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- Title
Google Translate and DeepL: breaking taboos in translator training. Observational study and analysis.
- Authors
Varela Salinas, María-José; Burbat, Ruth
- Abstract
The literature published in the last decades on the use of machine translation (MT) generally conveys the idea that it is not suitable for professional translation. Furthermore, translation students are usually warned that they should not use this tool in their assignments or exams and that doing so would be penalized. The reason behind such reluctance may be that MT produced poor results unless it was used on controlled language in pre-edited texts within a specific specialization field and the target texts were subsequently post-edited with appropriate tools. However, three main considerations lead us to propose a reevaluation of the usefulness of MT in university translation courses: first, students employ MT despite warnings not to do so; second, current tools like Google Translate or DeepL have considerably improved outcomes; and third, MT is already being used as an assistant tool in computer-assisted translation (CAT) – although the results are usually monitored by a human translator. As translation teachers, we propose that post-editing MT-translated texts could be used for didactic purposes: the diagnosis of MT-errors could help improve students’ translation skills and linguistic proficiency both in their mother tongue and their second language. In this article, we present the results of using MT plus post-editing in a university course on Spanish-German Specialized Translation. This type of translation poses considerable challenges for students and often requires them to review and deepen their knowledge of the target language grammar. Our aim was to contribute to the didactics of translation by training students in error prevention through the analysis of MT-errors, and to teach them to develop a critical attitude when post-editing.
- Subjects
GOOGLE Translate (Web resource); TRAINING of translators; MACHINE translating; COMPUTER assisted instruction; DIDACTIC method (Teaching method); LANGUAGE ability
- Publication
Iberica, 2023, Issue 45, p243
- ISSN
1139-7241
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.17398/2340-2784.45.243