This document is a research proposal for translating a document about teaching inferential comprehension strategies in English L2 and their impact on Spanish L1. The proposal provides background on translation and defines it. It discusses the rationale, objectives, and significance of translating this document. The literature review covers important translation techniques like direct (word-for-word, literal, linguistic borrowing, calque) and indirect/oblique (transposition, modulation, equivalence, adaptation, reduction, omission). The methods section outlines the translation process using Vinay and Dalbernet's techniques, including understanding the text, drafting, revising, and contrasting with the original. References and a timetable are also included.

1. RESEARCH PROPOSAL
Translation
ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROGRAMME
Researcher’s name: Humberto Coral Zavaleta
Student’s registration number: 10-12219
Working Title: “Enseñanza de Estrategias de Comprensión Inferencial en el Idioma
Inglés L2 Y Su impacto en Español L1”
General Line of Research: Applied linguistics
Nature of Research: Documentary research (Translation)
Date: November 11th, 2014.

2. Supervisors:
Dr. Moisés Damián Perales Escudero
Abstract
1. Introduction
1.1 Background
About translation
Over the course of history, translation has played an important role in communication
in every civilization since it has helped people exchange ideas and thoughts through
rendering a text from one language (SL) into an equivalent version in a different
language (TL). Translation has not only played an important role, but also the
translator has such a task in his hands when translating. He/she must be clever in
being innovative when choosing the most appropriate words to express the same
idea in a different language so the equivalent version (TL) has exactly the same
impact and effect on the audience without any ambiguity in meaning.
What is translation?
Translation sure has uncountable definitions depending on the author. For Nida
and Taber (1969) “translation consists in reproducing in the receptor language the
closest natural equivalence of the source language message. Catford (1965) says
that “translation is the replacement of textual material in one language (SL) by
equivalent textual material in another language (TL).” Hatim and Munday (2004: 6)

3. define translation as “the process of transferring a written text from source
language (SL) to target language (TL)”. Then from the definitions mentioned above,
it is an important thing to mention that, though expressed in different words, the
authors agree on the fact that that it is a must to work on the very essence of the
message of the text (SL) and express it in a different language (TL).
1.2 Rationale
Reading has become an important area of research that is not thoroughly studied
in Mexico. This is so as PISA and ENLACE, which are standardized tests,
commenced to take place in Mexico. Then it has been a fact that many Mexican
students of varying age levels showed themselves to have difficulties to
comprehend written texts. Hence, it has been the reason why more and more
scholars do research on reading comprehension these days. None the less, this
area of research has already been developed in English-speaking countries. So,
this translation will be meaningful chiefly for Mexican Spanish-speaking language
educators and of course people in the reading teaching field.

4. The chapter to be rendered comprises practical advice and information that
straightforwardly alludes to some theory which sure can help people concerned in
the reading teaching field choose and make use of the appropriate instructional
material in order to successfully teach and develop the reading skill in students.
Additionally, this translation intends to get students to be aware of the importance
of reading comprehension and how it may be enhanced.
1.3 Objective
The aim of this monographic study is to faithfully render and clearly express the
chapter of a research which was conducted at the University of Quintana Roo
“ENSEÑANZA DE ESTRATEGIAS DE COMPRENSIÓN INFERENCIAL EN
INGLÉS L2 Y SU IMPACTO EN ESPAÑOL L1” and whose topic alludes to
education.
It is to consider a second important goal which is that of describing the translation
process thoroughly, encompassing explanations and descriptions of the translation
difficulties found during and throughout the process as well as the techniques
used to be able to tackle them.
1.4 Significance/relevance of the research project.
In Mexico it is a fact that there are students who have not developed the reading
skill fully. So this makes it harder for them to be able to understand texts of any
kind. Hence, this monograph paper is of important relevance inasmuch as it will
help them to be more educated and well-informed about the matter, which is not to
a certain degree fully considered to be studied. There is sure original contributions
proposed throughout this monographic work that will make specialised knowledge
of the topic efficient to readers.

5. Furthermore, as there is not much information about teaching strategies of
comprehension at UQROO, this translation work will become a reliable source
to consult when working with a translation-related topic. It also will encourage
translators to be interested in rendering texts of this kind, so there can be more
sources of information about it
2. Literature Review
It is important to mention that when translating articles, texts, or any kind of
source of information, it is a must to be well-informed about the p r o p e r use of
the most well-known and most accurate translation techniques. It is indispensable
to get to know all of them thoroughly, so that we can make use of them properly
and can render successfully. As it is mentioned, it is imperative to know not only
the techniques but also the strategies which will facilitate the translation process.
On the other hand, we will have to start defining concepts which can describe
methods as well as likely solutions to translation difficulties. So, using some
translation techniques are essential for this translation project to be successfully
completed. These translation techniques have been already established and
referred to by experts in the translation.

6. It is a well-known fact that the translation process does not only implicate an
interlinguistic process, but also a deeply cultural and educational understanding of
aspects that do have an impact on the readers’ point of view about translation.
Therefore, in order for a translator to successfully go through and out of the
translation process, it is a must for him/ her to have a clear idea and know perfectly
what the different translation techniques are all about and which ones are direct and
which ones are indirect.
Direct translation techniques:
The message of what is expressed in the source language is equally expressed
with the same structure in the target language. This can be explained as both
languages may have akin grammatical categories and then the structure is not
changed by any means. In the translation field there are three types of direct
translation which are defined next.
Word-for-word-translation has to do with the use of the first suitable word that
comes up in a dictionary as well keeping the same word order. An accurate
example of it is commonly presented in sacred texts inasmuch as at that time
people were convinced that the message of the Lord could not be changed,
modified or altered by mere judgment of a mortal person. For example, in the menu
may appear the following: vino en botella (She came in bottle) and it can be an
appropriate example to show inasmuch as in this context it sure is: wine in bottle.

7. Literal translation can be flexible as it allows the translator to make some
adjustments in the order of words concerning the target language. For instance,
a literal translation is “my neighbour’s beast hit me hard and hurt me with his
offending words = El animal de mi vecino me dió duro y me lastimo con sus
ofensas.” We can see that the word order was changed and the evidently
necessary use of the determiners “el” and “de” were a must and in that sense the
sentence in the target language would be well-structured and does make sense.
Linguistic borrowing consists in using loan-words that are borrowed and
incorporated in the recipient language. This technique is mostly used when the
target language does not at all awe a translation or equivalent and that is when
translators can make use of this linguistic borrowing.
E.g., garage, tortillas, mescal, toltecas,
zapotecos, maya, etc.
Calque is a literal translation that consists in borrowing words of the source
language and then the translator adapts them to morphology to the target language
E. g. hot-dog- perro caliente, science fiction-ciencia ficción.
The following techniques a r e proposed by Vinay and Dalbernet a n d
w h i c h a r e indirect translation techniques. They are explained below.

8. Indirect or oblique translation techniques
Oblique Translation Techniques are mostly used when the elements of some
parts of the source text cannot be straightforwardly translated without modifying
to a certain extent the meaning of the grammatical and surely stylistics
elements of the target language. This means that in order for the rendering to
make sense in the target language, it is necessary to make some arrangement
to it before it is successfully completed.
Transposition is about modifying the grammatical category of any of the parts
of the source text without removing its semantic content.
E.g. “When reading – al leer”, “man-made (noun + participle) - hecho por la
mano del hombre.

9. Modulation is a differen in style but same in meaning variation of the message
that takes place through a change in terms of perspective. What comes next is
a listing of modulation techniques of all kind.
 Metonymic modulation, where one term stands for another, e.g.
“Washington-El gobierno de los Estados Unidos”.
 Synecdoctical modulation, where a part represents the whole or vice
versa; e.g. “Fantasy world- Mundo de fantasia”.
 Opposing terms, e.g.” It is not heavy- it is light”, “it is easy to love- it
is hard to hate
 Double negation turned into an affirmative, e.g. “it appears not
flaweless- No es perfecto”.
 Passive to active forms, e.g. “it is thought to be awesome –
Creemos que es genial”.
 Change of symbols, e.g. metaphors, proverbs, “that is the last straw-
Es el colmo”.

10. Equivalence intends to express the very same situation as it befell in the
original context, of course making use of different words. It is the most appropriate
technique when dealing with proverbs, idioms, and clichés, and onomatopoeias
 Proverb e.g. “A constant guest is never welcome.- A change is as good as a
rest.”.
 Idiom, e.g. “A dime a dozen- Anything that is common, inexpensive, and easy
to get or available any where.”
 Clichés: an overused expression, e.g. “She is the love of my life”
– Es con la que me quiero casar y estar toda la vida”.
 Onomatopoeia, e.g. “tick-tock” in English translated equally as “tick-tock”
in Spanish.
Adaptation is usually used when there sure is not a equivalence for a given a
saying or any expression, or even when that given situation in the context of the
source culture does not all exist in the target culture and then it is a must to find an
accurate equivalence and adaption takes place.
E.g. “they were making pozol” – “estaban preparando pozol, una bebida tipica
típico Mexicana con masa”.

11. Reduction or omission deals with the omission of elements in the target text as it
seems too tautological, e.g. “edible to eat- comestible para su ingesta”.
3.Method
This process of translation of the chapter “enseñanza de estrategias de
comprensión inferencial en inglés L2 y su impacto en español L1”, will require the
use of the Canadian translation technique by Vianey and Dalbernet (1973) in order
to be able to successfully complete the work. Translation requires specific special
procedures that will be shown in the list below.
An in-depth understanding: To successfully accomplish this, it is a must that the
translator have read as many times as necessary so that the translator will be able
to understand the author’s ideas and thoughts.
Looking up unknown words: A translator cannot probably know all the words
through and out of the translation process. Some words will be unknown for the
translator, so it is of much importance to look up unfamiliar and unknown words in
the dictionary and glossaries previously written.
Writing a first draft: Every time we have a text to render, it is important to first know
what the text is all about in-depth. These processes are necessary to take place
when we start with the very first draft of the translation since this will help improve
the fluency and quality of the other versions.
Looking for a polished/ better version: after having written the first draft and found
many unknown words, it is a must that the translator look up words that can help
improve the first version. Looking up words that can work as synonyms is now the
next step in the translation process.

12. By doing this, we will find the need to make some changes and include more
appropriate words and ways in order for the translator to be able to transmit the
same thought like that one of the author’s. The massage has to have the same
impact on the audience. It is important to be mentioned that in order for the
translator no to be offensive or use offensive words unintentionally, he definitely
must know the authors’ culture.
Contrasting the translation with the original version: we now have to be conscious
that this is a crucial step for the translator to finish his work. He now has to focus on
knowing if the message of what he has previously written was well transmitted or
not. The translator can know if this makes sense or not by asking a cultured well
educated native speaker of the target language to read it.
Keeping a journal: This an important step as well when developing a work of this
kind. Keeping a record of all the problems found through the translation process
and other list in which the translator makes mention of all the techniques he will use
to face those problems. All this will help us write the analysis later on.
Apart from the procedure we already have mentioned, it is rather important to say
that we may need some sources and tools on-line that can be really helpful to
develop the translation. Some of them are mentioned below.
Word-reference: This is an on-line dictionary that has English-Spanish and
Spanish-English, synonyms, and definitions. It also has forums where we can ask
other people’s opinions about any difficult word or expression that needs to be
translated but cannot be found anywhere else.
Linguee: It is a page any one can have access to. This is especially useful when
the translator needs to find examples of definitions used in context. It has different
sentences in which the word may be used differently.

13. Books, articles, and journals:
Diccionario de la Real Academia Española: This is a tool really interesting and
useful since it provides the precise meaning of words that are required to be used
in the target text as well as their description. The purpose to go and consult this
dictionary is to make sure that we are not misusing any word and that may be
misinterpreted by the author or the audience.
The use books, journals, and articles are relevant and essential to be consulted
since they are fundamental part of the translation process as Cartford (1995) and
Garcia Yebra (1992) mention. The books, journals, and articles will of course help
to write the analysis of the translation process as well.
Finally when we are done with the translation, we will focus on the analysis
describe the difficulties that appeared throughout the translation process as well as
the techniques we used to be able to overcome them.
Project timetable
Number of
paragraphs
April May June July August
Paragraph
s 599-621
X
Final
version
and
analysis
X

14. References

15. Bhatia, N. (1992). The Oxford Companion to the English Language. 1. Retrieved
fro m h t t p : / / e n . w ik i ped ia .o r g / w ik i / T ra n sla t ion
Catford, J. C. (1995). A Linguistic Theory of Translation. Oxford: Oxford University
Press.
Garcia Yebra, V. (1994). Teoría y práctica de la traducción. Madrid. Gredos
Word Reference. (2009). Word Reference Online Language Dictionary. Retrieved
from www.wordreference.com
Robinson, D. (1997). Becoming a translator. New Fetter Lane, London
Englund, B. (2005). Expertise and Explicitation in the Translation Process.
Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.
Baker, M. (1991) In Other Words. Great Britain: Bodmin Cornwall.
Karoly, A. (2014) Translation in Foreign Language Teaching.
Karoly A. (2014) Translation competence Performance.
Alison, H. (2007) Teaching Narrative Comprehension Strategies to First Graders.
University of Michigan