1

BỘMẫu
GIÁO
DỤC
ĐÀO
TẠO
bìa ngồi
khổVÀ
A4 (210x
298mm)

UBND THÀNH PHỐ HẢI PHỊNG

TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC HẢI PHÒNG
KHOA NGOẠI NGỮ

HỌ VÀ TÊN SINH VIÊN: VŨ THỊ BẢO LINH

KHÓA LUẬN TỐT NGHIỆP
NHỮNG KHÓ KHĂN CỦA SINH VIÊN K18 NGÀNH
NGƠN NGỮ ANH Ở TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC
HẢI PHỊNG TRONG Q TRÌNH HỌC MƠN
PHIÊN DỊCH NÂNG CAO VÀ GIẢI PHÁP ĐỀ XUẤT

DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO

HẢI PHÒNG
2021
UBND –THÀNH
PHỐ HẢI PHÒNG

BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO

UBND THÀNH PHỐ HẢI PHÒNG

TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC HẢI PHÒNG
KHOA NGOẠI NGỮ

HỌ VÀ TÊN SINH VIÊN: VŨ THỊ BẢO LINH
MÃ SINH VIÊN: 173122201682

KHÓA LUẬN TỐT NGHIỆP
CHALLENGES FACED BY K18 ENGLISH MAJORS
AT HAIPHONG UNIVERSITY IN STUDYING
ADVANCED INTERPRETATION AND SUGGESTED
SOLUTIONS

CHUN NGÀNH: NGƠN NGỮ ANH

Người hướng dẫn: Th.S Đồn Văn Giao

HẢI PHÒNG – 2021


1

COMMITMENT
I hereby declare that the thesis on the topic: “Challenges faced by K18
English majors at Haiphong University in studying Advanced Interpretation and

suggested solutions”. This is my personal research project. All data used for
analysis in the thesis and research results are my own research and analysis,
objectively, honestly, with clear origin and have not been published in any form. I
take full responsibility for any dishonesty in the information used in this study.
Hải Phòng, ngày 03 tháng 06 năm 2021
Sinh viên
Vũ Thị Bảo Linh

1


ACKNOWLEGEMENT
In the process of completing this study, I have faced up with a lot of
problems with lexicology as well as the way to express my ideas. However, thanks
to the assistance and encouragement from my teacher, my family and my friends, I
have surpassed these difficulties and completed the study successfully.
Firstly, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Mr.
Doan Van Giao, whose suggestions, guidance, advice and critical comments have
helped me to improve my study a lot.
Secondly, I am much obliged to all my teachers at Foreign Languages
Department in Haiphong University for their lessons during fours years that formed
the basis of my study.
My sincere thanks are delivered to my parents and friends for their
encouragement and assistance in the process making the study. Especially, I also
appreciate the enormous support provided by the fourth-year English majors in
Haiphong University for their enthusiastic participation in the survey.
Last but not least, I am also grateful to the authors and publishers whose
research results helped me build the foundation in my study.

2



3

TABLE OF CONTENTS
PART I: INTRODUCTION........................................................................................1
1.1 Rationale...........................................................................................................1
1.2 Aims of the study..............................................................................................2
1.3 Scope of the study.............................................................................................3
1.4 Research questions............................................................................................3
1.5 Research methods.............................................................................................3
1.6 The design of the study.....................................................................................4
PART II: DEVELOPMENT.......................................................................................6
CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND....................................................6
1.1

Interpretation.................................................................................................6

1.1.1 Definition of interpretation.........................................................................6
1.1.2 Types of interpretation................................................................................7
1.1.3 The process of interpreting.......................................................................10
1.1.4 Importance of Interpretation.....................................................................11
1.2

Common challenges in studying Advanced Interpretation..........................12

1.2.1 Listening...................................................................................................13
1.2.1.1 Problems from the speakers...................................................................14
1.2.1.2 Problems from the content.....................................................................15
1.2.1.3. Problems from the listeners..................................................................18

1.2.1.4. Problems result from physical settings.................................................18
1.2.2. Memory....................................................................................................19
CHAPTER 2: METHODOLOGY...........................................................................25
3


2.1 The subjects.................................................................................................25
2.2 Data collection instruments.............................................................................25
2.2.1 Questionnaire............................................................................................25
2.2.2 Research procedure...................................................................................26
CHAPTER 3: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION.......................................................27
CHAPTER 4: SUGGESTIONS ON TECHNIQUES TO DEAL WITH THE
CHALLENGES IN STUDYING ADVANCED INTERPRETATION....................36
4.1. Suggestion on improving listening skills..........................................................36
4.2. Suggestion on improving memory.................................................................37
4.3. Suggestions on improving note-taking..........................................................39
PART III: CONCLUSION.......................................................................................42
3.1. Summary........................................................................................................42
3.2. Limitations.....................................................................................................44
3.3. Suggestion for further study...........................................................................44
REFERENCES.........................................................................................................45

4


5

ABBREVIATIONS

SL


Source Language

STM

Short Term Memory

TL

Target Language

5


LIST OF TABLES
Number
1
2

Name of table
Students' opinions towards the advantages of practicing
interpreting
Students' common challenges in studying Advanced

3

Interpretation
How students deal with an interpretation task

4


The ways students often apply to improve their
interpretation skills

6

Page
31
32
33
34


7

LISTS OF CHARTS
Number
1

Name of chart
Students’ attitude towards Advanced Interpretation
subject

Page
27

2

Statistics about problems from topics


28

3

Students’ frequency of studying Advanced Interpretation
at home

29

7


1

PART I: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Rationale
In the period of industrialization and modernization, English plays an
importance role. Because it is a global language, children in many countries started
learning English at the very young age and it became the subject that students have
to learn at school. There are several reasons which make learning English important
and necessary. First of all, English is the most common language in the world.
According to Wikipedia, English is the official of fifty-three countries, and English
is spoken as the first language by around 400 million people around the world.
There are a lot of people speaking English as the second language or at least
understand English. English is the third language which is widely used only just
after Chinese and Spanish. Secondly, English is the language of science, computers,
diplomacy and tourism. Understanding English increases our opportunities of
getting a good job in a multinational company of finding a work abroad. In
addition, English is the language of media industry. If we are able to understand
well, we will not need to rely on the translations and subtitles anymore to enjoy

favorite books, songs, films and other kinds of entertainment. English is also the
language of the Internet. Many useful websites are written in English, so
understanding English is the first step to access these websites to find information
and knowledge. Thirdly, English is based on a simple alphabet, so it is easier and
quicker to learn than other languages. According to the survey of The Daily
Telegraph (2012), English was the easiest language to learn in the world, and being
fluent in English would become the foundation for learning other languages such as
Spanish, Dutch or French. Obviously, we cannot deny the importance role of
learning English.

1


In Vietnam, the demand of learning and using English has been increasing when
Vietnam became one of the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) and World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2006. Hence, there are many
difficulties in communicating with international friend. Vietnamese should improve
their English knowledge, especially translation and interpretation which are
considered as a bridge helping Vietnam connect with partners, enhance
international economy and exchange our culture with other countries in the world.
Therefore, the demand of professional interpretation is getting more and more
necessary than ever.
Practically, interpretation is essential to learn, but it does not mean that it is
simple to learn for students. To master interpretation is not easy for people who
learn English. At Haiphong University, after studying Interpretation I and
Interpretation II courses, all the K18 English majors have to learn Advanced
Interpretation to improve their interpreting skills. Many students have faced with
many challenges when interpreting the speech from their mother tongue into
English and vice versa. This can be very difficult for learner and after the final
exam, there was not a large number of those who get the high score in Advanced

Interpretation subject. The question: “Why so many students do not get the high
score in this subject and how to help the next generation of students improve their
interpreting skills” made me wonder. Then I decided to choose: “Challenges faced
by K18 English majors at Haiphong University in studying Advanced Interpretation
and suggested solutions” as the topic of my graduation paper. I hope that with my
little knowledge, my study will be helpful and contributive to help students
understand the challenges and overcome these obstacles in the process of learning
this subject as well as get the high scores in their exams.
1.2 Aims of the study

2


3

Interpretation has been considered and written by many researchers about many
aspects. All the researchers want to go deeply into the matter in different ways.
For this study, I expect to point out two main aims. Firstly, this study is to find
out the challenges faced by the fourth-year English majors at Haiphong University
in interpreting, which bases on the survey by questionnaire. Secondly, I intend to
make some suggestions to improve the students’ interpreting skills.
1.3 Scope of the study
Interpretation is a complicated problem attracting the attention of many famous
researchers. However, for the limitation of time, knowledge and experience, it is
impossible for me to mention deeply all the aspects of interpretation.
The targeted subjects of this research are all the K18 English majors at
Haiphong University
The objects of this study are the challenges faced by K18 English majors at
Haiphong University when studying Advanced Interpretation.
1.4 Research questions

In order to reach the aims of the study, two research questions are formulated as
follows:
- What challenges do the K18 English majors at Haiphong University face when
studying Advanced Interpretation?
- What should be done to improve the students’ interpreting skill?
1.5 Research methods
This is the first time I research on interpreting skill so I have a big ambition
to be successful for my University graduation. In order to study the matter, I use
methods mentioned below:
3


- Collecting the useful information, definitions and other studies on
interpretation from a variety of related and reliable documents, such as books, edocuments on the Internet; then choosing my own approach.
- Conducting a survey by delivering the questionnaire to collect data from
students at 5 K18 English classes.
- Analyzing the data
1.6 The design of the study
To obtain the aim of creating an easy and understanding study, this study
consists of the following parts:
Part I: Introduction
This part will give readers an overview of the study including the reasons
why choosing the topic of the study, the aims, the scope, the methods and the
design of the study.
Part II: Development
This part consists of three chapters:
Chapter 1: Theoretical background.
This chapter provides readers with the basic knowledge relating to
interpretation such as: the importance, strategies and difficulties in interpretation
Chapter 2: Methodology

In this chapter, I will show the methods carried out during the research
process.
Chapter 3: Results and discussion

4


5

I will analyze the results from the survey and make some remarks on the
issue in the research in this chapter.
Chapter 4: Suggestions on techniques to deal with the challenges
I will give suggested solutions to improve students’ interpretation skill in this
chapter.
Part III: Conclusion
The final part will summarize the main contents of the study and comment
limitation of the study and suggestions for the further study.

5


PART II: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
1.1 Interpretation
1.1.1 Definition of interpretation
There are a lot of concepts of translation that are discussed and presented by
many scholars with different perspective for several historical periods.
Interpretation may have a wide range of meanings for people supported their
background, training, or experience in the interpretive profession. However, I feel
that the simplest definition of interpretation is the one developed by a task force of

Interpretation Canada which set out to develop the definition that would be used
within Canada (1976). Many other organizations have picked up this definition
over the past 17 years. It becomes one of the most frequently taught in university
courses in interpretation. This definition is: "Interpretation is a communication
process, designed to reveal meanings and relationships of our cultural and natural
heritage, through involvement with objects, artifacts, landscapes and sites." Interpretation Canada. It should be stressed that interpretive communication is not
simply presenting information, but a specific communication strategy that is used
to translate that information for people, from the technical language of the expert,
to the everyday language.
The essential definition of interpretation, consistent with the Webster
dictionary is the “action of explaining the meaning of something; the way
something is explained or understood”. In terms of language, the definition
6


7

of interpretation should be broader: rendering a spoken or signed message into
another spoken or signed language, preserving the register and meaning of the
source language content.
Interpretation is the act of explaining, reframing, or otherwise showing your
own understanding of something. An interpreter is a person who translates one
language into another because they are explaining what an individual is saying to
someone who doesn't understand. Understanding the piece of music, text, language,
or idea, and then giving your explanation of it are the firstly interpretation
requirements.
NAI (National Association for Interpretation) defines interpretation as "a
mission-based communication process that forges emotional and intellectual
connections between the interests of the audience and the meanings inherent in the
resource."

All above definitions of interpretation share an equivalent concept that
interpretation is the process of explaining a speech from one language into another
language, which remains equivalence of content, message as well as purpose of
communication.
1.1.2 Types of interpretation
Practically, there are some kinds of interpretation that have their own
characteristics and forms. With different criteria, we have different classifications.
Some kinds of interpretation are found because of the differences and similarities of
the source structures, different kinds of speech that are getting to be translated and
different purposes of interpretation. “There are two main types of interpretation,
namely: consecutive and simultaneous interpretations”
 Simultaneous interpretation
7


Simultaneous interpretation (also referred to simultaneous or conference
translation) is where one or several speakers make a speech in a language and one
or two interpreters simultaneously reproduce an equivalent speech or presentation
in the language of the listeners.
There are occasions when this kind of one-way interpretation is not possible
because there is more than one passive language (speakers) and more than one
active language (interpreters). In these cases relay interpretation is employed where
the interpreters do not interpret from the original language of the speech but do so
from an interpreted language which serves as a link between the original and target
language. The language that is used between the original and the target language is
called the pivot language.
In order for this interpretation to figure correctly it is necessary to possess
audiovisual equipment from audio cabins, wireless receivers, speaker systems,
microphones, monitors, and a sound technician who will coordinate the right
operation of each of these components.

There are times when the interpretation is administered employing a system that
consists of a radio-frequency transmitter and receivers, without a soundproof cabin.
Due to the lightness of the equipment, this is useful in certain circumstances, such
as visits to facilities; as it allows delegates and interpreters to maneuver around
easily. However, it can never substitute the role of a cabin when handling a
conference, as there would be sound interference.
 Consecutive interpretation

8


9

In consecutive interpretation a speaker makes a speech or presentation in a
language and an interpreter who is at his/her side reproduces the same speech in the
language of the listeners.
The speaker pauses in his speech from time to time so that the interpreter can
intervene and reproduce his/her speech in the language of the listeners. The
speaking times of the speaker and the interpreter are usually prescribed upon before
the speech starts, but usually last around 3-5 minutes in speeches and presentations
and the time required in negotiations and meetings.
Consecutive interpreting is generally utilized in bilateral meetings, negotiations,
press conferences, interviews, meals, welcome speeches and also in speeches and
presentations.
The interpreter must take the required notes which will allow him/her to
accurately reproduce the speaker’s speech.
When studying Advanced Interpretation, students have to follow Consecutive
interpretation.
Furthermore, consistent with the website Dixit, besides consecutive and
simultaneous there are other types of interpretation. That is: liaison and escort

interpretation, whispered interpretation and sworn interpretation.
 Liaison and escort interpretation
In liaison and escort interpretation an interpreter works as a liaison between 2 or
more people that speak different languages. The contents of the speech of each of
the speakers in both directions may be interpreted by the liaison interpreters.

9


An escort interpreter performs the equivalent functions as the liaison interpreter
and also accompanies the client to any site they will got to go.
 Whispered interpretation
In this type of interpretation the end listener hires an interpreter that interprets
just for him/her given that the native language of this listener is different from that
of the rest of the remainder during the hall or meeting.
As the name implies, the interpretation that is carried out is simultaneous and in
a low voice so as not to disturb the rest of the listeners. This interpretation is not
frequently used and is typically for short presentations. It is one way. It is also
known as chuchotage interpretation
 Sworn interpretation
Sworn interpretation is especially administered in Courts. However, it can also
be doled out in notarial acts and in the private sector like in the signing of
agreements between companies, resolution of contracts, etc. Sworn interpretation is
like liaison interpreting but approved by a sworn interpreter appointed by the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who has obtained the title of sworn interpreter once
he/she has passed a series of translation tests. Once the interpreter has finished,
he/she must sign and swear everything that has been interpreted orally or in
writing.
1.1.3 The process of interpreting
Casey Loftin describes that there are five steps to interpret one speech from

one language into another language
 Step 1: Take in Source Language
10


11

You must be physically ready to hear or see the source
Use context clues when necessary
Use Bilingual-Bicultural Competence
Make sure you are always using proper social skills
 Step 2: Analyze Deep Structure Meaning
You must make sure you are thinking about the meaning of the message you are
trying to convey
Use your critical thinking skills
Be fluent enough in each language to acknowledge any unstated but clearly implied
information.
 Step 3: Apply Contextual/ Schema Screen
Be able to identify the general goal of the participants in the interaction
Recognize the similarities/ differences in background and skill of all parties
involved
Understand the level of ritual in the setting in which you are interpreting
 Step 4: Formulate/ Rehearse Equivalent Message
Be able to present the identical dynamic impact from one language to the other
Make proper cultural and linguistic choices
Acknowledge the parameters of the target culture
 Step 5: Produce Target Language Interpretation
Always know the speaker goal
Only make linguistics expansions if absolutely necessary.
1.1.4 Importance of Interpretation

Nowadays, Interpretation plays an importance role in our daily life. Many
fields, contents of human lives such as: economy, social, education, politics,
11


tourism, technology, science … use the specialized materials which need to be
interpreted from the original language to another language. In the process of
integration and development especially when Vietnam has become a member of
World Trade Organization, the demand of having expert interpretation is necessary
and significant. It is true that all of the contracts, emails, agreements, or
conventions… need to be interpreted exactly and effectively to avoid some
regrettable misunderstandings. Interpretation helps people to overcome the barriers
of cultural and language. We can never know how many languages being used in
the world today. It is estimated that there are two or three thousand languages being
used in the world, but some other says the number may be eight thousand. Since
communication within only one speech community is not enough, certainly there
has a great number of times arisen a situation in which some individuals are unable
to understand the words or expressions of others. This phenomenon creates a
barrier to understand whenever people try to communicates across a great distance
of space or across a great interval of time. But something has to be done to
overcome to obtain the foreign language. Therefore, interpretation may be
considered as the most universally accepted solution for overcoming the obstacles.
1.2 Common challenges in studying Advanced Interpretation
Melville Jackson stated that: “One of the primary problems related to
consecutive interpreting is the fact that it is made up of a number of operations
which have to be done at the same time. These require a high of processing
capacity of the interpreter”. An interpreter has to perform a number of tasks at the
same time such as:
 Listening:
He/ She has to listen to the speaker and also analyze what he/ she is saying

 Short-term memory:
12


13

This is one of the most difficult parts of the entire process. He/ She has to
remember the information from the speaker until it can be altered in the TL.
 Production:
He/ She has to come up with a TL to reproduce the speech of the speaker.
On the other hand, during the reformulation process an interpreter has to go
through another set of operations which include:
 Note reading:
An interpreter is required to know and if required decipher the notes which he/
she has written.
 Long term memory:
This is another difficult part of any interpreter’s work. He/ She should retrieve
all the knowledge of which is stored in the short-term memory and construct the
content of the speech in the TL.
 Production:
Finally, he/she has to reproduce the whole speech from the speaker in the TL.
English is the remote dialect of understudies and therefore the speaker
frequently makes a quick discourse. In this manner, understudies regularly have
inconveniences primarily with tuning in, memory, and note-taking expertise. In
case they will utilize those abilities well, translation isn't an infinite bargain.
1.2.1 Listening
The first step of interpreting is to listen clearly and understand what the
speech is about so as to grasp the keynote. Listening well may be a great way to
obtain information. But it’s a posh process from “listening” to “understanding”.
13



Agreeing to a few analysts, “listening” is not a completely detached handle but or
maybe a prepare of dynamic and interlaced handling of information. An interpreter
must try their best to recreate the speaker’ words as complete and accurate as
possible. Because of this reason, interpreters need to be more concentrate to
process the bulks of knowledge rapidly from the speeches of the speakers.
Many interpreting students normally, face and encounter many challenges in
listening English. What are their issues? There is a part of analysts who have been
carried out to find out the difficulty in tuning in. The problems were accepted to
cause by the discourse rate, lexicon and pronunciation. As Nguyen Ngoan stated in
“listening to VOA: advantages, problems and solutions” the students have to face
these three problems. First of all, the students find it hard to know proper names as
they have never heard about it before. In other words, they have no background
knowledge about what they are listening. The second problem is believed to rise
from the unfamiliar, uninteresting and too long listening which makes the students
feel strange, discouraged and bored of what they are hearing. The last one is
assumed to be about the sound connections and intonation spoken by native
speakers with different accents. According to Yagang, the issues in listening were
accompanied with the four following factors: the message, the speaker, the listener
and the physical setting. Furthermore, numbers of research have been carried out to
select the matter in listening. An able listener is capable of doing these four things
simultaneously. We think that strong students in our groups can also do these things
simultaneously and show their great progress.
1.2.1.1 Problems from the speakers
- The accents
First of all, many foreign language learners are shocked and alarmed when
listening to someone else but not their instructors since they are utilized to their
teacher’s complements. In addition, understanding the spoken form of language
14



15

requires the adaptation of the idiosyncrasies of a particular speaker. Ikeno and
Hansen find that differences accents cause lower accuracy. Complemented
discourse has been found to influence both the extent to which audience members
effectively realize a speaker’s message and the exertion included as audience
members distinguish specific words within the message. To some extent, in
academic courses, the students are quite accustomed to the native speakers like
American or English; however, they will hear the speakers from non-native
speaking English countries as well. Subsequently, they cannot capture the words or
pass on the messages of the discussions and the broke down communication is the
result.

- The speed of the speakers
Secondly, the speed of the speakers also hinders the learners in their exertion
of learning English. Because the students cannot sort them out when listening
before they disappear. It is not the same as remaining reading text on the page for
them to retrieve whenever they need. Sometimes, while they are working with this
portion, they miss the subsequent portion. Most of the foreign language students
perceive that native speakers speak too fast and that makes it difficult for them to
follow (Brown & Yule, 1983). Similarly, Butt (2010) has the same ideas in negative
impacts of the native speakers to listening comprehension. This coincides with the
results of the studies done by Flowerdew and Miller (1992) who has reported that
their subject unanimously rated speed of delivery as one of the greatest obstacles to
understanding. The students can play recorded materials again and again until
getting the knowledge.

15



- Hesitations and pauses: Hesitations and pauses in spontaneous speech cause
perceptual problems and comprehension errors for non-native speakers, according
to Hasan (2000). When individuals talk, they frequently falter, rehash themselves,
say things that are ungrammatical and alter their minds midway through a sentence.
These items are a normal highlight of discourse and may be either a offer assistance
or a obstacle, depending on the students’ level.
1.2.1.2 Problems from the content
- The density of information
It should be taken into consideration that thickness data is one of the
troublesome for the understudies, reagularly the tenderfoots. The dense passage is a
long one (Rost, 2006) with the great amount of data included. Again, greater
information density is believed to make higher cognitive demands of L2 listeners,
which may increase the effort involved in listening comprehension (Gilmore,
2004).
- The complex text
In some cases, the organization of the text is rather complex. Cervantes and
Gainer (1992) found that listeners hearing a syntactically simplified version of a
lecture scored significantly higher on a recall test than did listeners hearing a more
complex version of the lecture. In this manner, on the off chance that the
understudies don't have capacity to draw a clear transparent of this content, they
also come up short to capture the data viably.
- The reduced form, elision and assimilation
In articulating clauses, the speakers crave to precise the implications
successfully. Thus, the words that play a less significant role in the message may be
slurred or dropped, and other words may be more unmistakable. According to
Madsen and Bowen, spoken English is particularly characterized by three features
16