Education Translation Services: an International Opportunity!

Translating educational materials facilitates global learning. However, the process can be complex. To overcome these translation challenges, businesses often turn to education translation services, which can provide valuable assistance.

Why Use Education Translation Services?

Translation allows ideas to be shared internationally and provides an opportunity for education companies to expand worldwide. The e-learning market alone is predicted to be worth 243 billion U.S. dollars worldwide by 2022, making international growth an attractive option.

Learning content needs to be linguistically and culturally suitable for the new country or region so that learners and educators alike can get the most out of materials. Education translation services have the expert knowledge and native speakers to produce high-quality work and ensure that the process goes smoothly.

Challenges of Educational Translation

Accuracy is essential in any translation work. However, instructional materials need to deliver precise messages to students and meet important educational standards. The format, content and channels used to deliver educational content can lead to challenges in translating it.

Below, we summarize key challenges and solutions to ensure your educational translations are of the highest quality.

1- Deadlines and budgets

Timelines and cost efficiency are key to any business. As such, companies may be tempted to opt for in-house translations from non-expert staff in an attempt to save time and money. This can create problems either immediately or further down the line.

Simply speaking two languages isn’t enough to create a suitable translation. Non-professionals may not be equipped to deal with technical language, formatting issues and culturally appropriate content. Errors can lead to delays and raised costs. Instead, it is advisable to create a realistic timeline in advance and discuss budget optimization with an education translation service.

2- Culturally Inappropriate Imagery

Imagery, colors and symbols have different connotations in different countries. At times, this can be confusing for learners and, at worst, mistakes can cause offense. This is true for both the content and layout of educational material.

For example, for young learners, pictures of characters from fairy tales and children’s stories won’t necessarily translate into the new language. Older learners may not understand images relating to foreign cultural references. This causes educational material to lose some of its value. Likewise, religious imagery or national symbols that are used may be deemed acceptable in one country, but offensive in another.

Localization is advisable for educational content. This is the process of adapting content so that it is culturally and linguistically appropriate for the target audience. The process can be undertaken by a professional education translation service that has extensive knowledge of your target country and the education industry.

3- Technical Problems

It is easy to underestimate or completely overlook the technical work needed for translations of educational materials. Different platforms have their own requirements in terms of formatting and coding. Elements to take into consideration include:

• Whether your platform supports foreign language characters
• If your programme will function correctly when altered
• How well subtitles/voiceovers integrate into multimedia content.

Losing focus on these features will mean that your educational content loses some of its appeal. When you’ve worked hard to create top-quality materials, you need to be certain that your standards will transfer to the new country by looking at all aspects of the translation process.

4- High-quality Work that Reflects your Brand

Your style, tone of voice and values are unique to your company. That’s why translations should capture the exact meaning and tone of your content. Top education translation services understand the importance of producing top-quality translations and can work with you as a language partner on your project.

Such companies are able to navigate technical vocabulary and complex concepts that may not exist in different countries. They can also ensure that your materials are fully functional at the end.

Why choose Torjoman?

Torjoman is a certified translation company that has over 26 years of experience in the language industry. We have a team of expert translators and localizers who have worked with top education companies and institutions from around the world. Torjoman is ISO 17100 certified, meaning that our work adheres to the highest QA standards.

The above tips and tricks are helpful when planning your work, however we suggest contacting us to discuss your project further. Please send us a message to find out more about what we can offer.