Translation from target language to English, and vice versa, is now a well-established part of the GCSE MFL syllabus. Interestingly this skill does not currently feature at IGCSE.
When revising, remember that the Reading Paper has the target-language translation into English, and the Writing Paper has the English to target-language translation.
Here are 5 tips to help you score well in these translation tasks:
· Read the WHOLE text before you start. Preferably twice. It is really common to rush straight in with the first sentence, but this can mean that you don’t have an understanding of the whole text, and this can lead you off onto a tangent, away from the real meaning.
· Annotate the text before you try to translate it. Highlight the tenses. There will be at least two, probably three different tenses. After you have finished check that you have used more than one tense (and that it is the right one in each case). If you have only one time frame, then you have missed something. Go back and check!
· Watch out for the little words that change the meaning. Things like “often”, “always”, “not”, “never”. Take particular care with words that are very similar but mean different things. One example which has tripped several students during practice this year is the German example “kein” vs “klein”. There is a big difference between “We have a small cinema” and “We have no cinema”.
· Take care over word order. Make sure that the word order you have in your final version is correct for the language you have translated into. For example, in French we would say “la table bleue” but we don’t say “the table blue” in English. In German, verbs often get sent to the end of the sentence, but this may not be the right way to do it in English.
· Proofread your work at the end. Check for any words which have crept in which are in the wrong language. Make sure your verb endings are correct. Have you translated each idea or concept, including the adjectives and adverbs?
I hope that these tips help with your translations. What advice would you give to another student?