Applying Collaborative Task Based Approach to Teaching Translation[Latin Thesis]

Javad Aghamohammadi

Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) has been a prevailing method in teaching foreign languages that involves authentic tasks needed to be completed collaboratively. However, little attention has been paid to its application to teaching translation and the effect of doing so. Therefore, the present thesis aimed to first extract the main components of TBLT in teaching translation and then investigate the popularity of task-based teaching method in translation education in Iran from the viewpoint of both students and instructors. To do so, experts’ opinions considering the most significant components of TBLT were elicited and the related literature was scrutinized. Then putting the opinions and theories into practice, a questionnaire was developed in this regard and it was administered to 96 translation instructors and students who were asked to report on the extent to which TBLT components had been observed in their classes. Moreover, by adopting a more practical approach, task-based translation teaching was implemented in a three-hour workshop to investigate learners’ attitudes towards this experience. The result of the quantitative analysis of the questionnaire responses indicated that TBLT in total was not applied to translation classes especially in terms of “Interactivity” and “Authenticity”. However, as it was reported, the main component “Balanced Focus on Meaning and Form”, was best implemented in translation classes. On the other hand, the components “Process-Orientedness”, “Learner-Centeredness”, and “Reflectivity/ Evaluation” were all observed equally in an average level. Finally the qualitative analysis of the workshop data showed that TBLT was in general popular with translation trainees although a number of disadvantages were also articulated. Thus the results of the present thesis can be benefited by those researchers who intend to work on translation training. Furthermore, considering the designed TBTT questionnaire and syllabus, this method can be applied to academic translation training by instructors to investigate its efficacy and defects.