The best art experience has often been characterized as a kind of balance between the familiar and the unfamiliar, the expected and the unexpected, the easy and the hard. Good directors and actors have the artistry to be able to play on the orientation reactions of the audience. They know how to structure a production or performance so that it…

It is argued that the skill for understanding written texts, such as those of the humanities, is more important than facts and knowledge because it lasts after formal education has ended. Therefore its development should be the uppermost educational goal. A technique is suggested to aid college teachers in developing this skill. (JMD)

Presents a conservative approach to critical thinking instruction, which involves introducing a few tools, reinforcing them, and applying them to mastery of a specific course content. Uses the technique of visualization as an example, exploring ways of teaching students to use the technique and ways of assessing it. (MAB)

Professional training for translators, most often begun in specialized subject areas, should begin with a course in translation theory. The first purpose of such a course is to teach students to think as translators, whose function is to convey the message contained in the source language. Simply stated, this is a three-step process of: (1)…

Translation is a real-life communication skill that should be incorporated into second language instruction. Communicative language teaching theory recognizes the importance of learning to handle foreign language internal transfer. Classroom activities to promote such language transfer skills include the following: (1) pairing students to…

The author of a paper of Translation Quality Assessment and the training of translators responds to criticisms, focusing on the problems of a contrastive/comparative linguistics approach to translation, the complexity of the translation task, and the issue of translator subjectivity. (MSE)

A response to a paper on Translation Quality Assessment (TQA) and the training of translators focuses on the paper's criticism of the theoretical basis for teaching and evaluating student work. It discusses how criteria for evaluation of translations are determined and the role of the client/audience in this process. (MSE)

A response to a paper on Translation Quality Assessment and the training of translators looks at parallel developments in second/foreign language learning/teaching, particularly in error analysis, error evaluation, and language authenticity. Argues criteria used to assess quality of translations in a professional context, for which functionalism…

The transcript of a debate within a group of specialists in translation is presented. The discussion addresses: translator "visibility" in translations and reader reception; the relationship of functionalism in translation, comparative linguistics, and intercultural communication; the client's power; literary translation; the…

The use of text classification as a strategy in the training of translators is discussed. Frequently, translator trainees are required to complete a text profile classifying the text on dimensions such as purpose, formality, difficulty, and emotional tone. It is argued that the empirical basis for such classification is very shaky, but could be…