Tech age a help to translators

The fast pace with which the technological solutions of our age develop usually fills industry practitioners with dread. They envisage robots taking over jobs while people lose their employment, and how they will lack the expertise needed for the new jobs created, making these positions impossible to fill.

Not people working in translation, however. In spite of the widespread use of Google Translate by people who want to know the rough meaning of a text, and despite computer-aided (CAT) and machine translation already being a reality, translators are highly confident in the future of their profession.

“Translation technology is a help, not a threat,” says Professor Olivia Kwong Oi-yee, acting programme director, MA in translation, and associate professor in department of translation, Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). “It is extremely important for students to develop the proper attitude towards translation technology, realise the abilities and limitations of the tools and resources available to translators, and make appropriate and effective use of them in translation tasks.”

CAT classes are an important part of teaching at CUHK. Students are taught the latest developments in translation technology, such as computer-aided, terminology management and machine translation, and their applications in various tasks. They are trained to use the latest tools and resources.

Lingnan University translation graduate Lin Qingyang, who is continuing her studies for a doctorate, supports this opinion. “I don’t see this as an imminent ‘takeover’. The advance of technology will give translators and interpreters better access to information and improve their work environment. They will thus be able to work with greater efficiency and competence,” she says, adding that translation and interpreting is a deeply “human” practice that requires cross-cultural knowledge and sensitivity to the communicative situation, making it difficult for machines to replace people.

But Lingnan also sees the importance of staying updated on the latest trends, and will introduce a new course on computer-aided translation next year for the MA and BA programmes.