Many organizations recognize the need to translate eLearning courses for their diverse audiences. So, how do you ensure accurate eLearning translations? During the translation process, some common errors have been noticed.
The good news is that you can avoid them by following these steps:
1. Prepare Content
Before translating content, you must comprehend that your courses will be translated into different languages. So take into account your target market, branding, and messaging. Color patterns can significantly influence the way your eLearning content is interpreted and understood. As a result, you’ll need to establish some fundamental criteria for eLearning content providers.
Some of the guidelines may include the following:
- Avoid using too many idioms and cultural references.
- Be concise and clear.
- Avoid redundant messaging.
- Focus on visual content.
2. Evaluate the Project
Collect all your eLearning assets, including project files and content. Most of the time these assets are housed all in your authoring tool (Storyline, Rise, Captivate, etc.) or sometimes you’ll need to compile them depending on what system you are using. Please ensure that you also have editable versions of videos embedded into the course to properly translate and format.
3. Make a Style Guide and Glossary
A glossary provides a set of terms that linguists must use consistently. This is useful for translating industry jargon, words that need clarification, and non-translatable terms. Consistent eLearning translations increase brand confidence and credibility. The style guide is essential and should describe all translated materials’ linguistics, style, and tones.
4. Discuss With Client/Subject Matter Expert (SME) Expectations
The translation is a human undertaking. Therefore, conflicting viewpoints may exist, regardless of linguists’ qualifications. This stage ensures that all project contributors are on the same page.
They have specialized expertise in diverse subject matters from their experience, interests, education, or job. They must cooperate with the Client Reviewer or SME, who is in charge of guaranteeing translation quality and correctness for your industry and company.
5. Provide Training
Provide linguist training in your product’s functions to improve translator comprehension. This is useful for software and website content localization. It is hard to translate correctly if you don’t have a basic understanding of concepts or products you are training.
6. Translation Sample
If you doubt your eLearning translation quality, you should translate a bit of content at a time then check its consistency and accuracy.
In addition, the translation sample sets expectations for future translation efforts for all project collaborators. Therefore, all the preceding procedures must be completed before sending the sample to get the perfect picture of how the translation process will proceed.
7. eLearning Content Translation
Professional linguists should translate your eLearning courses into the target languages. In addition, linguists can access all necessary reference materials, glossaries, and style guides via a proprietary translation management platform.
8. Subject Matter Expert (SME) Reviews Translation
This is where translation quality improves. The SME can check the translation and provide feedback. Their recommendations are forwarded to the project’s linguist. The SME and linguist can now discuss adjustments and execute the best option.
The linguist receives an overall quality score based on the input. Translators must ensure no errors such as additions, typos, omissions, grammar, and meaning modifications. Preferential edits are also considered to provide the best translation.
9. Quality Assurance and Deliverables
This step ensures the finest eLearning translation quality. Following all project instructions, reviewing and reconciling comments, and updating the glossary and style guide as needed, the translation will be submitted for quality checks. If it requires further formatting, the materials are reviewed to verify they match the source exactly.
10. Submission
All final deliverables will be collected and checked for translation standards. The deliverables are then archived and expedited as agreed.
When working on a translation project, you know how tiresome the back-and-forth can be without these translation preparation measures. Setting up these processes may take a little more time, but it will pay off in the long run.