The challenges of teaching translation technologies in the AI era
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5007/2175-7968.2025.e105121Palavras-chave:
translation technology, artificial intelligence, translator training, higher education, curriculum designResumo
Integrating translation technology (TT) into specialized translation training has long been a challenge for Translation and Interpreting (T&I) undergraduate programmes. However, the emergence of artificial intelligence (AI), particularly generative AI, has intensified the debate on how universities should adapt to technological advancements in the language industry. While the profession rapidly embraces AI-driven tools, higher education institutions face structural, pedagogical, and institutional barriers that hinder their timely incorporation. This study critically examines five key challenges to the integration of TT in Spanish T&I undergraduate programmes: (1) the rigidity of the university system, (2) the heterogeneity of T&I curricula, (3) the lack of adequate physical and digital resources, (4) the need for faculty training in TT, and (5) the persistent gap between academia and the translation market. Drawing on recent literature, this study explores how these challenges impact the feasibility of incorporating TT into translator education and discusses its role in reshaping teaching methodologies. The findings highlight the urgent need for curriculum flexibility, interdisciplinary collaboration, and sustained dialogue between academia and industry. The article argues that a gradual, adaptive approach could mitigate institutional constraints while preparing students for evolving professional realities. Ultimately, this research underscores the importance of fostering a balanced approach between technological innovation and the core competencies of translation, ensuring that future translators can critically engage with AI-enhanced workflows.
Referências
Aiping, M., & Deliang, M. (2017). The ecosystem of translator workstation: Learning electronic tools in a training program for professional translators in China. Babel, 63(3), 401–422. https://doi.org/10.1075/babel.63.3.06aip
Akhulkova, Y. (2023). Nimdzi Language Technology Atlas 2023. Nimdzi. https://www.nimdzi.com/language-technology-atlas/
Álvarez-Álvarez, S. (2024). Employability and entrepreneurship in the training of translators and interpreters: A proposal to develop the entrepreneurial skills of translation and interpreting graduates. Cadernos de Tradução, 44(1), 1–30. https://doi.org/10.5007/2175-7968.2024.e95240
Borja Albi, A. (2019). How corpora can assist legal translation learners: The GENTT TransTools Corpora platform and Sketch Engine. Quaderns de Filologia: Estudis Lingüístics, 24, 21–38. https://doi.org/10.7203/qf.24.16297
Bowker, L., & Marshman, E. (2010). Toward a Model of Active and Situated Learning in the Teaching of Computer-Aided Translation: Introducing the CERTT Project. Journal of Translation Studies 13(1–2): 199–226.
Cadwell, P., O’Brien, S., & Teixeira, C. (2018). Resistance and accommodation: factors for the (non) adoption of machine translation among professional translators. Perspectives, 26(3), 301–321. https://doi.org/10.1080/0907676X.2017.1337210
Candel Mora, M. A. (2017). Retos y mutabilidad del perfil profesional del traductor en las industrias de la lengua del siglo XXI. In E. Ortega Arjonilla, A. B. Martínez López & F. García Luque (Eds.), Cartografía de la traducción, la interpretación y las industrias de la lengua (pp. 281–294). Comares.
Cànovas, M. (2020). Entorno personal de aprendizaje y portafolios electrónicos en estudios de traducción. E-AESLA, 6, 278–289.
Cànovas, M. (2022). Veinte años enseñando a traducir con tecnologías: enfoques y perspectivas. Revista Tradumàtica. Tecnologies de la Traducció, 20, 257–267. https://doi.org/10.5565/rev/tradumatica.325
Carreira, Oliver (forthcoming). ¿Desconectados del mercado de los servicios lingüísticos u obligados a desconectarse? Análisis de incentivos para el profesorado del sistema universitario español: el caso de los docentes de traducción.
CC.OO. (2022, Feb 15). La evolución de la inversión educativa entre 2009 y 2018: 10 años de retroceso en España. Secretaría de Comunicación. https://fe.ccoo.es/6fd8ed48869b1c4c574237489e0e2984000063.pdf
Cid Leal, P., Espín-García, M. C., & Presas, M. (2019). Traducción automática y posedición. Perfiles y competencias en los programas de formación de traductores. MonTi. Monografías de Traducción e Interpretación, 11, 187–214. https://doi.org/10.6035/MonTI.2019.11.7
Doherty, S. & Moorkens, J. (2013). Investigating the experience of translation technology labs: pedagogical implications. Journal of Specialised Translation, 19, 122–136. https://doi.org/10.26034/cm.jostrans.2013.426
Dorst, A. G., Valdez, S., & Bouman, H. (2022). Machine Translation in the Multilingual Classroom: How, When and Why Do Humanities Students at a Dutch University Use Machine Translation? Translation and Translanguaging in Multilingual Contexts, 8(1), 49–66. https://doi.org/10.1075/ttmc.00080.dor
EUATC. (2024). European Language Industry Survey (ELIS) 2024. European Commission. https://elis-survey.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/ELIS-2024-Report.pdf
Faes, F., & Massey, G. (2024). Charting the language industry: Interview with an industry observer. In G. Massey, M. Ehrensberger-Dow & E. Angelone (Eds.), Handbook of the Language Industry: Contexts, Resources and Profiles (pp. 17–31). De Gruyter Mouton. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110716047
Fuentes Pérez, I., & Sánchez Ramos, M. del M. (2024). Las tecnologías de traducción en la gestión de proyectos en España: un estudio basado en corpus. Revista Tradumàtica. Tecnologies de la Traducció, 22, 31–54. https://doi.org/10.5565/rev/tradumatica.333
González Pastor, D. (2022). Tecnologías de la traducción y formación de traductores: automatización y nuevos perfiles profesionales. Revista Tradumàtica. Tecnologies de la Traducció, 20, 206–221. https://doi.org/10.5565/rev/tradumatica.328
González-Davies, M. & Enríquez-Raído, V. (2016). Situated learning in translator and interpreter training: bridging research and good practice. The Interpreter and Translator Trainer, 10(1), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1080/1750399X.2016.1154339
Guerberof-Arenas, A., & Moorkens, J. (2019). Machine translation and post-editing training as part of a master’s programme. The Journal of Specialised Translation, (31), 217–238. https://doi.org/10.26034/cm.jostrans.2019.184
Guerberof-Arenas, A., & Moorkens, J. (2023). The Ethics of Machine Translation Post-editing in the Translation Ecosystem. In E. Moniz & C. P. Escartín (Eds.), Towards Responsible Machine Translation. Ethical and Legal Considerations in Machine Translation (pp. 113–133). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-14689-3
He, Y. (2021). Challenges and Countermeasures of Translation Teaching in the Era of Artificial Intelligence. Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 1881, 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/1881/2/022086
Hernández Pardo, B., & Romana García, M. L. (2021). TRADUCISTÁN 2.0: El país de la comunicación interdisciplinar. In A. G. Pallás, M. A. Moreira, J. M. Acosta & J. J. S. Alonso (Eds.), La transformación digital de la universidad: XI CIDU Congreso Iberoamericano de Docencia Universitaria (pp. 820–837). Universidad de La Laguna.
Hurtado Albir, A. (2020). La investigación en didáctica de la traducción. Evolución, enfoques y perspectivas. MonTI. Monografías de Traducción e Interpretación, 11(11), 47–76. https://doi.org/10.6035/monti.2019.11.2
Jiménez Crespo, M. A. (2024). Exploring professional translators’ attitudes towards control and autonomy in the human- centred AI era: quantitative results from a survey study. Revista Tradumàtica. Tecnologies de la Traducció, 22, 276–301. https://doi.org/10.5565/rev/tradumatica.400
Khoshsaligheh, M., Moghaddas, M., & Ameri, S. (2019). English translator training curriculum revisited: Iranian trainees’ perspectives. Teaching English Language, 13(2), 181–212. https://doi.org/10.22132/tel.2019.96238
Kiraly, D. (2000). A Social Constructivist Approach to Translator Education: Empowerment from Theory to Practice. St. Jerome.
Koskinen, K., & Ruokonen, M. (2017). Love letters or hate mail? Translators’ technology acceptance in the light of their emotional narratives. In D. Kenny & J. Williams (Eds.), Human Issues in Translation Technology (pp. 8–24). Routledge.
Li, X., Gao, Z., & Liao, H. (2023). The Effect of Critical Thinking on Translation Technology Competence Among College Students: The Chain Mediating Role of Academic Self-Efficacy and Cultural Intelligence. Psychology Research and Behavior Management, 16, 1233–1256. https://doi.org/10.2147/PRBM.S408477
López Poza, S. (2019). Humanistas y Humanidades Digitales. Trayectoria y proyección en la Filología española. In A. Egido, J. E. Laplana & L. Sánchez Laílla (Eds.), Humanidades y Humanismo. Homenaje a María Pilar Cuartero (pp. 125–159). Institución Fernando el Católico.
Mahfouz, I. (2018). Attitudes to CAT Tools: Application on Egyptian Translation Students and Professionals. Arab World English Journal, 4(4), 69–83. https://doi.org/10.24093/awej/call4.6
Márquez Garrido, R. (2022). Análisis de las competencias traductológicas de los egresados de estudios de Posgrado especializados. Panorama actual en España y expectativas del mercado laboral. [Doctoral thesis]. Universidad de Córdoba.
Massey, G., Ehrensberger-Dow, M., & Angelone, E. (2024). Handbook of the Language Industry: Contexts, Resources and Profiles. De Gruyter Mouton. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110716047
Melby, A. K., Lommel, A., & Morado Vázquez, L. (2023). Bitext. In C. Sin-wai (Ed.), Routledge Encyclopedia of Translation Technology (pp. 468-482). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003168348
Mellinger, C. D. (2017). Translators and machine translation: knowledge and skills gaps in translator pedagogy. Interpreter and Translator Trainer, 11(4), 280–293. https://doi.org/10.1080/1750399X.2017.1359760
Mellinger, C. D. (2018). Problem-based Learning in Computer-assisted Translation Pedagogy. HERMES: Journal of Language and Communication in Business, 57, 195–208. https://doi.org/10.7146/hjlcb.v0i57.106205
MemoQ. (2025). Student Discount Program. MemoQ. https://www.memoq.com/services/programs/university-program/academic-program-students/
Muñoz-Miquel, A., Montalt, V., & García-Izquierdo, I. (2020). Fostering Employability through Versatility within Specialisation in Medical Translation Education. HERMES: Journal of Language and Communication in Business, 60, 141–154. https://doi.org/10.7146/hjlcb.v60i0.121316
Nunes Vieira, L., Zhang, X., & Yu, G. (2021). ‘Click next’: on the merits of more student autonomy and less direct instruction in CAT teaching. Interpreter and Translator Trainer, 15(4), 411–429. https://doi.org/10.1080/1750399X.2021.1891515
O’Brien, S., & Rodríguez Vázquez, S. (2019). Translation and technology. In S. Laviosa & M. González Davies (Eds.), The Routledge Handbook of Translation and Education. Routledge (pp. 264–276). https://doi.org/10.4324/9780367854850
O’Connor, P., & Benţa, M. I. (2022). The Technologisation of the Social. A Political Anthropology of the Digital Machine. Routledge.
OECD. (2023). Education at a Glance. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. https://gpseducation.oecd.org/Content/EAGCountryNotes/EAG2023_CN_ESP_pdf.pdf
OECD. (2024). Education at a Glance. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. https://www.oecd.org/content/dam/oecd/en/publications/reports/2024/09/education-at-a-glance-2024-country-notes_532eb29d/spain_16706f4a/f1ef53a8-en.pdf
Olalla-Soler, C. (2019). Bridging the gap between translation and interpreting students and freelance professionals. The mentoring programme of the Professional Association of Translators and Interpreters of Catalonia. The Interpreter and Translator Trainer, 13(1), 64–85. https://doi.org/10.1080/1750399X.2018.1540741
Orlando, M. (2016). Training 21st century translators and interpreters: At the crossroads of practice, research and pedagogy. Frank & Timme.
Ortego Antón, T. (2022). La investigación en tecnologías de la traducción. parámetros de la digitalización presente y la posible incidencia en el perfil de los futuros profesionales de la comunicación interlingüística. Peter Lang.
PACTE. (2005). Investigating Translation Competence: Conceptual and Methodological Issues. Meta, 50(2), 609–619. https://doi.org/10.7202/011004ar
Phrase. (2025). Localization solutions for academics. Phrase. https://phrase.com/roles/academia/
Plaza-Lara, C. (2014). La enseñanza de la traducción asistida por ordenador: análisis didáctico-curricular y propuesta de integración de la subcompetencia instrumental profesional en el aula. [Doctoral Thesis]. Universidad de Málaga.
Prensky, M. (2001). Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants. Part 1. On the Horizon, 9(5), 2–6.
Prieto Ramos, F. (2024). Revisiting translator competence in the age of artificial intelligence: the case of legal and institutional translation. The Interpreter and Translator Trainer, 18(2), 148–173. https://doi.org/10.1080/1750399X.2024.2344942
Pym, A. (2011). Democratizing translation technologies – the role of humanistic research. Luspio Translation Automation Conference. Libera Università degli studi, Roma.
Pym, A. (2013). Translation Skill-Sets in a Machine-Translation Age. Meta, 58(3), 487–503. https://doi.org/10.7202/1025047ar
Ramírez-Polo, L., & Ferrer Mora, H. (2010). Aplicación de las TIC en Traducción e Interpretación en la Universidad de Valencia: experiencias y reflexiones. Revista Electrónica de Didáctica de la Traducción y la Interpretación, 4, 23–41. https://hdl.handle.net/10550/77235
Ramírez-Polo, L., & Vargas-Sierra, C. (2023). Translation Technology and Ethical Competence: An Analysis and Proposal for Translators’ Training. Languages, 8(2), 2–22. https://doi.org/10.3390/languages8020093
Rico Pérez, C. (2017). La formación de traductores en Traducción Automática. Revista Tradumàtica. Tecnologies de la Traducció, 15, 75–96. https://doi.org/10.5565/rev/tradumatica.200
Rico Pérez, C., Sánchez-Gijón, P., & Torres-Hostench, O. (2018). The challenge of machine translation post-editing: An academic perspective. In G. Corpas Pastor & I. Durán-Muñoz (Eds.), Trends in E-Tools and Resources for Translators and Interpreters (pp. 203–218). Brill & Rodopi.
Rico Pérez, C., & González Pastor, D. (2022). The role of machine translation in translation education: A thematic analysis of translator educators’ beliefs. Translation & Interpreting, 14(1), 177–197. https://doi.org/10.12807/ti.114201.2022.a010
Rico Pérez, C., & Sánchez Ramos, M. del M. (2023). The Ethics of Machine Translation Post-editing in the Translation Ecosystem. In H. Moniz & C. P. Escartín (Eds.). Towards Responsible Machine Translation. Machine Translation: Technologies and Applications (pp. 95–112). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-14689-3_6
Rivas Ginel, M. I., & Moorkens, J. (2024). A year of ChatGPT: translators’ attitudes and degree of adoption. Revista Tradumàtica. Tecnologies de la Traducció, 22, 258–275. https://doi.org/10.5565/rev/tradumatica.369
Rodríguez de Céspedes, B. (2020). Beyond the Margins of Academic Education: Identifying Translation Industry Training Practices through Action Research. Translation and Interpreting, 12(1), 115–126. http://dx.doi.org/10.12807/ti.112201.2020.a07
Rothwell, A., Moorkens, J., Fernández-Parra, M., Drugan, J., & Austermuehl, F. (2023). Translation Tools and Technologies (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003160793
Rothwell, A., Moorkens, J., & Svoboda, T. (2025). Training in translation tools and technologies: Findings of the EMT survey 2023. ArXiv. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2503.22735
Royo, A. (2017). La sociedad gaseosa. Plataforma Editorial.
RWS. (2025). RWS Campus technology for universities. RWS. https://www.rws.com/about/careers/rws-campus/technology/
Sánchez-Castany, R. (2022). Teaching translation technologies: an analysis of a corpus of syllabi for Translation and Interpreting undergraduate degrees in Spain. In G. Massey, E. Huertas Barros & D. Katan (Eds.), The Human Translator in the 2020s (pp. 27–43). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003223344
Sánchez-Castany, R. (2023). Integrating Technologies in Translation Teaching: a Study on Trainers’ Perceptions. The Interpreter and Translator Trainer, 17(3), 479–502. https://doi.org/10.1080/1750399X.2023.2237330
Sánchez-Castany, R. (2024). Industry insights about translation technologies: current needs and future trends. In Y. Peng, H. Huang & D. Li (Eds.), New Advances in Translation Technology. Applications and Pedagogy. Springer Nature (pp. 99–119). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-97-2958-6_6
Sánchez-Castany, R. (2025). Training Translators in Spain: Key Elements for the Integration of Translation Technologies into the Specialized Translation Classroom. Hikma, 24(1), 1–27. https://doi.org/10.21071/hikma.v24i1.17247
Sánchez-Gijón, P. (2016). La posedición: Hacia una definición competencial del perfil y una descripción multidimensional del fenómeno. Sendebar, 27, 151–162. https://doi.org/10.30827/sendebar.v27i0.4016
Sketch Engine. (2025). Prices for Academic Teams and Institutions. Sketch Engine. https://www.sketchengine.eu/prices-for-academic-teams-and-institutions/
TAUS (2024). AI and Machine Translation. Pioneering the Next Era of Language Technology. TAUS.
Thwe, W. P., & Kálmán, A. (2024). Lifelong Learning in the Educational Setting: A Systematic Literature Review. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 33, 407–417. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40299-023-00738-w
Vitalaru, B., & Pena Díaz, C. (2024). Technology for Public Service Translators and Interpreters in Spain: Enhancing Employability through Training. Íkala, Revista de Lenguaje y Cultura, 29(2) 1–20. https://doi.org/10.17533/udea.ikala.354428
Wadensjö, C. (2011). Interpreting in theory and practice: reflections about an alleged gap. In C. Alvstad, A. Hild & E. Tiselius (Eds.), Methods and strategies of process research: integrative approaches in Translation Studies (pp. 13–21). John Benjamins.
Downloads
Publicado
Como Citar
Edição
Seção
Licença
Copyright (c) 2025 Cadernos de Tradução
Este trabalho está licenciado sob uma licença Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Autores têm autorização para assumir contratos adicionais separadamente, para distribuição não exclusiva da versão do trabalho publicada nesta revista (ex.: publicar em repositório institucional ou como capítulo de livro, com reconhecimento de autoria e publicação inicial nesta revista).
