Student Name: Tran Thu Hang
Student ID: 21040853
Students are invited to join an online forum/ talk/ webinar on a given topic
related to Translation (i.e., Learning strategies for translation students; tips to
improve your translation quality; translators’ stories). Interaction between
speaker(s) and students, which can be in the forms of Q & A or constructive
comments and feedback, is encouraged during the course of the event.
Students will then write their own reflection (approximately 300-400 words)
with the following components:
- A summary of the event
- The lessons learnt from the speaker(s)’ sharing
- Your critical response to what is discussed by the speaker(s).
I chose to write about the 2020 ULIS Conference on Interpreting and
Translation (UCIT), where they discussed “Translation 4.0: Training, Research
and Practice”. The event included three roundtable sessions, where speakers
discussed different topics related to translation and interpreting as well as the
future direction for its training at ULIS and Vietnam universities at large.
In the first roundtable session, speakers discussed translation and
interpreting in today’s times. I learnt that translation and interpreting have
played a considerable role in Vietnam’s economic development, yet the market
lacks passionate and qualified practitioners. This demands translators to
constantly improve themselves and the quality of their translation outcome.
For that to happen, the speakers emphasized the need for a professional
association for working translators and a well-established curriculum for
translation and interpreting training in Vietnam universities. One interesting
thing I learnt from their sharings was that translation and interpreting are not
considered a professional field of training in Vietnam but rather a branch in
English Studies education, which made the conference all the more relevant in
its discussion of the possible issues this may cause.
The second round table followed the problems raised in the first session
and featured presentations on the training and market demands for
competent translators from representatives of language teaching institutions
and translation service companies. Through the speakers’ sharings, I was able
to catch a glimpse of how different universities approach the training of
translation and interpreting. I was particularly interested in the sharing of Ms.
Vuong Thi Thanh Nhan (Head of ULIS’ Translation and Interpreting Division)
where she introduced a framework for translator trainer competence and what
can be done to improve translators’ quality. However, I was rather skeptical of
the applicability of her suggestions, given the current lack of an association
for translators and an official set of standards to judge translators’ ability.
The third session on 4.0 technology and what it means for translation
and interpreting was the one I was most impressed with. The roundtable
featured speakers from translation, education and technology backgrounds so
the ideas proposed were looking at the topic from multiple perspectives.
Some of the highlights were that AI and computer-assisted translation tools
cannot completely replace human involvement, and that the future of
translation and interpreting would be the cooperation of both human and
machine. The speakers’ sharings introduced me to translation programs used
by professionals in the field and methods for effective application which I find
extremely useful in my personal pursuit.
In summary, UCIT2020 provided an active forum for veteran translators
and interpreters as well as people interested in the field to discuss the highly
relevant issues of the profession and its training in Vietnam universities. The
conference introduced me to the possibility of working in the sector and what I
need to improve on in order to compete in this market.
