LANGUAGE TOOLS: COMMUNICATING IN TODAY’S WORLD OF BUSINESS

• Authors: Sandra Ribeiro Suzana Cunha Manuel Moreira da Silva
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

In a society increasingly mediated by technology, the medium has created unparalleled opportunities. As a result, it has refocused educators’ attention on how technological literacy is both an essential learning outcome in all higher education programs, and the intermediary, the means to achieve the digital competences expected from employees. In the field of English for Specific Purposes, and at a time when technology is perceived to enable quick and effective access to a vast number of sources of information and knowledge, teaching a language confronts teachers and students with divergent views that converge into what we perceive to be interconnected paths. We critically reflect upon these interconnected paths in order to obtain further insights on how technology, namely Machine Translation and Computer-Aided Translation, is perceived by business communicators who are learning English in an ESP environment. Within the premises that translation is an act of intercultural communication, our case study addresses mirrored perceptions of the English language, the act of translation, and the use of technological tools. Our study draws on both perspectives and discusses how mirrored images of students and teachers converge through project-based approaches, rooted in practical, short visual tasks with a clear and immediately visible purpose.

Keywords

EN

English for Specific Purposes; Higher Education; Translation; Machine Translation; Computer Aided-Translation; Business Communication; Task-based approach

• Publisher: IATEFL Poland Computer Special Interest Group & University of Nicosia
• Journal: Teaching English with Technology
• Year: 2015
• Volume: 15
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 67-80

Contributors

author

Sandra Ribeiro Suzana Cunha Manuel Moreira da Silva

• Polytechnic Institute of Porto

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