Policy on Translating Written Academic Content

Swansea University is a bilingual institution. We support the rights of our students, our staff and the public to use Welsh at the University, in their academic studies, their everyday work and socially.

In order to facilitate this, Swansea University has an internal translation service which is available free of charge to all University staff to support them in undertaking official University work and duties. The service is also available free of charge to bodies and institutions that are in a partnership with the University, and the University is the main funding partner.

This Policy on Translating Written Academic Content is applicable to every Faculty and Professional Services Unit in Swansea University as well as any wholly-owned sub-company and any third party company that provides academic content to undergraduate and postgraduate students on behalf of the University, within the remit of the work they are under contract to provide.

The Welsh Language Strategy Committee (PSIG) reports to the University’s Senior Leadership Team (SLT). This Committee is chaired by Professor Gwenno Ffrancon, who is responsible for the Welsh language agenda and Welsh civic mission and culture at the University.

The role of the Welsh Language Strategy Committee is to develop and implement the Stepping Forward Welsh Language and Culture Strategy and to grow and promote Welsh-medium education at Swansea University. The committee operates as a specialist advisor to SLT, and makes recommendations on changes to the general strategy or to specific projects, in order to increase the likelihood of achieving the University’s strategic aims. The Committee oversees the work of Academi Hywel Teifi, the Swansea Branch of the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol, and Compliance with the Welsh Language Standards regulations. The Committee also maintains the risk register relating to the institution’s responsibilities and activities associated with the Welsh language and any shortcomings that cannot be resolved are reported to SLT.

The Committee will also consider and approve, prior to submitting, the University’s response to proposals and policies that are released for public consultation by the Welsh Government and bodies such as the Welsh Language Commissioner, HEFCW and the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol. It will also promote the Welsh language at the University and emphasise the importance of the language.

There is a Welsh Language Committee in each Faculty that reports to the Welsh Language Strategy Committee through each Faculty’s Welsh Language Leads. The Director of Academi Hywel Teifi is a member of the University’s Professional Services Senior Leadership Team which facilitates early joint planning on projects from a Welsh language perspective.

Swansea University undertakes to comply with the principles that underpin the work of the Welsh Language Commissioner, namely:

• Welsh should not be treated less favourably than English in Wales
• Persons in Wales should be able to live their lives through the medium of Welsh if they wish to do so

In order to achieve this, Swansea University will:

1. Encourage and support students, staff and others who come into contact with the University to use Welsh.
2. Provide opportunities to use Welsh by proactively promoting the University's Welsh language services and enabling all members of the University community to build meaningful relationships with the language and its culture.
3. Ensure that the services we deliver in accordance with the requirements of the Welsh Language Standards will be of equal quality in both Welsh and English – by being equally visible, equally easy to use and equally effective.
4. Record the choice of language (Welsh or English) of our staff, students and alumni. Correspondence and services are provided for them in accordance with that language choice.
5. Verify that our staff recruitment policies and systems ensure that bilingual capacity is consistently available across a range of University services and departments.
6. Ensure that our policies, plans and projects give full and fair consideration, and provide a central and natural place, to the Welsh language from their inception so that the status and use of Welsh is not undermined.
7. Ensure a range of opportunities and encouragement for our staff to develop and strengthen their Welsh language skills, with the aim of increasing the use of Welsh in University workplaces.
8. Provide opportunities for our students to study through the medium of Welsh and to receive support to do so.
9. Use research expertise to plan proactively and progressively in a way that benefits the use of Welsh within the University and more widely.
10. Record decisions, processes, successes and complaints relevant to the Welsh language.

What must be translated according to the Welsh Language Standards?

Academic content is not included under the requirements of the Welsh Language Standards but it is an expectation of the University and the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol that anyone studying through the medium of Welsh or bilingually on Welsh-language or bilingual modules will receive written academic content in Welsh which corresponds with the content presented in the classroom in order to support their learning.

Please note that there is specific guidance available for staff who arrange events or meetings for students, staff and the public. It includes guidance on webinars, meetings with students, training workshops and public lectures.

What is written academic content?

1. Academic content is interpreted as:
   - subject lectures
   - PowerPoint slides (or similar software)
   - subject-specific workbooks or worksheets
2. The following are not considered to be academic content and therefore these must be translated in order to comply with the requirements of the Welsh Language Standards:
   - workbooks with general information to students about practical arrangements of modules (if they are Welsh-medium or bilingual modules) or general educational activities of their schools or faculties
   - administrative instructions (e.g. reminder of assessment deadline; urgent messages relating to cancelled lectures).

What is the definition of a Welsh-medium module?

Any Welsh language content that is offered in the educational provision of a subject that constitutes a total of 5 credits or more is included in the University’s data on studying through the medium of Welsh. The 5 credits could be within one specific module or across a number of modules.

Swansea University offers a variety of Welsh-medium provision across a range of subjects, and this is presented in various ways and at different levels. For example, some subjects offer whole modules through the medium of Welsh whilst others offer different elements in Welsh and in English e.g. English lectures but Welsh-medium seminars or laboratory workshops.

All Welsh-medium educational activities are recorded in the University’s data, but the University has specific targets for the number of students that study 40 credits of their course through the medium of Welsh annually. It is this target that ensures a meaningful Welsh-medium educational experience for students.

A module which merely offers the option to sit an exam or complete an assessment through the medium of Welsh should not be labelled as a ‘Welsh-medium’ module. Students have a legislative right to be assessed through the medium of Welsh regardless of the language in which they are taught.

What must be provided in Welsh to students who are receiving academic provision through the medium of Welsh?

It is expected that the following, as a minimum, be provided in Welsh to students who are studying modules that are taught through the medium of Welsh or bilingually:

• Lectures, seminars or tutorials (depending on which element is provided through the medium of Welsh)
• Slides or visual resources that correspond to what is presented in Welsh in lectures or seminars
• Supplementary worksheets
• Canvas pages
• Assignment/exam/test questions and supplementary specification
• Reading lists, including Welsh texts and sources where possible

Assessing students through the medium of Welsh

Every student has the legislative right to present written assessments or to sit exams through the medium of Welsh, regardless of whether the module is delivered through the medium of Welsh or English. Further information on the process that students must follow in order to submit their request to submit work through the medium of Welsh is available on Presenting work and being assessed in Welsh - Swansea University webpage. Guidance for staff on how to implement the policy and the process of assessing student work through the medium of Welsh is available on Assessment in Welsh/Another Language - Swansea University webpage.

1. This Policy on Translating Written Academic Content is based on two key principles:
   i. Academic staff that have been appointed to Welsh language teaching posts are expected to create original core academic material (subject content) in Welsh themselves. The requirement to prepare original academic content in Welsh is now included in the job descriptions of these members of staff.
   ii. Academic staff, whether they are Welsh speakers or not, that support the Welsh-medium provision in their field and that have not been appointed specifically to do so, can use the full translation service.
2. Academic staff who have been appointed to teach through the medium of Welsh should not present English academic content that they themselves have prepared to the University’s translation service in order to have it translated. Academic staff can request proofreading support from the Translation Service if they wish.
3. In situations where Welsh-medium academic staff are asked to use or adapt English course materials that have been prepared by other colleagues, in order to be able to present a course or module through the medium of Welsh, then it is acceptable for that work to be presented to the Translation Unit.
4. Any member of University staff may present documentation which supports the administration or practical arrangements surrounding academic provision for translation. It should be noted that it is a requirement of the Welsh Language Standards that such documentation is available in Welsh for students.
5. For modules that are taught through the medium of Welsh or bilingually, academic staff should prepare assignment questions or exam papers in Welsh or bilingually and present them to students at the same time and without anyone having to ask for them. Any member of University staff can present assignment titles and/or exam papers to be translated or proof-read by the Translation Service, and in so doing, consideration should be given to the return times that the Translation Unit work towards.

All University staff are reminded that support to learn or gain confidence in the Welsh language is available free of charge from the Learn Welsh Swansea Bay Unit.  

The University’s translation service is divided into three key areas:

• Written translation and proof-reading
• Quick Translations Service (100 words or less to be returned within 24 hours)
• Simultaneous Interpreting, offered face-to-face or on Zoom

Staff can present work for translation through the ServiceNow system: Welsh Translation Unit - Swansea University.

Guidance and best practice on presenting work for translation is available on Written translation - Swansea University webpage.

University staff should not arrange any translation through an external company in any circumstances – all requests for translation must be submitted to the internal Translation Service and they will provide further guidance.

Here is an outline of the expected return times based on the number of words:

Welsh Language Measure 2011. Please refer to the Compliance Notice that the University has received.
Stepping Forward: Swansea University’s Welsh Language and Culture Strategy 2022-27
Cymraeg 2050: Welsh Language Strategy
Wellbeing of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015
Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol: Education in Wales: Our National Mission
Together Towards the Million: Strategic Plan 2021 onwards (National Learn Welsh Centre)

* This policy will be operational from 1 January 2024
** A related policy outlines Swansea University’s Use of Welsh at Work.
*** This policy is reviewed annually, or earlier if required, by the Welsh Language Strategy Committee. The Welsh Translation Unit maintains a record of the written academic content received for translation by the Unit and will report to the Welsh Language Strategy Committee on this every 6 months.