Reflective journals in translation teaching

Abstract

This article contends that the reason why theorists and teachers differ from students in their perceptions of the role of theory in learning translation is the actual separation of theory and practice in teaching. To remedy this situation, teachers should be process‐oriented in translation teaching and so should students in learning to translate. Students’ internalization of theories from class and eventual development of a unified theory of their own are crucial to the success of translation teaching and the growth of student translators. It is further contended that such process‐orientedness in teaching and learning is critical to the development of Translation Studies as an independent discipline. Reflective journal writing, an activity which is similar to diary keeping but stresses the writer's reflection on the experience apart from recording what happens during a period of time, is then detailed as a strategy to help students internalize in‐class theories and develop their own theory of translation.