Raising International Discourse Rights in Translation and Interpreting Pedagogy

This research project aims at consolidating and revitalizing translation and interpreting pedagogy with dual emphasis on the cultural soft power and international discourse rights of China via emphasizing international competitiveness. In order to realize the significant needs of the current market requirements and the new era of China, this project proposes the “ICC” interpreting training model. It refers to the combination of intercultural communication competency with international competitiveness as the teaching and learning outcomes by means of integrating the following five components in the course content and the whole curriculum design: (1) interpreting competency – bilingual competence and interpreting skill-based training; e.g., short-term memory and note-taking; (2) national value – strengthening translation and the crucial roles and responsibilities of interpreter trainers and trainees in disseminating national culture; (3) expertise of subject matters – equipping students with expertise for work field and meeting the market requirements; e.g., specific professional knowledge and jargons demanded by the tasks; (4) professional ethics and image – extra-linguistic knowledge emphasizing a translator’s and an interpreter’s professional code of conduct and ethics in a way that can establish the “iconic” image of a professional interpreter; e.g., confidentiality, posture, and appearance; (5) practical assessment – evaluation of students’ performance in practical translation and interpreting opportunities and/or internship in organizations of various natures according to international standards. This research proposes a new training model to incorporate intercultural communication competency with international competitiveness. The significant role of interpreting pedagogy in contributing to a sound national name is investigated. The new “ICC” model that this research is proposing answers such a call for the significant role of raising cultural soft power and international discourse rights in China.

Linking leadership styles to communication competency and work engagement: evidence from the hotel industry

PurposeThis study examines the mediation effects of leaders' communication competency in the link between leadership styles (i.e. servant and transactional leadership) and employees' work engagement.Design/methodology/approachCross-sectional survey data from 392 employees in 33 hotels in Bangladesh were collected. To analyze the data, structural equation modeling was adopted, and partial least squares (PLS) analysis was used.FindingsResults of PLS analysis revealed that servant leaders and leaders' communication competency positively influence employees' work engagement. In boosting employees' work engagement, communication competency is an important tool for servant leadership but not for transactional leadership.Practical implicationsHoteliers and managers may want to adopt a servant leadership style and develop effective leadership communication skills to increase employees' engagement at work.Originality/valueThis study introduces communication competency as a mediating mechanism between leadership styles and work engagement in the hospitality industry.

A Tool to Measure Entrepreneurial Skill among Agripreneurs

Entrepreneurship skills are an individual’s ability to make business in a profitable way. The study focused on to develop a tool to measure the entrepreneurial skill among the agripreneurs by reviewing of literature. Item selection and scoring procedure had been included in this study. Based on the reliability and validity testing, this study finalized the instruments to yielding seven indicators, namely, marketing dimension, psychological magnitude, managerial skill, behavioural skill, technical skill, communication competency, cognitive skill. It is recommended that future researchers apply and thereby extend the developed measure by cross-examining the instruments presented in this study across different entrepreneurs study. The results obtained will be helpful in planning and implementing the capacity development programmes. Among seven indictors and the respective sub indicators, the indicators and sub indicators having above 0.75 relative weightage score had taken for final index. The study found that marketing skill (0.88), psychological magnitude (0.89), behavioural skill (0.79), technical skill (0.83), communication competency (0.93) and cognitive skill (0.89) were the major skill of the agri entrepreneurs, should possess to run their business effectively and efficiently.

A Study on Performance Diagnosis of College English Courses in General Education after Core Competency-Based Reform －The Case of I University

This study conducted a basic learning performance diagnosis for each College English course falling under the purview of basic general education. In line with the five core competencies of I University, the area of foreign language in basic general education focused on communication competency. This study explored the reactions of students taking College English courses to examine whether each course matched the core competency focused on communication, especially the basic learning competence for English communication skills and experiences acquired through the knowledge provided and what changes were needed in the curriculum to improve students’ English communication competence. Through a survey, educational improvements recognized by students who participated in College English I (reading), College English II (listening), and College English III (speaking) classes were compared and analyzed. The performance diagnosis for the study aimed to measure learning performance obtained through each course and utilize it as a basic mean for improving curricula for College English courses. For performance diagnosis, the Learning Performance Diagnosis Tool developed by the Korea National Institute for General Education’s General Education Standards in 2016 was selected. Diagnosis questions from the areas of “basic learning competency” and “knowledge and experience” were selected, and each question was measured using a 5-point Likert scale. The performance diagnosis survey involved 1,366 of 2,063 students (66.2%) in all three courses. Based on the analysis result, students reported that their English communication competency had improved in each course. This result could be interpreted as indicating that the core competency pursed in the area of foreign language at I University and the direction of education pursued in College English courses were appropriate. However, slightly different from basic learning competence area, the performance indicators relating to class activities questions in knowledge and experience area were found to be lower than that of other questions. During the semester, online and offline classes had been conducted depending on the COVID-19 situation, and it can be assumed that this situation resulted in many inconveniences in terms of utilizing effective class activities where students could interact with the professor and classmates. It also seemed urgent to develop effective non-face-to-face or online class activities to prepare for the COVID-19 pandemic era.

Communicative Reading Comprehension Competency Influences Written Composition Skills Performance of Faculty in English Discipline

James Britton proposed three primary language functions, which researchers tested using faculty members from Tawi-Tawi Regional Agricultural College (TRAC), for communicative reading comprehension—transactional, expressive, and poetic. Tawi-Tawi has many schools with high literacy levels, which contributes to a better society and a more peaceful country. The results revealed that the gender of the respondents had no bearing on their level of communication competency, and no significant differences were found between male and female faculty members. Additionally, there was no significant relationship found between the socio-demographic profiles and teaching performance of the faculty members in the English discipline.