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Foreign language B for translators and interpreters 4 (English)

Code: 101507 ECTS Credits: 6
2024/2025
Degree Type Year
2500249 Translation and Interpreting OB 2

Contact

Name:
Jonathan Walker
Email:
jon.walker@uab.cat

Teachers

Geoffrey Vito Belligoi
Gonzalo Iturregui Gallardo
Graham Perry
Sarah Julia West
Roland Keith Pearson

Teaching groups languages

You can view this information at the end of this document.


Prerequisites

Prerequisites Required language level: 

English B2.4. CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference).

At the beginning of this course students should be able to:

  • Understand different types of written texts, with fairly complex constructions, which cover a wide range of subjects and able to discern stylistic and dialectal variation. (CEFR-FTI C1.1)
  • Write different types of texts about general topics in various subject areas. (CEFR-FTI B2.3)
  • Understand different types of spoken English, using fairly complex construction, about a wide range of fields and able to discern different styles or registers. (CEFR-FTI C1.1)
  • Express themselves in different types of spoken English on general topics in familiar subject areas using fairly complex constructions. (CEFR-FTI B2.2)

Objectives and Contextualisation

The aim of this course is to develop the language competencies needed for direct translation of basic specialised texts, consolidate language competencies needed for inverse translation and to develop aural / oral language competencies for interpreting, including studying principal dialects.

At the end of the course students should be able to: 

  • Understand different specialised types of written texts, with fairly complex constructions, about a wide range of subjects. (CEFR-FTI C1.3)  Write different types of texts, using fairly complex constructions, about a wide range of subjects and employing the most common styles and registers. (CEFR-FTI C1.1)
  • Understand different types of spoken English about a wide range of subject areas and able to discern variation in accents, styles or registers. (CEFR-FTI C1.3)
  • Express themselves in different types of spoken English on general topics in a wide range of subject areas using fairly complex constructions. (CEFR-FTI B2.4)

Competences

  • Producing oral texts in a foreign language in order to interpret.
  • Producing written texts in a foreign language in order to translate.
  • Understanding written texts in a foreign language in order to translate.
  • Working effectively in teams.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Applying lexical, morphosyntactic, textual, rhetorical and linguistic variation related knowledge: Applying graphical, lexical, morphosyntactic, textual, rhetorical and linguistic variation related knowledge.
  2. Applying lexical, morphosyntactic, textual, rhetorical and linguistic variation related knowledge: Applying phonological, lexical, morphosyntactic and textual related knowledge.
  3. Comprehending the communicative purpose and sense of written texts of several fields: Comprehending the communicative purpose and sense of a diverse typology of written texts about general topics from a wide variety of fields and registers.
  4. Implementing strategies in order to produce verbal texts from different fields and with specific communicative purposes: Implementing strategies in order to produce a diverse typology of oral texts about general topics of several fields.
  5. Implementing strategies in order to understand written texts from different fields: Implementing strategies in order to comprehend a diverse typology of complex written texts from a wide variety of fields, detecting the stylistic and geographical differences.
  6. Producing verbal texts from different fields and with specific communicative purposes: Producing verbal texts with specific communicative purposes, following standard models of discourse.
  7. Producing verbal texts that are appropriate to their context and possess linguistic correctness: Producing a diverse typology of oral texts of a certain complexity of general topics from different fields, that are appropriate to their context and possess a high level of linguistic correctness.
  8. Producing written texts from different fields and with specific communicative purposes: Producing simple academic texts, following standard models of discourse.
  9. Working effectively in teams: Working effectively in teams.

Content

  1. Analyse hybrid text features: business and financial from the media.
  2. Reading comprehension - hybrid texts: business and financial from the media.
  3. Recognise a range of text features: ideology, humour (irony, satire etc.).
  4. Listening comprehension: understand and recognise a range of regional / social accents.
  5. Speaking skills: rhetorical tricks and devices.
  6. Oral presentations: main issues related to the economy, business and finance.

Activities and Methodology

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Lectures with reading / oral comprehension activities and oral interaction 10 0.4 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Oral comprehension activities / accent recognition and oral production 14 0.56 2, 4, 6, 7
Reading comprehension of specialised texts and producing specialised written texts exercises 18 0.72 1, 3, 5, 8
Type: Supervised      
Preparing, supervising and revising oral and / or written exercises 11.9 0.48 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Type: Autonomous      
Preparation, completion and revision / correction of exercises or oral and / or written tasks 29.1 1.16 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Preparing and carrying our specialised texts written production exercises 28.1 1.12 1, 8
Preparing and carrying out reading comprehension activities of specialized texts 27 1.08 1, 3, 5

The skills in English Foreign Language will be expanded and deepened and the necessary specifics for translation will be developed: on the one hand, the global competences and communication skills of the foreign language, on the other, the special linguistic competences in English as a Working Language for Translation, with special emphasis on those that are pragmatic, intercultural and contrastive (BA) for translation, heuristics or instruments for language learning.

The nature of the subject is theoretical-practical. The bases of the textual analysis (linguistic and translational), of the reception and textual production in English will be treated. All the knowledge, competences, strategies and activities of the subject will be developed through and through work with and on texts (standard models and current models

Training activities

  • The development of strategies and methods of reading and textual comprehension (see 6.1.-6.4);
  • The development of strategies and methods of textual analysis (linguistic and grammar, translational analysis);
  • The treatment of typical linguistic and intercultural problems (B-A) manifested in current texts, followed by tasks or grammar and / or performed exercises or corresponding detection tasks;
  • The analysis and recognition of a range of accents more frequent in English;
  • The improvement of textual production in English (production of specific copies following text models) and the revision of defective texts;
  • The development of strategies and methods of oral production in English on general topics of known fields.

Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.


Assessment

Continous Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Evaluation Oral Comprehension / Recognition of major accents 12,5% 1.7 0.07 1
Evaluation Oral test (specialized text) 12,5% 1.7 0.07 2, 4, 6, 7, 9
Evaluation Reading Comprehension 12,5% 1.7 0.07 1, 3, 5
Evaluation Writing 12,5 1.7 0.07 1, 2, 4, 7, 8
Final evaluation Oral comprehension / recognition of major accents 15% 1.7 0.07 2, 4, 6, 7
Final evaluation Reading comprehension (specialized text) 20% 1.7 0.07 1, 3, 5
Final evaluation Writing 15% 1.7 0.07 1, 8

 

Continuous assessment

The information about evaluation, the types of evaluations and their relative weight is for orientation purposes only. The lecturer coordinating this subject will give specific details at the beginning of the course.

Evaluation system

Continuous formative evaluation and final evaluation of the language level. The evaluation system is based on written and oral activities and tests.

Evaluation system and activities:

  • Working with texts on topics related to foreign language for translators and interpreters.
  • Tests involving real tasks and/or simulated text communication in a foreign language.
  • Tests involving reading/listening comprehension and written/oral production.

Evaluation and diagnostic techniques used

Different types of evaluation common in language teaching will be combined for continuous and final evaluation (see CEFR, Chapter 9.3):

  • Continuous formative evaluation in written or oral tasks.
  • Language level proficiency evaluation at the end of the semester.

What needs to be taken into account regarding evaluation for Foreign Language B English 4

  1. Theoretical knowledge will not be evaluated but rather applying it to resolve tasks, exercises or practical tests.
  2. In the final written evaluations which measure language proficiency or level – reading comprehension and written essay – a minimum grade of 5.0 must be achieved according to the CEFR. Please note: students who do not attain this minimum mark will not qualify for the language level proficiency criteria for the language of this subject, as set out in section 4 of this course programme. This means that the student who does not obtain a pass in these three final tests will not be entitled to a certification of their level according to the Common European Framework of Reference / Royal Decree 1041/2017, Article 7,1.2.
  3. The required language levels correspond to Spanish Royal Decree 1041/2017 and the specific criterion levels FTI-MCER set out in sections 4 and 5.
  4. In cases where the student has completed 25% or less of the evaluated tasks, the grade of “non-evaluable” will be assigned.

Revision

When publishing final marks prior to recording them on students' transcripts, the lecturer will provide written notification of a date and time for reviewing evaluated activities. Students must arrange reviews in agreement with the lecturer.

Re-evaluation / Resit

  1. Students must fulfil the following requirements to be eligible to resit the final evaluation / final evaluations: 1) have completed a minimum of 66.6% of the evaluated tasks for the course, 2) have a global average between 3.5 and 4.9. The student can only resit the final evaluation / final evaluations which they have failed.
  2. In cases where the student has completed between 25.1% and 66.5% of the evaluated tasks for the course, they are not eligible to resit and the global mark obtained during the course will be assigned (whether a passing or failing mark).
  3. In cases where the completed evaluated tasks are 25% or less, the grade of “non-evaluable” will be assigned.
  4. In cases of a final evaluation / final evaluations resulting in a fail mark due to copying or plagiarism, the student is not eligible to resit.
  5. In no case will it be possible to make a final evaluation / final evaluations the equivalent of 100% of the grade.

Single assessment

This subject may be assessed under the single assessment system in accordance with the terms established in the academic regulations of the UAB and the assessment criteria of the Faculty of Translation and Interpreting.

Students must make an online request within the periodestablished by the faculty and send a copy to the teacher responsible for the subject, for the record.

Single assessment will be carried out in person on one day during week 16 or 17 of the semester. The Academic Management Office will publish the exact date and time on the faculty website.

On the day of the single assessment, teaching staff will ask the student for identification, which should be presented as a valid identification document with a recent photograph (student card, DNI/NIE or passport).

Single assessment will include a minimum of three assessment activities of different typology, as stated in the evaluation guidelines.

Grade revision and resit procedures for the subject are the same as those for continuous assessment. See the section above in this study guide.

 

IMPORTANT

Reminder: "copying" is considered to be work that reproduces all or a large part of the work from one to another colleague, and "plagiarism" is the act of presenting part or all of an author’s text as one’s own, that is, without citing the sources, whether it is published on paper or in digital form on the Internet. Copyingand plagiarism are intellectual theft and therefore contravene university regulations that will be sanctioned with a "zero" mark. In the case of copying between two students, if it is not possible to know who copied who, the sanction will be applied to both students. If there are several irregularities in the evaluation activities of the same subject, the final grade for this subject will be zero.

In the case of retakes, the maximum grade will be 5


Bibliography

Obligatory course reading:

The teacher will confirm the title of the course reader

El dossier Idioma B4 Anglès (disponible alServei Reprogràfic o al Campus Virtual en format digital).

 

Dictionaries:

The BBI Combinatory Dictionary of English. The John Benjamins Publishing Company.

The Collins Cobuild English Language Dictionary. Collins.

The Concise Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University Press.

Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary.  Merriam Webster Incorporated.

The Oxford Advanced  Learner's  Dictionary.  Oxford University Press.

The Oxford Collocations Dictionary. Oxford University Press.

Recommended reading and recent publications:

http://www.collinsdictionary.com/. Angles (The Collins English Dictionary).

http://thetis.bl.uk/ : anglès (British National Corpus).

http://www.corpusdelespanol.org : espanyol.

http://www.ucl.ac.uk/english-usage/ice/index.htm : anglès (International Corpus of English: textos de diversas variantes geográficas).

http://www.collins.co.uk/Corpus/CorpusSearch.aspx : anglès.

http://www2.gsu.edu/~wwwesl/egw/jones/words.htm (Basic British/American Dictionary)

http://www.termcat.net/ (Terminology Help Catalan / English)

http://www.catalanencyclopaedia.com/ (Enciclopedia Catalana in English)

http://www.itdgpublishing.org.uk/ITDG%20Publishing%20Books%20Housestyle.htm  (Punctuation and Style Help)

http://www.onlineordbog.dk/wordnet/en/e7/collocation.php. (useful first reference for common collocations in English)

http://www.websters-online-dictionary.org/ (On Line English Dictionary (AM)

http://www.investopedia.com/dictionary/ (On line dictionary of business terminology and useful references)

 

Grammar and spelling manuals:

Carter, Ronald et al.: Exploring Grammar in Context, Cambridge University Press.

Crystal, David. Making Sense of Grammar. Pearson Education.

Davidson, George. How to Punctuate. Penguin Books.

Hewings, M. Advanced Grammar in Use, Cambridge University Press.

Quirk, R and S. Greenbaum: A University Grammar of English, Longman.

Swan, M.: Practical English Usage, Oxford University Press.

Truss, Lynn. Eats, Shoots & Leaves. Fourth Estate.

 

Material related to language, oral genres, discourse and structure:

Evans, Vyvyan. The Language Myth. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2014.

Everett, Daniel. Language: The Cultural Tool. London: Profile Books, 2013.

Hughes, Dominic and Benedict Phillips: The Oxford Union Guide to Successful Public Speaking. Virgin Publishing, Ltd., 2000.

MacArthur, B. The Penguin Book of Historic Speeches. Penguin, 1996.

“   “  “   “       . The Penguin Book of Twentieth-Century Speeches. Penguin, 1993.

Pinker, Stephen. The Language Instinct. Penguin . London, 1994.

 

 Complementary Books and reference material related to dialects and Sociolects:

Bauer, Laurie, Janet Holmes and Paul Warren. Language Matters. London: Palgrave MacMillan, 2006.

Carr, Philip. English Phonetics and Phonology: An Introduction. Blackwell Publishing. 2nd edition, 2013.

Collins, Beverley and Inger M. Mees. Practical Phonetics and Phonology: A Resource Book for Students. London and NY: Routledge, second edition, 2008.

Corbet J. McClure Derrick and Jane Stuart-Smith, Jane (eds.). The Edinburgh Companion to Scots. Edinburgh University Press, 2003.

Crystal, David. How Language Works. London: Penguin Books, 2007.

“   “   “   “. The English Language. London: Penguin Books, 2002.

“   “   “   “. The Cambridge Encyclopaedia of the English Language . Cambridge University Press, 1995.

Hughes, A. and P. Trudgill: English Accents and Dialects.  Arnold, 1996

Milroy, J. and L. Milroy: Real English: The Grammar of English Dialects in the British Isles. Longman, 1993.

http://www.scots-online.org/grammar/pronunci.htm (informació sobre l’anglès d’Escòcia)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/routesofenglish/ (informació sobre els accents i dialectes de l’anglès)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radioscotland/ (ràdio Scots English accent)

http://www.gazzaro.it/accents/files/accents2.html (recurs general de l’anglès)

http://www.rte.ie/radio/ (major Irish radio station on line)

Trudgill, Peter. Sociolinguistics: An Introduction to Language and Society. Penguin: London. Fourth Edition, 2000.

 

Source information from scientific Political and cultural fields.

Students are recommended to do background reading in these fields


Software

To be confirmed. See course dossier content


Language list

Name Group Language Semester Turn
(PAUL) Classroom practices 1 English second semester morning-mixed
(PAUL) Classroom practices 2 English second semester morning-mixed
(PAUL) Classroom practices 3 English second semester morning-mixed
(PAUL) Classroom practices 4 English second semester morning-mixed