Developing the 'ability to write Japanese' and 'ability to see language' through Translation Activities

Abstract

The translation activities focused on translating books written in the learners' native language into refined Japanese. In addition to translating, the learners also presented the contrastive linguistic awareness of their native language and Japanese that they gained in the process of translating. Through the translation activities, the learners themselves became aware of the differences between the languages, which helped them to improve their writing skills.