Pedagogy in Legal Terminology Translation: A Corpus-based Approach

Abstract

This paper explores effective pedagogical practices to train high-end foreign legal professionals in China’s Greater Bay Area by answering two research questions. First, can corpus-based teaching be applied as a productive pedagogical method? Second, how can beginner professionals be cultivated in legal translation capabilities in the legal domain? The paper proposes a module entitled “Introduction to Legal Terminology Translation,” which includes sessions on legal systems and legalese, corpus approach, and group presentation. A sequential mixed-method survey was conducted using qualitative methods, such as focus groups and interviews, followed by quantitative research using a questionnaire. A preliminary pilot study involved a focus group, questionnaire, and interview. Two identical questionnaires were distributed to two groups of students: one control and one experimental. In the ten-student experiment group, an instructor taught legalese and distributed a follow-up questionnaire. In the twenty-two-student control group, the instructor (more knowledgeable other) did not teach legalese but used a corpus-based questionnaire to assess student entry into the zone of proximal development. In the questionnaire, entry-level Latin legalese examples were provided. During interviews, junior university students preferred a mixture of all three pedagogical methods, while senior university students preferred the corpus approach due to its enhanced efficiency and accuracy.