Translation and Translanguaging in Multilingual Contexts - Volume 9, Issue 2, 2023

Abstract

Audiovisual translation (AVT) as a tool in the teaching/learning of a foreign language has increasingly attracted the attention of researchers in the latest years. The TRADILEX Project team is currently working on the pedagogic use of AVT in the teaching /learning of English as a Foreign language (EFL) in an online environment, in a good number of Spanish universities. This paper presents the results of the TRADILEX experience, carried out at the University of Zaragoza (Spain). The methodology designed and applied for that end has required the use of technological tools to guide students through different steps, from an Initial Test of Integrated Skills (ITIS) to a Final Test of Integrated Skills (FITIS), both designed by members of the team. On their way from the former to the latter, students were invited to carry out a series of B1-level tasks in five AVT modes. The materials previously designed and tested aimed at a progressive autonomy of the student in their advance in the lesson plans of each mode. The analysis of the results obtained in each of the AVT modes, as well as the comparative results between the ITIS and the FITIS will highlight the virtues of the methodology used.

Abstract

This paper discusses the uses and applications of interlingual subtitling for the d/Deaf and hard of hearing (SDH) in the language classroom and builds on a pilot experiment involving over a hundred students who partook in a didactic initiative based on the use of SDH.

The present study forms part of the TRADILEX (2020–2023) international project, which draws on action-oriented approaches to produce didactic sequences of didactic audiovisual translation (AVT) and media accessibility (MA) tasks in foreign language education (FLE).

A pilot experiment involving didactic interlingual captioning (Spanish into English) was carried out with two cohorts of students (N = 104) from two undergraduate programmes at a Spanish higher-education institution. The results shed light on the students’ perception of didactic SDH, as well as the pedagogical benefits of learning English by captioning video clips. The students boosted their translation skills in different ways, and awareness was raised on the importance of analysing visual, acoustic and paralinguistic information when localising clips.

Ultimately, this paper examines the potential benefits of action-oriented captioning tasks and advocates for integrating didactic AVT-MA into the FLE curriculum.

Abstract

Audio description (AD) is a mode of audiovisual translation (AVT) used for making video content accessible to blind and visually impaired viewers. Didactic AD refers to an active practice where the language learner inserts a narration into the original soundtrack of a clip to describe information transmitted visually, thus converting images into words. AD is often portrayed as an artistic practice due to the creative nature of translating visual elements into a linguistic code whilst the learner becomes a social agent that mediates between the clip and others, using aural discourse to interpret what can be seen including semiotic signs and images. This article will explore key professional guidelines for audio describing, the type of language used, and what areas need to be considered when planning an AD lesson. Taking into consideration the new descriptors of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) and how communicative approaches have evolved over the last couple of decades, this article will also discuss methodological approaches for an AD effective usage. A sample AD lesson taken from the TRADILEX project will be commented on whilst providing practical recommendations to new users of this AVT mode.

Abstract

The aim of this contribution is to assert the role of didactic audiovisual translation as a helpful tool for enhancing metalinguistic skills in a foreign language classroom in Italy; more precisely, the paper will offer an analysis of how foreign language teachers can introduce their students to the idea of sociolinguistic variation, by observing how lexical and morphosyntactic changes can occur in the translation process from an Italian source text into an English target text and/or vice versa. The following sociolinguistic variables will be examined through the lens of audiovisual translation, applied to a range of text types including films and an opera libretto turned into surtitles in English: (1) diamesic variation, making students reflect on such aspects as coarse expressions and taboo words, in relation to the Australian film Ned Kelly; (2) diachronic variation, exploring the multidisciplinary possibilities offered by opera surtitling with a focus on the opera Falstaff by Giuseppe Verdi; (3) diatopic, diastratic and diaphasic variations, commenting upon some examples from the Italian films Mio cognato (My Brother-In-Law) and L’uomo che comprò la luna (The Man Who Bought the Moon).

Abstract

This paper reports on an eye-tracking study investigating the processing and mnemonic retention of reverse subtitles (foreign-language subtitles presented alongside native-language audio) in learners of Italian as a Foreign language (IFL). 26 English native speakers with a CEFR B2+ Italian level watched an English clip with Italian subtitles in two translation conditions, formal similarity (literal transfer) and formal discrepancy (non-literal transfer). Immediately after watching, they answered recognition and recall questions. This study examines memory, attention allocation and the concept of noticing, which was investigated through triangulation of eye tracking, verbatim recognition and explicit reports. Data analysis methods include generalised mixed-effect modelling. Results revealed that reverse subtitles have acquisitional potential for advanced IFL learners, noticing can be probed experimentally, and formal (dis)similarity appears to have some psychological reality in the mind of the learner, being able to affect both recognition and recall. Evidence of novel word learning as well as deepening of existing knowledge emerged from the analyses, supporting the view that reversed subtitles could be more fruitfully exploited in FLL contexts. The paper presents details of the data analyses, discusses them in relation to Second Language Acquisition (SLA) and psycholinguistic concepts, and draws some recommendations based on the findings.

This article reviews Using Film and Media in the Language Classroom: Reflections on Research-led Teaching9781788924498