The Development of Lexical Competence in Teaching Russian-to-Spanish Translation

Abstract

This article outlines the structure and results of a didactic proposal that was part of a teaching project aimed at enhancing the lexical competence of future Russian- Spanish translators during their training. The project was conducted using a distinctive approach based on Nation’s principles (2001, 2005, 2013), combining action research methodology with problem- based learning (PBL) within the framework of the “Translation 2 C (Russian- Spanish)” course on the Translation and Interpreting degree program at the University of Granada. The didactic proposal was divided into three phases: an initial assessment to evaluate the students’ levels of lexical competence, preparatory tasks that included lexical documentation and pre- translation activities, and a translation task followed by an analysis of the translated texts and a global reflection to assess vocabulary acquisition. The learning outcomes obtained indicate that the structure and implementation of this didactic proposal significantly improved the students’ levels of Russian lexical competence and they achieved better results in the translation process.