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Because wages are so dismal, then, most teachers are forced
to spend extraordinarily long hours working; undoubtedly this
diminishes the quality of their labours. It also makes many
look for work elsewhere; according to Russian sociologist
Sheregi, 48 per cent of teachers surveyed said they had thought
of changing careers in the past year. The feminization of the
profession, already well advanced, has accelerated since 1998.
Finally, the considerable sums the state invests in training
teachers at pedagogical institutions are partially squandered,
for fewer than half of all graduates of such institutions take
up careers in teaching and of those who do, many leave within
the first three years. In the Sheregi survey, the proportion
of those contemplating changing careers was much higher in
the age cohort under thirty.
Given these conditions, we would expect there to be a large
shortfall of teachers in the schools. In many areas, language,
Russian literature, and computer teachers are in short supply.
Yet most regions are experiencing no overall shortage
of teachers, nor can one speak of turmoil stemming from
exceptional turnover in the schools; more than one-third of all
teachers have been in the classroom for twenty years or more.
An explanation for this continued stability is elusive. Personal
dedication plays a role, as do high unemployment levels in many
provincial cities and in the villages; one-third of teachers
explicitly say they stay on the job only for this reason.
Still, teaching is a vocation. We should take off our academic
caps and pay homage to a profession, nearly 2 million strong,
which has endured great hardshi p, and demonstrated great
courage and intelligence in the service of Russia’s next
generation.
Answer the questions.
1) How does the author of the article characterise teachers in
Russia?
2) What is people’s attitude to teachers?
3) What do the authors say about present-day situation in school
education?
4) This article was written by foreign authors. Do you share
their point of view?
32
Task 6. Read the text and do the tasks.
WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BE A GOOD TRANSLATOR?
It is pretty clear that one should devote his/her body and
soul full time to the profession to begin with — like in any
other trade — however that is not enough. Based on my 10+
years’ experience in recruiting and searching for talents in
translation, I have drawn the list below, which I believe contains
the fundamental features of a good translator:
1. Good writing skills
Translator cannot translate properly if they don’t write well.
Good writing is a basic requirement for any good translator.
I often ask new translators to write something on their own
before taking any kind of translation. They look at me with
amazement as if I were putting them through a college entrance
exam. Many people do not associate the importance of good
writing skills with their responsibilities as a translator; while
poor writing usually prevents their translation work from rising
above mediocrity.
2. Be an avid reader
This item is directly linked to the previous one. You have
to read a lot to write well. Therefore I suggest that you read as
much as possible — books, magazines, newspapers, etc. Reading
expands your vocabulary and increases your general culture.
Your writing will certainly improve, as well as your linguistic
repertoire.
3. Stay up-to-date
Once again, this item goes pretty much hand in hand with
the prior one. A translator needs to stay well informed, and
hence should read as much as possible. Keeping current is
part of a translator’s daily routine. After all, they will probably
be requested to translate material related to current issues
and events, usually discussed in the media, and understanding
the subject well may take you half way there.
33
4. Develop research skill
No matter how familiar a translator may be with any given
subject, now and then an unknown term or expression will
come up. This is when your research skills come into play.
Google is generally a great research tool, however there are
many others, such as on-line glossaries as well as Wiki pedia
(albeit some of its glaring mistakes), etc. Nowadays you can
find answers to most of the tran slati on qu estio n s on
the Internet. Therefore, excuses are no longer acceptable; all
you have to do is to explore the vast array of on-line material
out there, not to mention specialized dictionaries (hard copy),
which should be part of your own library.
5. Ask your peers and join translator newsgroups
If you still have a hard time finding an answer to your
question, no matter how hard you try, you can always ask your
fellow translators. Networking with your peers should be broad,
reaching as many people as possible, since there should always
be someone who knows the answer you are looking for. Another
good tip is to join in translators’ newsgroups. Translators can
ask their questions there to hundreds of other translators, some
of which may have that elusive answer.
6. Specialize
I always ask translators I am recruiting about their areas
of specialty and I get utterly floored when they answer:
‘I translate in all areas’, or ‘I specialize in finance, culinary arts,
medicine, auto mechanics, chemistry, biology, astrophysics, soccer,
legal contracts, as well as social sciences’. I honestly doubt it.
Even worse, such answers tempt me to get rid of these
candidates. We have translators working for us who focus
exclusively on medicine, while others specialize in legal work.
I would like to mention, by way of example, a friend of mine
and an excellent translator, Marcio Badra, a former bank
executive who naturally specialized in translating finance,
and has been very successful at it, given his command of the
jargon and his thorough knowledge of the industry.
34
7. Take specialization or refresher courses
Once again, this holds true for any profession, yet a translator
is not allowed to disregard it. It may be a course on the new
Portuguese spelling reform, translation techniques, legal
terminology, or computer assisted translation programs; it is
absolutely essential to keep current.
8. Master computer technology
Here I must mention a rather sad story. We sent a file in
Word format to a translator with his first job for us. The file
had been carefully laid out, including words and titles in bold,
italics, and using varied fonts, plus an automatically generated
and linked index, etc. When we received the translation, it
came in plain text, without any of those bolds, italics, different
fonts, etc. I was puzzled and immediately called the translator
who gave me this rather bizarre answer, ‘I printed out the file
using Word and translated it from hard copy, because that’s
how I work’. No comment, and it goes without saying that it
was the very first and last time we ever hired this professional.
So it is essential to master Microsoft Office. If I send a file
with some specific formatting (exception made to PDF files,
of course), I expect to receive it exactly the same. Therefore
a translator knowing their way in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
is always taken for granted.
9. Understand and learn to use some computer assisted
translation program (Trados, Wordfast, Deja Vu, etc.)
As the owner of a translation firm, I often hear translators
complaining that ‘they are forced to work with Trados (or
Wordfast, etc.), because agency X, for whom they have been
translating, requires it’. The software is assigned to be
the villain. The agency uses it to make a profit on the poor
translator. This may even be true in some cases, however
translators seem to overlook the key issue: these programs are
productivity tools, i.e., they serve to increase the translation
professional’s output. However regardless of whether a job is
for an agency or a direct client, using them means higher
productivity in the long run, resulting in more money.
35
I can’t imagine a translator nowadays still doing it in
the good old way, i.e. without being boosted by such software.
These tools increase productivity, standardize terminology, save
on typing (copying numbers, for instance), just to name a few
benefits. In this case, translators should overcome their
skepticism and start using them.
10. Pay attention and become a perfectionist
This might seem overrated, however I think that paying
attention is essential for a good translator. I have lost count
of how many times I saw translators simply skipping a word
(or a whole sentence!) in a translation, or typing the wrong
date (which is awfully bad in a plain tra nslation, yet
unacceptable in a sworn translation) or even commit gross
subject-verb concordance mistakes. A translator should pay
close attention to translating and review the work with utmost
care. Taking this one step further, translators should work
toward becoming perfectionists, as both agencies and direct
clients expect a flawless, error-free finished product, and
requiring as little rework as possible; this is the benchmark
all translators should strive to achieve.
Answer the questions.
1) What skills and qualities should a person possess to
become a good translator/interpreter?
2) How can people acquire these qualities?
3) Is translator’s job attractive to you? Why?
If you have already worked as a teacher or a translator/
interpreter, share your impressions with your groupmates.
Task 7. Study the chart.
Kevin Miller’s future career
Character
Active,
sociable,
good team
member, but
not a selfstarter
Possible careers for Kevin
Medicine,travel and
tourism, landscape
gardening, education,
research, journalism, civil
engineering
Good at
Maths,
Physics,
Biology,
Foreign
languages
Enjoys
Outdoor
activities,
meeting
people,
travelling
36
Kevin Miller has just finished school and is not sure what career
to choose. Discuss various possibilities together and decide what
you think would be the most suitable career for him. Use
the following phrases.
1) I think a career in … might/might not be appropriate for
him since he …
2) Do you think it would be a good idea if he went into …?
3) It says that he’s … so perhaps … would be a good/better
choice.
4) If he chose …, he would be able to …
5) I think we can rule … out, so that leaves us with …
6) Well, we’ve got (two/three) options left. Which do you
prefer?
Task 8. Discuss these questions.
1) What jobs in your country are popular or unpopular with
young people? Why?
2) Is it easy for young people in your country to find
the kind of jobs they want? Why/why not?
3) What factors (e.g. salary, opportunities for travel or
promotion, working hours) would you take into account in
choosing a career for yourself?
4) Sometimes people are not paid well enough for the job
that they do (e.g. nurses) while other people (e.g. successful
businessmen) earn enormous salaries. In your opinion, which
jobs are underpaid and which are overpaid in your country?
Task 9. Be ready to speak on the topic ‘My Future Profession’.
37
3.2. RECRUITMENT
3.2.1. PROCESS OF RECRUITMENT
HOW TO GET A JOB
When a company needs to recruit or employ new people, it
may decide to advertise the job or position in the appointments
section of a newspaper. People who are interested can then
apply for the job by sending in a letter of application or
covering letter (US cover letter) and a curriculum vitae or
CV (US resume) containing details of their education and
experience. A company may also ask candidates to complete
a standard application form. The company’s Human Resources
department will then select the most suitable applications and
prepare a short list of candidates or applicants, who are invited
to attend an interview. Another way for a company to hire is
by using the services of a recruitment agency (US search
firm) who will provide them with a list of suitable candidates.
Task 1. Explain the words in bold.
Task 2. Answer the questions.
1) What does a company do when it needs to recruit new
people?
2) What documents do people send to a company when they
want to apply for a job?
3) Who prepares a short list of candidates and invites them
to attend an interview?
4) How do recruitment agencies work?
Task 3. Translate the text.
38
CAREER IN THE AMERICAN COMPANY COGNEX
COGNEX
Career opportunities
New Graduate Opportunities and Intern Programs
(click on the boxes to go to more information on that topic).
Cognex offers a wealth of exciting career opportunities
for new graduates in all fields. We also offer current college
students the ability to acquire some excellent professional
experience through internship and co-op programs. We conduct
on-campus interviews and participate in career expos, and we’d
love to meet you the next time we are at your school.
Hours required:
whatever it
takes to meet
customer’s needs
Plane tickets to
visit customers
around the world
Everything you
need to do your
best work
President’s Awards
given yearly to top
performers, with
bonuses up to
$10000
Tokens for
pinball games in
company game
room
Frisbee for daily
Ultimate Frisbee
match at
lunchtime
‘Cognoid’
(a.k.a. Cognex
employee)
Movie tickets
for monthly
company ‘movie
nights’
Patent for developing
unique technology
39
Task 1. You have read the advertisement from the website of the
American company Cognex. Match the information below with
the corresponding boxes in the advertisement.
1) Cognex provides evening entertainment for its employees.
2) There is a place for employees to play and unwind.
3) Employees are given the opportunity to travel to foreign
countries.
4) Cognex likes to recognize and thank employees for their
hard work.
Task 2. In pairs discuss these questions.
1) What are the advantages and disadvantages of working
for Cognex?
2) Would you like to work for a company like this? Why /
Why not?
3) W hat do you think of this type of recruitment
advertisement?
4) What kind of person does Cognex hope to recruit?
5) What other ways can companies use to advertise for
stuff?
Task 3. Different methods may be used to recruit people. In groups
discuss the following.
Candidates may be asked to:
tell a joke;
take part in a team game with employees from the company;
make a five-minute speech;
complete a probation period before being accepted.
Employers may:
offer a job to the husband or wife of a good candidate;
prefer to recruit people from the families of employees;
ask candidates to complete a personality test;
have candidates’ handwriting analysed (graphology).
Which methods do you think are acceptable / unacceptable? Why?
Would it be possible to recruit like this in Russia?
40
3.2.2. NEW TENDENCIES IN RECRUITING
PEOPLE
FIT FOR HIRING? IT’S MIND OVER MATTER
By Judith H. Dobrzynski
NEW YORK — Members of America’s professional and
managerial classes have always left college confident of at least
one thing: they had taken their last test. From here on, they
could rely o n c harm, cu n ning an d/or a record
of accomplishment to propel them up the corporate ladder.
But that’s not necessarily true any longer. A growing
number of companies, from General Motors Corp to American
Express Co., are no longer satisfied with traditional job
interviews. Instead, they are requiring applicants for many
white-collar jobs — from top executives down — to submit
to a series of paper-and-pencil tests, role-playing exercises,
simulated decision-making exercises and brainteasers. Others
pu t candidates through a long ser ies of interview s by
psychologists or trained interviewers.
The tests are not about mathematics or grammar, nor about
any of the basic technical skills for which many production,
sales and clerical workers have long been tested. Rather,
employers want to evaluate candidates on intangible qualities:
Is she creative and entrepreneurial? Can he lead and coach? Is
he flexible and capable of learning? Does she have passion and
sense of urgency? How will he function under pressure? Most
important, will the potential recruit fit the corporate culture?
These tests, which can take from an hour to two days, are all
part of a broader trend. ‘Companies are getting much more
careful about hiring’, said Paul R. Ray Jr., chairman of the
Association on Executive Search Consultants.
Ten years ago, candidates could win a top job with the right
look and the right answers to questions such as ‘Why do you
this job?’. Now, many are having to face questions and exercises
intended to learn how they get things done.
They may, for example, have to describe in great detail not
one career accomplishment but many — so that patterns
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