [Individual (book) & Group presentations]
Final + CD/DVD project
A 100-93
C 76-73
A- 92-90
C- 72-70
B+ 89-87
D+ 69-67
B 86-83
D 66-63
B- 82-80
D- 62-60
30%
20%
20%
20 + 10%
C+ 79-77
F 59 and below
Guidelines for the assignments
* Written Assignment: Your grade for the written assignment will be based upon a
number of factors:
1- Clarity and style of writing: Remember you are always writing for an audience.
2- Format: Your objective is to present the information you have obtained in an
organized, interesting and meaningful paper.
3- Content: Proper identification of information sources used in papers should be done
(both APA and MLA formats will be acceptable). Your papers should include a
complete bibliography.
4- Editing: It might be a good idea to have a colleague read the final draft of your paper
before turning it in to your professor. Misspelled words, errors in grammar and overall
visual appearance represent possible distractions from the quality of the information you
are presenting.
* Oral Presentations:
Your grade for the oral presentation will be based upon a number of factors:
1- Clarity of expression
2- Organization: (Remember a presentation in Spanish does not necessarily include the
same elements as a presentation in English: humor, explanation of outline, etc.). The
time limit during presentations must be observed. Deadlines to hand in visual aids for
revision must be observed.
3- Public-speaking skills: Eye contact, rhythm, intonation, pronunciation.
4- Quality of hand-outs and visual aids. (See Written Assignment #4 above). Students
will receive an individual grade for the individual presentation and a group grade for the
group presentation. Visual aids to be used during presentations will be submitted for
final corrections 2 weeks previous to the date of the presentation
Información general sobre el curso
Durante nuestras clases trabajaremos en todas las aptitudes necesarias para ser un
traductor/intérprete/profesor, es decir para poder trabajar con un idioma. Esa es la
característica que distingue a este curso de cualquier otro curso intensivo de idiomas.
No vamos a mejorar un idioma para comunicarnos sino que vamos a mejorar un
idioma para poder trabajar con él. Para eso, haremos una serie de trabajos
relacionados con la tarea profesional de un intérprete/traductor, que abarcarán la
comprensión auditiva, la toma de notas, la síntesis, la comprensión lectora, el
vocabulario, la gramática, la escritura y la conversación, la oratoria, la paráfrasis, etc.
Los temas a tratar serán los aspectos culturales como, por ejemplo, el conocimiento
de los países del mundo hispano, sus variedades sociolingüísticas, problemáticas
económicas y políticas, la cocina y las costumbres (ustedes mismos prepararán recetas
para compartir) de sus pueblos; temas técnicos, científicos y de interés general, etc.
La única consigna es que todos los ejercicios se harán sólo en español (no se utilizará
inglés). Es decir, este curso tiene como objetivo reforzar el idioma, utilizando las
técnicas, tácticas y los temas que encontrarán en la vida profesional pero únicamente
en español.
El curso se basará en materiales auténticos (no en libros de textos escritos con un
estudiante de lengua en mente), los mismos materiales que usarán durante su vida
profesional.