䠘ሗ࿌䠚 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌㻌㻌 㻌 㻌 㻌 䢢 㻌䢢 㻌䢢 JAITS䢢 JAITS㇦儓儈兠兗儞免兗儭኱Ꮫ MAJIT凚᪥ᮏㄒ㏻ヂ⩻ヂಟኈㄢ⛬凛䢢Ꮫ⏕僎ᐇົ⤒㦂⪅僔どⅬ傱僯䢢ዟᒣ㻌 ዉ✑Ꮚ 1㸦ࢡ࢖࣮ࣥࢬࣛࣥࢻ኱Ꮫ᪥ᮏㄒ㏻ヂ⩻ヂಟኈㄢ⛬䠅This report describes my observations on the Master of Arts in Japanese Interpreting andTranslation (MAJIT) program at the University of Queensland in Australia from the viewpointof a student, as well as someone who has worked as an interpreter/translator and taught
interpreting skills for decades. In this report I will introduce the courses in the MAJIT
program and compare them with commercial translation/interpreting (TI) training schools inJapan, which are largely dedicated to training of practical skills. I will then delineate myexperiences and observations, and offer some thoughts on the program after finishing thefirst semester of the two-year program in June 2014. My particular focus is on how coursesthat do not involve direct training of practical TI skills support overall TI training and how
mixing native English and Japanese speakers in class helps the learning process of thestudents of both languages.
1. Introduction
The Master of Arts in Japanese Interpreting and Translation (MAJIT) Program at theUniversity of Queensland is “one of the only two programs in the world ranked by theInternational Association of Conference Interpreters (AIIC) Survey of Conference Interpreter
Training Courses as meeting all or most of AIIC criteria.” This report details my observationsof the program after finishing the first semester in June as a student.
I had two objectives when enrolling in MAJIT after working as an interpreter andtranslator and teaching at an interpreter training school in Japan. My first objective was toexamine and experience first-hand the curriculum for a translation and interpreting (TI)
program taught at an academic institution, and compare it with those offered by commercial
TI training schools in Japan. My chief interest was to find out how courses in the curriculumthat do not directly teach TI skills benefit students who are just starting TI training, and how
they might benefit those who had already worked as a professional interpreter/translator. Of
OKUYAMA Naoko, “An Inside Look at the Master of Arts in Japanese Interpreting and Translation(MAJIT) Program at the University of Queensland,” Interpreting and Translation Studies, No.14,2014. pages 277-283. © by the Japan Association for Interpreting and Translation Studies .

277277ࠗ㏻ヂ⩻ヂ◊✲࠘14 ྕ 2014 the eight MAJIT students enrolled in 2014, two including me had prior TI experience. The
other objective was to observe the benefit of undertaking a program like this outside Japan,
with a particular focus on how native English language students interact with native Japanese
language students in class. The MAJIT class of 2014 is comprised of six Japanese students,
one American student, and one Australian student. There were three other Australians and twoother Japanese students who were enrolled in the program as part-time students in the firstsemester.
2. The curriculum for MAJIT
Figure 1 shows the course list for the MAJIT program. All MAJIT students are required totake the same courses, except for the research-related course in the first semester. For thisrequirement, they can choose between General Research Methods (LTCS6000) and Researchin Translation (LTCS7020). They are required to take eight courses under Part A in the firstyear to earn 16 credits and to take five courses under Part B in the second year to earn another16 -- a total of 32 credits.
Figure 1. MAJIT Course List
Part A#32 consisting of #2 from Course Code Units Course Title
LTCS6000

2General Research Methods

LTCS7020

2

Research in Translation

and #14 for Course Code Units Course Title
JAPN71102

Public Speaking

JAPN7120

2Advanced Textual Skills

JAPN7130

2

Applied Translation

JAPN71402Consecutive Interpreting into English

JAPN7150

2Consecutive Interpreting into Japanese

JAPN7160

2

Advanced Translation I

JAPN7170

2

Theory of Translation

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㇦ࢡ࢖࣮ࣥࢬࣛࣥࢻ኱Ꮫ MAJIT

Part Band #16 for Course Code Units Course Title
JAPN7200

2

Live Interpreting Forum I

JAPN7210

2

Technical Translation I

JAPN72206

Conference Interpreting

JAPN7230

2Live Interpreting Forum II

JAPN7260

4

Advanced/Technical Translation II[Online] http://www.uq.edu.au/study/program_list.html?acad_prog=5207 (6/29/14 )The courses in the first semester highlight the differences between university TI
programs and those offered by commercial TI training schools. Three of the four courses
offered in the first semester of MAJIT do not involve actual TI training, and instead aredesigned for teaching students ancillary skills and knowledge that would be useful forinterpreters/translators. Applied Translation (JAPN7130) is the only course involving training
in practical TI skills.
3. Observations of individual courses in the first semester
3.1 Public Speaking (JAPN7110)
The students delivered prepared 3-minute speeches in both English and Japanese in class for avariety of settings, including; ceremonies to open or close an event, the dedication of a newbuilding, presenting or receiving an award or a gift, andmarking a milestone of sort. Otherspeeches tested the students’ ability to persuade or entertain the audience.
This course helped students overcome the stage fright they might feel when speaking
before a large audience. The course profile notes that the class provides insight into what
language interpreters can anticipate speakers using. The profile also points out that “emphasis
will be placed on the content, structure, delivery, pronunciation and diction, register, lexiconand style of speeches.”
In-class speeches were not for assessment, however, the students were evaluated on
5-minute oral presentations in English and Japanese in which students summarized assigned
articles in the two languages, and three-minute impromptu speeches in both languages withfive minutes to prepare. Not finishing a speech or an oral presentation within a set, narrow,time frame was punished by point deductions although such strict time management does notseem necessary in actual TI practice.
Assessing impromptu speeches for the exam after the students had practiced preparedspeeches in class seemed to represent a gap between the course content and the exam, since279
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the class covered approaches to preparing and delivering a speech appropriate for the given
setting, and not how to organize and deliver a speech on the spot.
3.2 Advanced Textual Skills (JAPN7120)
This course is designed to strengthen speed-reading and summary writing skills. It goes
without saying that speed-reading is useful for both interpreters and translators for
assignment preparation under time constraints. Interpreters often have to skim throughhundreds of pages of documents while translators need to read a large volume of references
for research to extract the main idea and logic.
Students were split into two classes as they are required to take the course in their
non-native language. In the English speed reading class, taught by an Australian instructor,
the students were introduced to speed-reading tools, including a reading guide such as a pen
and a metronome to keep the pace of reading, and a variety of techniques such as noregression, fewer and shorter eye fixations, and soft focus. They were encouraged to adopt
whatever techniques suited their own reading habits. Their reading speed was recorded
throughout the course to monitor progress in time and comprehension. All students saw
improvement in both criteria.
3.3 Applied Translation (JAPN7130)
This course was the only one that directly dealt with TI skills. Japanese-native speakers wereenrolled in the English to Japanese translation class, taught by a Japanese instructor, while
English-native speakers were enrolled in the Japanese to English translation class taught byan Australian instructor. The direction of translation is set because the students are required
to translate into their native language in the final exam of the MAJIT program. The examfollows the format of NAATI (National Accreditation Authority for Translators andInterpreters) at Conference Interpreter and Advanced Translator level.
I believe that having students of both English and Japanese in the same class would be
more stimulating and productive. Apparently this was not the case because translators inAustralia -- and the US and Europe, for that matter -- are expected to work into their native
language to maintain best-practice standards.
Since English education in Japan is predominantly based on American English, thedistinctive terminology of Australian English as well as unfamiliarity with the country’s
politics, culture and other aspects posed a challenge to the Japanese students. Given thecultural differences between the two countries, the students had to think about how muchbackground information they should give to get the meaning across to the target reader
without changing the tone. The choice between domestication and foreignization (Venuti,2008), dynamic/formal equivalence (Nida, 1964a) and deforming tendencies in translation
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such as clarification and expansion (Berman, 1985b/2004) came up as recurring issues inclass.
3.4 Research in Translation (LCTS7020)
This course is not specifically designed for the MAJIT program and is open to students inother programs, but it is one of the electives required for completing MAJIT. All of thisyear’s MAJIT students opted for this course rather than General Research Methods(LTCS6000). It seems that MAJIT included this course because a theory component is one of
the AIIC criteria for Best Practice Recommendations. The program also requires a morein-depth translation theory course in the second semester.
A barrage of the names of theorists and theories and all the exotic terms in translation
studies initially overwhelmed many of the students, including me. By the end of the semester
and after studying the whole textbook 1, however, most students appeared to have seen thepieces of the puzzle of translation studies coming together. I also began to see a certain link
between the theories and the decisions I have been making while translating and interpreting.
I believe that further comparison between theory and practice would be beneficial to my TI
career.
I might add that the course could have been better organized even though it was a brandnew course. It was team-taught by five different instructors, who each seemed to have theirown standards, goals, objectives, and expectations.
4. Conclusion
The three non-TI courses in the first semester were all new to me, with each posing uniquechallenges. As a person who has been engaged in TI for nearly 30 years, the Applied Textual
Skills course was enlightening in that it reminded me that even experienced interpreters andtranslators can learn to read faster and understand better. This is even more true for those whoare just starting TI training.
Public speaking required a change in my attitude as an interpreter who has been always
told to keep a low profile. The course provided effective training for writing a good speech
for a given occasion and delivering it in an appropriate tone and manner. For beginners in TI
training, the course was useful for memorizing set phrases in English and Japanese that suit avariety of occasions, and for practicing delivering a speech in front of an audience.
The Research in Translation class provided me with a logical explanation for why I
make certain decisions in the process of translation. This will help me in teaching as it
illuminated some of the TI processes and strategies adopted by myself and other individualtranslators and interpreters. Going back and forth between theory and practice by comparing
the translator’s decision making processes against theories would be beneficial in refining
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ࠗ㏻ヂ⩻ヂ◊✲࠘14 ྕ 2014 ‘the laws of translation’ (Toury 1995).
Despite the benefits of these courses, however, given the limited duration of theprogram, more emphasis on introductory TI training in the first semester would have greatly
helped students who had no prior TI experience. I might underline this point because students
only study consecutive interpreting in the second semester, yet are required to do
simultaneous interpreting shortly after the beginning of the second year in the LiveInterpreting Forum. In the Forum, which is open to the public, the students interpret apresentation by a guest speaker for an audience mostly made up of the first-year MAJITstudents. The instructor monitors their performances and gives them feedback in a review
session immediately following the Forum.
The native English speaking students in class made a great contribution by providing
productive input and insights. They helped correct misunderstandings and misperceptions thatnative Japanese speakers had regarding English usage. They also introduced Japanese
students to terminology peculiar to Australian English and pointed to its difference fromAmerican English.
In fact, this mixing of Japanese and non-Japanese students in class benefited everyone.
In public speaking, some students exchanged native checks of their speech scripts, andcorrected each other’s mistakes in pronunciation, intonation, and tone in their non -native
language during voluntary rehearsal sessions.
Finally, living with an Australian family has been helping me deepen my understandingof the way people live in this country -- their interests in life, their way of thinking, and theirfood and entertainment. These are things one could never learn in Japan from books or any
other research resources.
I will conclude this report with the hope that I will have the opportunity to update it as
the program progresses.

……………………………………………

AboutAbout the Authorዟᒣዉ✑Ꮚ (OKUYAMA Naoko) 1989 ᖺࡼࡾ NHK ࢆࡣࡌࡵ࡜ࡍࡿᨺ㏦㏻ヂ࣭ᨺ㏦⩻ヂ࡟ᚑ஦ࠋ1997 ᖺࡼࡾ NHK ࢢ࣮ࣟࣂ࣓ࣝࢹ࢕࢔ᅜ㝿◊ಟᐊ࡛㏻ヂㅮᖌࠋ⌧ᅾࠊ㇦ࢡ࢖࣮ࣥࢬ
ࣛࣥࢻ኱Ꮫ 0$-,7 ಟኈㄢ⛬࡟ᅾᏛ୰ࠋ
……………………………………………
Notes
1. Introducing Translation Studies (Munday 2012)

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R eferences
Berman, A. (1985/2004). Translation and the trials of the foreign (L.Venuti, Trans.). In Venuti, L.
(2004). Translation Studies Reader, London: Routledge.
MAJIT Handbook: Master of Arts in Japanese Interpr eting and Translation (1 st year MAJIT)(2014). School of Languages and Comparative Cultural Studies
Munday, J. (2012). Introducing Translation Studies (3rd ed.). New York, NY: Routledge.
Nida, E.A. (1964a). Toward a Science of Translating. Liden: E.J. Brill.
Toury, G. (1995). Descriptive Translation Studies –And Beyond. Amsterdam and Philadelphia PA:John Benjamins.
Venuti, L. (1998). The Scandals of Translation: Toward an Ethics of Difference. London and New
York: Routledge.
[Online] http://www.uq.edu.au/study/program.html?acad_prog=5207#international (29, June2014)[Online] http://www.uq.edu.au/study/program_list.html?acad_prog=5207 (29, June 2014)[Online] http://www.courses.uq.edu.au/student_section_loader.php?section=1&profileId=64141(29 June 2014)[Online] http://www.courses.uq.edu.au/student_section_loader.php?section=1&profileId=64409(29 June 2014)

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