NDSU’s Department of English is set to host an international conference, “Converging Fields: Linking Professional Communication and Translation Classes,” July 18-20. The event will focus on the Trans-Atlantic and Pacific Project, which links students in writing, usability and translation classes in joint international projects across four continents.
Known as TAPP, the program has existed for more than 15 years. The conference will bring together, for the first time, approximately 45 program instructors to discuss the ongoing collaboration and exchange ideas for new teaching and learning strategies. Invited speakers from nations across the TAPP network will give presentations.
“While many instructors have worked together online for years, most have never met their partners in person,” said Bruce Maylath, professor of English. “This conference provides them with a grand opportunity to strengthen their working relationships, improve their teaching approaches and plan further research.”
The program was launched during the 1999-2000 academic year by Maylath and Sonia Vandepitte of Ghent University in Belgium to give students experience in preparing texts for translation and localization. TAPP’s main goal is to share insights into collaborative writing across borders, cultures and languages, and to gain knowledge about the world’s diversity.
“NDSU was the natural site where we could bring together instructors from around the globe,” Maylath said. “As most of the network’s writing instructors are here at NDSU, about half of the conference participants will simply commute from home.”
For several of the international instructors, most of who teach translation from English to their home language, the conference will be their first visit to the United States. “We are delighted to show them America from its heartland,” said Maylath.
The conference features two keynote presentations by its founders. Maylath will outline the TAPP network’s history, present and hopes for the future when the conference opens on July 18. Vandepitte will discuss prospects for future research when the conference closes on July 20.
Institutions participating in TAPP include:
NDSU
Aristotle University, Greece
Minnesota State University Moorhead
Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (Barcelona Tech), Spain
Western New Mexico University
Vaasa Universitet/Vaasan Yliopisto, Finland
Aarhus Universitet, Denmark
Bashkir State University, Russia
Kenyatta University, Kenya
State University of Applied Sciences, Konin, Poland
Instituto Politénico do Porto, Portugal
Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Portugal
Universidade do Minho, Portugal
Università degli Studi del Molise, Italy
Università degli Studi di Padova, Italy
Università degli Studi del Salento, Italy
Università degli Studi di Trieste, Italy
Université de Mons, Belgium
Université Paris - Denis Diderot, France
Ghent University, Belgium
University of Algiers 2, Algeria
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
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