Innovation and E - learning in Translator Education : A Singapore Experience

The last decades have seen the education of translators shift to several new dimensions, thanks to rapidly-developing technology and globalization. This paper presents an overview of the innovative development in devising integrated and detailed e-Learning plans and activities to enhance the design and delivery of the course content in the BA in Translation and Interpretation (BATI) programme. In the first section of this paper, it outlines why we believe e-learning has complementary roles to play in the translator education environment. We will then describe the progressive approach in integrating online learning environment with on-site classroom environment in order to give students the best of both worlds. In the main body of the paper, we will highlight some key features of this approach that have fundamentally changed the way translators and interpreters are being trained. We will examine how e-learning platform is deployed to resolve problems in the training of translators and interpreters in the open-learning environment. Implication and issues encountered in the process of implementing e-learning plans will be discussed. It is concluded that solutions to these problems lie in the collaboration between educators and technologists and this poses challenges and opportunities to both educators and technologists in the relevant field.