Online Translators, Translation Sites and “help” from another native speaker or language student are NOT allowed in this class Today we will discuss why these methods are not allowed, and also why they DON’T work for you OR your grade.

Online Translators and Translation Sites: An online site that allows people to enter sentences in one language and have them translated to another language is not allowed.

May I use an Online Translator? Absolutely Not!!! Why? They do not work! Online translators are of poor quality because... …computers cannot decipher tone, mood, context or tense …computers have no brains; you do! …many words have no direct translation in other languages …only humans can be true translators! …it is cheating and an automatic 0 will result!

May I use “help” from a native speaker or another language student? Absolutely Not!!! Why? Your teachers want to see what YOU can do, not what the person that is helping you can do. We are testing YOUR skills not someone else’s When you get help, you don’t learn It is obvious to your teachers that it is not YOUR work It is cheating and an automatic 0 will result!

Online Translators and Proper Names In English, we have many proper names like: Mrs. White, Mr. Black, Mr. Brown, Mr. Hightower…. An online translator would translate “White,” “Black,” “Brown,” and “High” and “Tower.” Proper Names do not get translated from language to language. My last name is Bruns in all languages! An online translator would translate Antonio Banderas’ name : Anthony Flags Hmmmm…..I don’t think he would like that

Online translators and Idioms An idiom is a phrase that does not translate literally Example: It’s raining cats and dogs. Online translators cannot translate idioms. Most idioms are not the same from language to language

How will your teacher know if you used an online translator or got “help”? Online translators and other native speakers will use vocabulary, grammar, sentence structure, etc. that you have never been taught. This is a red flag to your teacher!

Look at this Example of an Online Translation… and don’t laugh Here is an online translation of the words to the classic childhood nursery rhyme "Hickory Dickory Dock" into an online translator site: "Dársena de nogal americano Dickory. El ratón izó el reloj. El reloj golpeó uno, el ratón corrió hacia abajo, Dársena de Nogal Americano Dickory.“ Ok, if you don't know Spanish, that probably looks pretty good to you. Well, what happens if I copy the Spanish and put it into the text box to translate it back into English? This is what you get: "Dock of American walnut Dickory. The mouse hoisted the clock. The clock struck one, the mouse ran downward, Dock of American Walnut Dickory." That's what it sounds like to your teacher when you turn in something from an online translator. Um, yeah... She's totally gonna know.

Look at this Example of a first year student getting help from a more experienced language speaker The assignment says, “Greet your friend and ask how he/she is today.” You know how to say this, “Hola. Cómo estás hoy? Your ask your friend for help/clarification and your friend “helps” you to write more. He/she dictates and you write the following, “Hola. Cómo estás? Hace tanto tiempo que no vemos. Quiero que vengas a mi casa este fin de semana para jugar volibol. La semana pasada jugamos volibol todo el día y comimos pizza después. Fue divertido! BIG RED FLAG! – You don’t know this vocabulary or these tenses and your teacher knows it. You receive a 0 for your friend’s “help”!

So how DO I successfully complete the assignments in this class? KISS - Keep It Simple Silly Write at the appropriate level for the language you have learned in SPANISH, NOT in ENGLISH. Follow the directions that the assignment gives and use ONLY the vocabulary and structure that it directs you to use, not above your level. Use what YOU know, and not what your COMPUTER or your “FRIEND” appears to know. ASK YOUR TEACHER FOR HELP WHEN YOU ARE STUCK! THAT’S WHAT THEY’RE THERE FOR

What’s next? You will receive a 0 if any of your teachers suspect you have cheated on an assignment. If you choose to go back and do the assignment in YOUR words, you will be allowed to redo it for ½ the credit. That means an assignment that could have received a 100% will now only receive a 50% AND THAT IS NOT WORTH IT!

THANK YOU! Thank you for your time today! If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact your teachers.