Module: Translation in Crises

Module Specifications.

Current Academic Year 2024 - 2025

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Date posted: September 2024

Module Title	Translation in Crises
Module Code	LC585 (ITS) / TRA1017 (Banner)
Faculty	Humanities & Social Sciences	School	SALIS
Module Co-ordinator	Patrick Cadwell
Module Teachers	Sharon O'Brien
NFQ level	9	Credit Rating	5
Pre-requisite	Not Available
Co-requisite	Not Available
Compatibles	Not Available
Incompatibles	Not Available

None

Description

Political insecurity and conflict drive long-term displacement around the globe, frequently at levels leading to crises. Many of the countries facing these crises are multilingual, yet the importance of language diversity in crisis communication with displaced people has been un- or under-recognised. This research-based module aims to encourage potential future communicators to question assumptions and propose solutions to multilingual crisis communication using “translation” as a lens.

Learning Outcomes

1. Explain communication challenges in crises, in particular in relation to refugees
2. Illustrate the need for and contribution of translation and interpreting in crisis communication
3. Question assumptions made in research and practice about how best to communicate with displaced people
4. Evaluate technologies that support multilingual crisis communication, considering their related strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and challenges
5. Plan solutions to multilingual crisis communication challenges, taking into account ethical questions of translation and interpreting in crisis settings

*Type*	*Hours*	*Description*
Workload	Full-time hours per semester
Directed learning	22	Attending synchronous teaching sessions
Independent Study	35	Completing assigned and independently sourced readings
Directed learning	35	Reviewing content asynchronously (slides, videos, etc.)
Directed learning	8	Small quizzes, directed discussions, etc. assigned during the semester
Independent Study	25	Assignment completion (oral presentation, critical essay)
Total Workload: 125

All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml

Indicative Content and Learning Activities

Indicative Content
Crisis policy; Access to information; Basic principles of translating; Volunteerism and voluntarism; Translation as empowerment; Technology; Terminology; Ethics.

Indicative Learning Activities
Reading assigned texts and independently selected texts; Sourcing examples of translation and interpreting in crises; Analysing crisis communication needs in a crisis setting; Presenting a crisis context and its related communicative needs; Writing an essay involving the design and critique of a language access plan.

Assessment Breakdown
Continuous Assessment	100%	Examination Weight	0%

Type	Description	% of total	Assessment Date
Course Work Breakdown
Assignment	An individual oral presentation (about a crisis context and its translation needs) made during the semester	40%	n/a
Assignment	A critical essay (involving the planning and critique of a language access plan) submitted at the end of the semester	60%	n/a

Reassessment Requirement Type
Resit arrangements are explained by the following categories: Resit category 1: A resit is available for both* components of the module. Resit category 2: No resit is available for a 100% continuous assessment module. Resit category 3: No resit is available for the continuous assessment component where there is a continuous assessment and examination element.
* ‘Both’ is used in the context of the module having a Continuous Assessment/Examination split; where the module is 100% continuous assessment, there will also be a resit of the assessment
This module is category 1

Indicative Reading List

Federico Federici: 2016, Mediating Emergencies and Conflicts. Frontline Translating and Interpreting., Palgrave Macmillan,
Carmen Valero-Garcés, Rebecca Tipton: 2017, Ideology, Ethics and Policy Development in Public Service Interpreting and Translation, Multilingual Matters,
Fischer, H.: 0, Response to Disaster: Fact versus Fiction and Its Perpetuation: The Sociology of Disaster, 3, University Press of America,
Sheehan, M. and D. Quinn-Allan: 2015, Crisis Communication in a Digital World., Cambridge University Press,

Other Resources

None