Arabic for the Professions: Translation Practice in Medical, Media, Literary, and Legal Contexts. (304-0-1)

Instructors

Rana Raddawi
847/467-6350
Crowe 4-121

Meeting Info

University Hall 112: Mon, Wed 12:30PM - 1:50PM

Overview of class

This course provides advanced training in translation (Arabic-English and English-Arabic) with a focus on integrated practice across Modern Standard Arabic and regional dialects in professional and institutional contexts. Students develop practical translation skills while working with authentic texts from medical, media, literary, and legal areas, reflecting the linguistic realities of contemporary Arabic usage.
The course emphasizes strategies for navigating register variation, code-switching, and dialectal speech, as well as the accurate and culturally appropriate usage of specialized terminology. Students learn to adapt translations for different audiences and purposes, balancing precision, style, and ethical responsibility. Through guided practice, revision, and critical reflection, students strengthen their ability to produce professional-quality translations that respond to the communicative demands of diverse fields.

Registration Requirements

Prerequisites: 2 200-level courses in Arabic or consent of the instructor.

Learning Objectives

By the end of the course, students will be able to translate complex Arabic texts into idiomatic English (and/or vice versa), justify their translation choices, and demonstrate sensitivity to the interaction between Modern Standard Arabic and spoken varieties in real-world professional contexts. Specific goals are:
1. Accurately comprehend and analyze authentic Arabic texts in Modern Standard Arabic and selected regional dialects from medical, media, literary, and legal contexts, demonstrating control of main ideas, supporting details, and implicit meaning.
2. Translate extended Arabic texts into clear, idiomatic English that reflect appropriate register, terminology, and genre conventions, with increasing consistency and control.
3. Identify and appropriately render shifts between Modern Standard Arabic and dialects, explaining how linguistic choices relate to audience, purpose, and social context.
4. Use specialized vocabulary and discourse conventions from medical, media, literary, and legal fields with growing precision, demonstrating awareness of professional standards.
5. Revise translations based on instructor and peer feedback, improving clarity, accuracy, and stylistic consistency across drafts.
6. Recognize ethical challenges and cultural implications involved in professional translation, particularly in healthcare, media, and legal contexts, and respond appropriately in translation practice.

Evaluation Method

Practical assignments will involve translation into and out of English and Arabic based on authentic texts from the Media and Medical fields such as news articles, interviews, reports, admission form, screening form, encounters between healthcare providers and patients. To aid their work, students will be introduced to and work with conventional and digital resources used for translation. As a final project, each student will work on a longer translation of their choice or design a community project to help native speakers of Arabic to navigate English language sources.

Class Materials (Required)

The course material is available through online PDFs. Interactive exercises and assignments are hosted on the course site on Canvas. Additional background readings in English (excerpts) will be available to students.

Class Attributes

Advanced Expression

Enrollment Requirements

Enrollment Requirements: Prerequisite: Two 200-level Arabic courses, or instructor permission.