Artificial Intelligence-Assisted Translation in Education: Academic Perspectives and Student Approaches

Year 2024, Volume: 11 Issue: H. Ferhan Odabaşı Gift Issue, 151 - 167, 31.12.2024

Demet Özmat , Buket Akkoyunlu

https://doi.org/10.17275/per.24.99.11.6

Abstract

Although artificial intelligence is present in many areas of life, making life easier, it also necessitates the updating of certain professions or curriculum of university departments. In this regard, it is considered important to determine how AI-based translation tools will specifically affect translation studies and to gather the opinions of students and faculty members in these departments. This study aims to examine the opinions of Translation and Interpreting Department students and faculty members on the use of artificial intelligence in translation studies. The research was conducted with 7 faculty members, 1 translation expert, and 15 final-year students at a foundation university. Data were collected through semi-structured interview forms and evaluated using content analysis. Students expressed concerns that artificial intelligence will reduce job opportunities in the profession. They also believe that the use of AI weakens memory and leads to laziness. Some students have noted that AI undermines and weakens the teacher-student relationship. Faculty members, on the other hand, think that AI will redefine the translator’s roles in the profession and provide significant support. Whilst the students advocate for the inclusion of AI in post-graduate professional life rather than in undergraduate education and support it with extracurricular activities, the faculty members underline the need to increase the integration of AI into translation studies education, provide in-service training, and expedite curriculum development studies. These results highlight different perspectives on the use of artificial intelligence in the field of translation studies and suggest recommendations that could contribute to the curriculum of translation departments.

Keywords

Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI) technologies, Translation Studies., Higher Education

References

• Ali, Z. (2020) Artificial intelligence (AI): A review of its uses in language teaching and learning. In IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering (Vol. 769, No. 1, p. 012043). IOP Publishing.
• Alimen, N. (2023). From machine translation to chatbot translation: An experimental study with ChatGPT. RumeliDE Journal of Language and Literature Studies (36) 1532-1548. https://doi.org/10.29000/rumelide.1369589
• Bailey, J. (2023). AI in education: The leap into a new era of machine intelligence carries risks and challenges, but also plenty of promise. Education Next, 23(4), 28-35.
• Belda-Medina, J., & Calvo-Ferrer, J. R. (2022). Using Chatbots as AI Conversational Partners in Language Learning. Applied Sciences, 12(17), 8427. https://doi.org/10.3390/app12178427
• Bo, L. (2023). Ethical issues for literary translation in the era of artificial intelligence. Babel, 69(4), 529-545. https://doi.org/10.1075/babel.00334.li
• Canfora, C., & Ottmann, A. (2020). Risks in neural machine translation. Translation Spaces, 9(1), 58-77. https://doi.org/10.1075/ts.00021.can
• Chan, C. K. Y., & Hu, W. (2023). Students’ voices on generative AI: Perceptions, benefits, and challenges in higher education. International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, 20(43). https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-023-00411-8
• Chen, L., Chen, P., & Lin, Z. (2020). Artificial intelligence in education: A review. IEEE Access, 8, 75264-75278. https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2020.2988510
• Drugan, J., & Tipton, R. (2017). Translation, ethics and social responsibility. The Translator, 23(2), 119–125. https://doi.org/10.1080/13556509.2017.1327008
• Jain, K.K.; Raghuram, J.N.V. (2024). Gen-AI integration in higher education: Predicting intentions using SEMANN approach. Education and Information Technologies, 29(13), 1-41. 10.1007/s10639-024-12506-4
• Jeffrey, T. (2020). Understanding college student perceptions of artificial intelligence. Systemics, Cybernetics and Informatics, 18(2), 8-13.
• Johnston, H., Wells, R. F., Shanks, E. M., Boey, T., & Parsons, B. N. (2024). Student perspectives on the use of generative artificial intelligence technologies in higher education. International Journal for Educational Integrity, 20(2). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40979-024-00149-4
• Kamoun, F., El Ayeb, W., Jabari, I., Sifi, S., & Iqbal, F. (2024). Exploring students’ and faculty’s knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions towards ChatGPT: A cross-sectional empirical study. Journal of Information Technology Education: Research, 23, Article 4. https://doi.org/10.28945/5239
• Kaptan, S. (1998). Scientific Research and Statistical Techniques. Tekışık Web Publishing, Ankara.
• Kozan, O. (2023). Yapay Zekâ Çağında Çevirmen Olmak Derlem Tabanlı İnsan ve Makine Çevirisi İncelemeleri (Türkçe-Rusça Örneğinde) [Being a Translator in the Age of Artificial Intelligence] Çanakkale: Paradigma Academy Publishing.
• Liebrenz, M., Schleifer, R., Buadze, A., Bhugra, D., & Smith, A. (2023). Generating scholarly content with ChatGPT: ethical challenges for medical publishing. The Lancet. Digital health, 5(3), e105–e106. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2589-7500(23)00019-5
• Niederman, F., & Baker, E. W. (2023). Ethics and AI issues: Old container with new wine? Information Systems Frontiers, 25(1), 9-28. DOI: 10.1007/s10796-022-10305-1.
• Odacıoğlu, C. (2022). A Course Proposal entitled "Information Technologies and Tools in Translation" in the Framework of the Reflections of the Digital Age on Translation and Interpreting DepartmentsTurkish Studies - Language, 17(4), 1367-1376. https://dx.doi.org/10.7827/TurkishStudies.62915
• Rahi, S. (2017). Research design and methods: A systematic review of research paradigms, sampling issues and instruments development. International Journal of Economics & Management Sciences, 6(2), 1-5. DOI: 10.4172/2162-6359.1000403
• Tavares, C., Oliveira, L., Duarte, P., & da Silva, M. M. (2023). Artificial intelligence: A blessing or a threat for language service providers in Portugal. Informatics, 10(4), 81. https://doi.org/10.3390/informatics10040081
• Yang, C. (2022, August). The Application of Artificial Intelligence in Translation Teaching. In Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Intelligent Science and Technology, 56-60 https://doi.org/10.1145/3568923.3568933
• Yıldırım, A., & Şimşek, H. (2018). Qualitative research methods in the social sciences (11th ed.). Seçkin Publishing.
• Yu, H. (2023). Reflection on whether ChatGPT should be banned by academia from the perspective of education and teaching. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, 1181712. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1181712
• Zawacki-Richter, O., Marin, V. I., Bond, M., & Gouverneur, F. (2019). Systematic review of research on artificial intelligence applications in higher education: Where are the educators? International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, 16(1), 39. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-019-0171-0
• Zhang, J. (2023). Exploring undergraduate translation students’ perceptions towards machine translation: A qualitative questionnaire survey. In Proceedings of Machine Translation Summit XIX, Vol. 2: Users Track, Macau SAR, China: Asia-Pacific Association for Machine Translation.
• Zouhaier, S. (2023). The impact of artificial intelligence on higher education: An empirical study. European Journal of Educational Sciences, 10(1), 17. https://doi.org/10.19044/ejes.v10no1a17