Identity formation and transformation of Chinese university translator trainers

Abstract

ABSTRACT While there has been increased scholarly interest in the translator trainer’s competence, the translator trainer’s professional identity, that is, how they conceptualise their work and roles in daily teaching practice, remains an unexplored area. This multiple-case study aims to fill this gap by examining four university translator trainers’ constructions of professional identities in the Chinese context. A purposeful sample of four translator trainers was recruited from three Chinese universities. Two rounds of in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted along with the collection of lecture slides, syllabi and observed teaching sessions. Subsequently, an inductive thematic analysis was applied to data, and three dimensions embedded in teachers’ accounts – temporality, sociality and place – were scrutinised. The analysis of the data revealed five key identity themes among the translator trainers: the curriculum maker, the praxis initiator, the learning facilitator, the advocate for translation technologies, and the broker between the translation market and training programmes. The study also identified changes in pedagogical roles and relationships with translation technologies within their identity discourse. This study is concluded with implications for translator trainers’ professional development.