DEVELOPING WEB SEARCHING SKILLS IN TRANSLATOR TRAINING

Abstract

This paper focuses on the development of online information literacy in translator training. First, it highlights the important role that information skills, especially web searching skills, play in translation as a cognitive activity requiring information and constant decision making, among others. Second, it argues that if we are to train translation students to work in different subject areas, text types and topics, our focus needs to shift from the acquisition of specialized knowledge in several domains to the development of information skills that can be used for problem solving in any field of expertise. Third, given that the need to seek, use and generate translation-related information depends on the type of users and translation tasks performed, it emphasizes the need for empirical studies that focus on real users and learning contexts. To illustrate the potential benefits of such an approach, this paper draws on the results obtained in a multiple-case study of the web search behaviours of a small cohort of postgraduate translation trainees in their first year of studies.