Thohiriyah, Priska Pramastiwi, David Rawson, Rudi Hartono
Cultural knowledge needed for translation requires access to a wide range of knowledge, including geography, tradition, history, and culture of the target language. This chapter explores the challenges of teaching translation, which requires knowledge of geography, tradition, history, and culture. It focuses on a heuristic study conducted in a translation course that utilised online tools and activities to assess autonomous online learning, particularly when traditional classroom teaching was disrupted. The study involved 96 learners from a state university in Central Java who engaged in collaborative translation tasks over four weeks. Data were collected through online discussions, analysis of translation outputs, and stimulated recall sessions. The findings highlight that online learning, while beneficial, requires support from face-to-face instruction to effectively impart cultural knowledge. The study identified several challenges: limitations of machine translation (MT) algorithms in handling culturally specific content, unreliable Internet connectivity, applying appropriate translation strategies, accessing resources for cultural knowledge development, and limited student engagement. The results suggest that face-to-face teaching should complement online learning by providing necessary access to and engagement with cultural resources, enhancing students’ abilities to develop translation skills and cultural knowledge. © 2025 selection and editorial matter, Ida Fatimawati Adi Badiozaman, Jonathan Newton and Hugh John Leong; individual chapters, the contributors.
English Literature Study Program, Faculty of Languages and Arts, Universitas Negeri Semarang, Central Java, Sekaran, Indonesia; University of Tasmania, Australia; English Literature Study Program, Faculty of Languages and Arts, Universitas Negeri Semarang, Indonesia
