Cover not available

Article published In: Translation and Interpreting Studies
Vol. 14:3 (2019) ► pp.416–436

Get fulltext from our e-platform
JBE logo with link
PDF logo with download linkDownload PDF
authorization required

Scaffolding student self-reflection in translator training

ORCiD logo with link | University of Łódź, Poland
Published online: 10 July 2019
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/tis.18029.pie
Abstract
This article advocates for structured self-reflection as a means to scaffold learning in translator training. Metacognitive activity in translator training requires students to actively regulate their own process of both translating and learning to become a translator. Therefore, the nature and typology of (self-)reflection is examined as are tools that offer students structured opportunities to analyze and evaluate their own learning. Given that additional (self-)reflection in the translation classroom requires trainers to alter their teaching methods, this article also examines how their role in training changes as a result of its inclusion. An exploratory study on translation students’ prospective and retrospective self-reflection is described with student perspectives on the same translation task compared. Student expectations prior to translation are examined both pre- and post-task, emphasizing what students and teachers learn from reflective practice.
Article outline
  • Introduction
  • Learning as based on reflection
  • The role of the reflective translator trainer
  • Types of reflection in the translation classroom
  • Exploratory study: Prospective and retrospective self-reflection
  • Results and discussion
    • Example I
    • Example II
    • Example III
    • Example IV
  • Conclusion
  • References
References (62)
References
Angelone, Erik. 2010. “Uncertainty, uncertainty management and metacognitive problem solving in the translation task.” In Translation and Cognition, ed. by Gregory M. Shreve and Erik Angelone, 17–40. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2019. “Process-Oriented Assessment of Problems and Errors in Translation: Expanding Horizons Through Screen Recording.” In Quality Assurance and Assessment Practices in Translation and Interpreting, ed. by Elsa Huertas-Barros, Sonia Vandepitte, and Emilia Iglesias-Fernández, 179–198. Hershey, PA: IGI Global. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Aulls, Mark W. and Bruce M. Shore. 2008. Inquiry in Education: The Conceptual Foundations for Research as a Curricular Imperative. Vol. 11. New York: Routledge.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Boud, David, Rosemary Keogh, and David Walker (eds). 1985. Reflection: Turning Experience into Learning. London: Kogan Page.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Boydston, Jo Ann (ed). 2008. The Later Works of John Dewey, Volume 1, 1925–1953: 1925, Experience and Nature. Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois University Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Brockbank, Anne and Ian McGill. 1998. Facilitating Reflective Learning in Higher Education. Buckingham: Open University Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Brookfield, Stephen D. 1995. Becoming a Critically Reflective Teacher. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Bruning, Roger H., Gregory J. Schraw, and Royce R. Ronning. 1995. Cognitive Psychology and Instruction (2nd ed.). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Calvo, Elisa. 2015. “Scaffolding translation skills through situated training approaches: progressive and reflective methods.” The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 9 (3): 306–322. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Candy, Philip, Harri-Augstein Sheila, and Laurie Thomas. 1985. “Reflection and the self-organized learner: a model of learning conversations.” In Reflection: Turning Experience into Learning, ed. by David Boud, Rosemary Keogh, and David Walker, 100–116. London: Kogan Page.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Chen, Ya-Jun. 2019. “Assessing translation students’ reflective and autonomous learning.” In Quality Assurance and Assessment Practices in Translation and Interpreting, ed. by Elsa Huertas-Barros, Sonia Vandepitte, and Emilia Iglesias-Fernández, 288–314. Hershey, PA: IGI Global. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Dewey, John. 1933. How We Think: A Restatement of the Relation of Reflective Thinking to the Educative Process. Boston: Heath.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Ellis, Arthur K. 2001. Teaching, Learning and Assessment Together. The Reflective Classroom. Larchmont: Eye on Education.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Fernández, Francesc, and Patrick Zabalbeascoa. 2011. “Correlating trainees’ translating performance with the quality of their meta-cognitive self-evaluation.” Perspectives 20 (4): 463–478. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Ghaye, Tony. 2010. Teaching and Learning through Reflective Practice: A Practical Guide for Positive Action. London: Routledge. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Gile, Daniel. 2004. “Integrated problem and decision reporting as a translator training tool.” Journal of Specialised Translation 21: 2–20.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
González Davies, Maria. 2004. Multiple Voices in the Translation Classroom. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
González Davies, Maria and Don Kiraly. 2006. Translation Pedagogy . In Encyclopedia of Language and Linguistics, ed. by Keith Brown, 81–85. Oxford: Elsevier. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Huertas Barros, Elsa, and Juliet Vine. 2018. “Current trends on MA translation courses in the UK: changing assessment practices on core translation modules.” The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 12 (1): 5–24. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Jääskeläinen, Ritta. 2000. “Focus on methodology in think-aloud studies on translating.” In Tapping and Mapping the Processes of Translation and Interpreting, ed. by Sonja Tirkkonen-Condit and Ritta Jääskeläinen, 71–82. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
James, William. 1890/1950. The Principles of Psychology. Vol I1. New York: Dover Publications.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kelly, Dorothy. 2005. A Handbook for Translator Trainers. A Guide to Reflective Practice. Manchester, UK: St. Jerome.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kidman, Gillian and Niranjan Casinader. 2017. Inquiry-based Teaching and Learning across Disciplines. London: Palgrave Pivot. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kiraly, Don. 2000. A Social Constructivist Approach to Translator Education. Empowerment from Theory to Practice. Manchester: St. Jerome.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2003. “From teacher-centred to learning-centred classrooms in translator education: Control, chaos or collaboration?” In Innovation and E-Learning in Translator Training: Reports on Online Symposia, ed. by Anthony Pym et al., 27–31. Tarragona: Universitat Rovira I Virgili.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2005. “Project-based learning: A case for situated translation.” Meta 50(4): 1098–1111. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2016. “Authentic project work and pedagogical epistemologies: A question of competing or complementary worldviews?” In Towards Authentic Experiential Learning in Translator Education, ed. by Don Kiraly et al., 53–66. Mainz: Mainz University Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Klimkowski, Konrad. 2015. Towards a Shared Curriculum in Translator and Interpreter Education. Washington, DC: WSF, PAN and International Communicology Institute.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kolb, David A. 1984. Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development. Vol. 11. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Krings, Hans P. 1986. “Translation problems and translation strategies of advanced German learners of French.” In Interlingual and Intercultural Communication: Discourse and Cognition in Translation and Second Language Acquisition Studies, ed. by Juliane House and Shoshana Blum-Kulka, 263–275. Tübingen: Narr.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Lörscher, Wolfgang. 1991. Translation Performance, Translation Process and Translation Strategies: A Psycholinguistic Investigation. Tübingen: Narr.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Mellinger, Christopher D. 2019. “Metacognition and self-assessment in specialized translation education: Task awareness and metacognitive bundling.” Perspectives 27(4): 604–621. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Metcalfe, Janet. 1996. Metacognition: Knowing about Knowing. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Mezirow, Jack. 1981. “A critical theory of adult learning and education.” Adult Education 321. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1990. “How critical reflection triggers transformative learning” In Fostering Critical Reflection in Adulthood: A Guide to Transformative and Emancipatory Education, ed. by Jack Mezirow et al., 1–20, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1996. “Contemporary paradigms of learning.” Adult Education Quarterly 46 (3): 158–173. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Moon, Jennifer. 1999. Reflection in Learning and Professional Development. London: Kogan Page.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Pietrzak, Paulina. 2014. “Towards effective feedback to translation students; Empowering through group revision and evaluation.” In Challenges in Translation Pedagogy, Special Issue of Intralinea, ed. by Maria Piotrowska and Sergiy Tyupa. Available at: [URL]
. 2015. “Using verbal protocols for translator training purposes.” In Constructing Translation Competence, ed. by Mikołaj Deckert and Paulina Pietrzak, 211–225. Frankfurt: Peter Lang.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2016. “Students’ engagement in metacognitive activities as a source of feedback for the translation teacher.” Journal of Translator Education and Translation Studies 1 (1): 56–67.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2017. “A methodology for formative assessment: Feedback tools in the translation classroom.” Kwartalnik Neofilologiczny 64 (1): 66–80. Warsaw: Polska Akademia Nauk.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2018. “The effects of students’ self-regulation on translation quality.” Babel: International Journal of Translation 64 (5/6): 819–839. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2019a. “An integrated approach to assessment in translator training: the value of self-reflection.” In Contacts and Contrasts in Educational Contexts and Translation, ed. by Barbara Lewandowska-Tomaszczyk, 105–115, Berlin Heidelberg: Springer. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2019b (forth). “The potential of reflective translator training.” New insights into Translator Training, Special Issue of Intralinea.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Rico, Celia. 2010. “Translator training in the European higher education area.” The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 4 (1): 89–114. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Saunders-Stewart, Katie, Petra D. T. Gyles and Bruce M. Shore. 2012. “Student outcomes in inquiry instruction: A literature-derived inventory.” Journal of Advanced Academics 23 (5): 5–31. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Schön, Donald A. 1983. The Reflective Practitioner: How Professionals Think in Action. New York: Basic Books.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
1987. Educating the Reflective Practitioner: Toward a New Design for Teaching and Learning in the Professions. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Smith, Leslie. 1993. Necessary Knowledge: Piagetian Perspectives on Constructivism. Hove, UK: Erlbaum.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Tirkkonen-Condit, Sonja. 1989. “Professional vs. non-professional translation: a think-aloud protocol study.” In The Translation Process, ed. by Candace Séguinot, 73–85. Toronto: HG Publications.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Tiselius, Elisabet, and Adelina Hild. 2017. “Expertise and Competence in Translation and Interpreting.” In The Handbook of Translation and Cognition, ed. by John W. Schwieter and Aline Ferreira, 423–444. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Vandepitte, Sonia, et al. 2014. “Translation competence: Research data in multilateral and interprofessional collaborative learning.” In Handbook of Research on Teaching Methods in Language Translation and Interpretation, ed. by Ying Cui and Wei Zhao, 137–159. Hershey, PA: IGI Global.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Verpoorten, Dominique, Wim Westera, and Marcus Specht. 2011. “Infusing reflective practice in eLearning courses – can widgets help?” International Journal of Technology Enhanced Learning 3 (1): 93–109. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Vygotsky, Lev. 1962. Thought and Language. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 1978. Mind in Society. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Walker, Cheryl L., and Bruce M. Shore. 2015. “Understanding classroom roles in inquiry education: Linking role theory and social constructivism to the concept of role diversification.” Sage Open 5(4): 1–13. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Wang, Margaret C., Geneva D. Haertel, and Herbert J. Walberg. 1990. “What influences learning? A content analysis of review literature.” Journal of Educational Research 841: 30–43. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Way, Catherine. 2008. “Systematic assessment of translator competence: in search of Achilles’ heel.” In Translator and Interpreter Training, ed. by John Kearns, 88–103. London: Continuum.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Wood, David, Jerome S. Bruner, and Gail Ross. 1976. “The role of tutoring in problem solving.” Journal of Child Psychology and Child Psychiatry 171: 89–100. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Cited by (16)

Cited by 16 other publications

Chen, Guangjiao & Xiangling Wang
2025. Trainee translators’ reflective thinking across assessment as learning activities: An epistemic network analysis approach. Thinking Skills and Creativity 57 ► pp. 101817 ff. DOI logo
Zimányi, Krisztina
2025. Towards a Pedagogical Framework for Developing Problem-Solving Competence Through Tiered Reflective Practice in Introductory Translation Courses at an Undergraduate Programme in Mexico. In Multilingual Education Yearbook 2025 [Multilingual Education Yearbook, ], ► pp. 43 ff. DOI logo
Chen, Xia & Jackie Xiu Yan
2024. Examining student translators’ writing and translation products: quality, errors and self-perceived mental workload. The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 18:3 ► pp. 465 ff. DOI logo
Chen, Ya-Mei
2024. Integrating translation crowdsourcing into metacognitive translator training: raising awareness of conditional knowledge and its monitoring functions. The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 18:1 ► pp. 19 ff. DOI logo
Chen, Ya-Mei
2025. Collaborative learning in translation crowdsourcing to enhance conditional knowledge: from individual to collective wisdom. Asia Pacific Translation and Intercultural Studies 12:1 ► pp. 55 ff. DOI logo
Hu, Bei
2024. Using media accessibility as a stimulus for teaching audio-visual translation: a Singapore case study. The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 18:4 ► pp. 618 ff. DOI logo
Asshabi, Salman, Mojgan Rashtchi & Massood Siyyari
2023. The Development of a Reflective Language Learning Model: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach. Journal of Language and Education 9:4 ► pp. 11 ff. DOI logo
Burn, Jo Anna
2023. The Use of Self-Reflection to Develop Intercultural and Pragmatic Competence in the Legal Interpreting Classroom. In New Advances in Legal Translation and Interpreting [New Frontiers in Translation Studies, ], ► pp. 197 ff. DOI logo
Grass, Delphine
2023. Translation as Creative–Critical Practice, DOI logo
Yu, Sheng
2023. Scaffolding Strategies for Training Anxiety-Stricken Novice Interpreters. Journal of Social Science Humanities and Literature 6:5 ► pp. 138 ff. DOI logo
Crezee, Ineke & Agustina Marianacci
2022. ‘How did he say that?’ interpreting students’ written reflections on interprofessional education scenarios with speech language therapists. The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 16:1 ► pp. 19 ff. DOI logo
Kodura, Małgorzata
2022. Evaluating the effectiveness of an online course in translation technology originally developed for a classroom environment. The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 16:3 ► pp. 309 ff. DOI logo
Pietrzak, Paulina
2020. Inside and Outside the Translation Classroom. Research in Language 18:2 ► pp. 109 ff. DOI logo
Pietrzak, Paulina
2022. Towards Metacognitive Translator Training. In Metacognitive Translator Training, ► pp. 51 ff. DOI logo
Pietrzak, Paulina
2022. Self-reflection as a Strategy in Metacognitive Translator Training. In Metacognitive Translator Training, ► pp. 105 ff. DOI logo
Pietrzak, Paulina
2022. A Model of Metacognitive Support. In Metacognitive Translator Training, ► pp. 179 ff. DOI logo

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 6 december 2025. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.

Mobile Menu Logo with link to supplementary files background Layer 1 prag Twitter_Logo_Blue