This advanced Indonesian course is designed to enhance practical skills in critical textual analysis, translation and interpretation across various linguistic levels, encompassing phrases, sentences, and discourses. Students will delve into a spectrum of pivotal topics within contemporary Indonesian society, spanning socio-cultural and political domains. Through rigorous academic discussions, they will apply their written and spoken Indonesian proficiencies, developing sound translation and interpretation skills through individual and group tasks. These tasks encompass activities such as producing translated and critically interpreted texts, discerning nuanced meanings, addressing translation challenges, and comparing and assessing potential solutions. The course also cultivates the ability to comprehend texts spanning diverse genres and styles, ranging from literature, through to journalistic, colloquial, and social media variations.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

1. Translate Indonesian source language (SL) texts of varying complexity and structural levels (phrases, sentences and paragraphs).
2. Identify and analyse different features of standard and colloquial written and spoken Indonesian.
3. Demonstrate the capacity to identify and assess a variety of technical and non-technical terms and expressions within Indonesian SL texts on selected research topics of contemporary relevance.
4. Create insightful, critical commentaries on the readings of their choice relevant to their research interest, pinpointing and addressing central themes in contemporary Indonesian society.
5. Deploy critical thinking to demonstrate an understanding of the cultural context and pertinent issues within translation and research, using oral presentation, discussion, and written assessment tasks.
6. Critically integrate linguistic proficiency with cultural and contextual insights to construct compelling arguments and analyses while effectively addressing the focus issues in standard/academic Indonesian.

Research-Led Teaching

This course is taught with reference to the lecturer's professional practice in translation for academic, research and commercial purposes over several decades. It draws on specific examples of style, tone and context of translation tasks with attention to original and destination language and purpose/audience. Students will give tutorial presentations throughout the course, with the schedule to be determined in consultation with the convenor in weeks 1-2.

Required Resources

You will need a very good Indonesian-English dictionary, and an English-Indonesian dictionary for cross referencing.

Kamus Indonesia-Inggris and Kamus Inggris Indonesia (3rd edition or later) by John M Echols and Hassan Shadily. Penerbit Gramedia, 2014.

OR

A Comprehensive Indonesian-English Dictionary (2nd edition) by A. M. Stevens & A. Ed. Schmidgall-Tellings. Ohio University Press, 2010.

 

Recommended Resources

This text is recommended but NOT required:

Colloquial Jakartan Indonesian, by James Sneddon, Pacific Linguistics, Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, ANU, 2006. (For Week 8 onwards). This is a detailed description with a great many authentic examples.

Staff Feedback

Students will be given feedback in the following forms in this course:

• Written comments
• Verbal comments
• Feedback to the whole class, to groups, to individuals, focus groups

Exam feedback will be provided within two weeks where feasible.

Student Feedback

ANU is committed to the demonstration of educational excellence and regularly seeks feedback from students. Students are encouraged to offer feedback directly to their Course Convener or through their College and Course representatives (if applicable). The feedback given in these surveys is anonymous and provides the Colleges, University Education Committee and Academic Board with opportunities to recognise excellent teaching, and opportunities for improvement. The Surveys and Evaluation website provides more information on student surveys at ANU and reports on the feedback provided on ANU courses.

Other Information

This course contributes to the development of Critical Thinking Graduate attributes for students undertaking the Indonesian Language Major (INDN-MAJ). ANU graduates are critical thinkers, they actively challenge what and how we know the nature of things. They engage in cutting edge debate on topics of relevance and importance to them. They ask judicious questions, design systematic methodologies and use data to analyse, synthesise, extrapolate and predict. ANU graduates demonstrate logical, rational and ethical patterns of reasoning to represent and communicate their understandings. They support their arguments with evidence and pioneer positive change and innovation.

Class Schedule

Week/Session	Summary of Activities	Assessment
1	Week 1 - Intro to course + Intro to translation	Material / Instructions on CanvasAssessment 4: Tutorial key discussion points will be submitted on Canvas
2	Week 2 - Analysis & discussion of translation problems & solutions, course readings, text translation, reading	Material / Instructions on CanvasAssessment 4: Tutorial key discussion points will be submitted on Canvas
3	Week 3 - Analysis & discussion of translation problems & solutions, course readings, text translation, tutorial presentation tbc	Material / Instructions on CanvasAssessment 4: Tutorial key discussion points will be submitted on Canvas
4	Week 4 - tutorial presentation tbc, Text translation	Practice for Assessment task 1Assessment task 1 held in class Assessment 4: Tutorial key discussion points will be submitted on Canvas
5	Week 5 - Analysis & discussion of translation problems & solutions, course readings, text translation, tutorial presentation tbc	Material / Instructions on CanvasAssessment 4: Tutorial key discussion points will be submitted on Canvas
6	Week 6 - Analysis & discussion of translation problems & solutions, course readings, text translation, tutorial presentation tbc	Material / Instructions on Canvas
7	Week 7 - Analysis & discussion of translation problems & solutions, course readings/discuss, text translation, tutorial presentation tbc	Analysis & discussion of translation problems & solutions: Material / Instructions on CanvasAssessment 4: Tutorial key discussion points will be submitted on Canvas
8	Week 8 - tutorial presentation tbc, text translation assessment	Practice for Part 1 Assessment 2 held in class Part 1 Assessment 2 held in class Assessment 4: Tutorial key discussion points will be submitted on Canvas
9	Week 9 - Introduction to features of colloquial Jakartan Indonesian, text translation, tutorial presentation tbc	Introduction to features: Material / Instructions on CanvasAssessment 4: Tutorial key discussion points will be submitted on Canvas
10	Week 10 - Reading, discussion & practice of features of colloquial Jakartan Indonesian, text translation, tutorial presentation tbc	Reading, discussion & practice of features: Material / Instructions on CanvasAssessment 4: Tutorial key discussion points will be submitted on Canvas
11	Week 11 - Reading, discussion & practice of features of colloquial Jakartan Indonesian, text translation, tutorial presentation tbc	Reading, discussion & practice of features: Material / Instructions on CanvasLast week to complete Assessment 3 Tutorial presentation
12	Week 12 - Reading, discussion & practice of features of colloquial Jakartan Indonesian, text translation, tutorial presentation tbc	Material / Instructions on CanvasPart 1 and Part 2 of Assessment task 2 Due

Assessment Summary

Assessment task	Value	Due Date	Return of assessment	Learning Outcomes
In-class translation test: Translation of short text (provided)	15 %	19/08/2026	26/08/2026	1,2,3
Assignment 2: Translation of article from print media, with Commentary.	30 %	29/10/2026	*	1,2,3,4
Tutorial Presentation and class performance	25 %	*	*	1,2,3,4,5
Self-directed reading and discussion in-class (10 iterations, weeks 1-5, 7-11)	30 %	*	*	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

* If the Due Date and Return of Assessment date are blank, see the Assessment Tab for specific Assessment Task details

Policies

ANU has educational policies, procedures and guidelines, which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University’s academic standards, and implement them. Students are expected to have read the Academic Misconduct Rule before the commencement of their course. Other key policies and guidelines include:

• Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure
• Special Assessment Consideration Policy and General Information
• Student Surveys and Evaluations
• Deferred Examinations
• Student Complaint Resolution Policy and Procedure

Assessment Requirements

The ANU is using Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website Students may choose not to submit assessment items through Turnitin. In this instance you will be required to submit, alongside the assessment item itself, hard copies of all references included in the assessment item.

Moderation of Assessment

Marks that are allocated during Semester are to be considered provisional until formalised by the College examiners meeting at the end of each Semester. If appropriate, some moderation of marks might be applied prior to final results being released.

Participation

HOW TO PREPARE FOR CLASSES

Preparation tasks required for class is described in Canvas each week.

 a) For the translation component of the course (Weeks 1 – 8) two main types of preparation will be required:

i) preparing your own translation, or

ii) preparing a critique of an existing translation.

 Detailed guidelines for how to carry out both these tasks will be provided on Canvas. See the Canvas files “Preparing Your Own Translation for Class: A Guide” and “Preparing a Critique of a Published Translation for Class: A Guide”.

b) For the ‘Colloquial Jakartan Indonesian’ component (Week 9 –12) the usual preparation task is to read the set texts/extracts for close comprehension.

Some guidelines are as follows:

- Your aim is not to make a literal translation, but instead to provide an analysis of the original and its meaning.

- Aim to understand both the gist of sentences and the meaning of each word in its context.

- Clearly highlight in some way the words/phrases/ sentences whose meaning still eludes you, i.e. problems that you still need to clear up in class. That way you will come to class armed with a list of questions to ask.

Assessment Task 1

In-class translation test: Translation of short text (provided)

This assessment will be conducted in normal class time in Week 4 (15%). Translation of an unseen passage. Marks are awarded for both accuracy and style. Dictionaries are permitted. Feedback will be provided within two weeks where feasible; feedback on Week 4 translation test will be provided before census date.

Assessment Task 2

Assignment 2: Translation of article from print media, with Commentary.

This is a two-part assignment. Text for translation will be set.

Part 1. Initial translation (500 words) will be conducted in class in week eight, under the same conditions as Assignment 1 (10%), and submitted to the convenor during class. A copy will be scanned and returned to the student.

Part 2. Students will prepare a translation software/AI supported translation of the same text (5%) and develop a commentary (1000 words). This commentary will compare the two process and critically analyse the two translations with reference to those processes, and the translation methodologies discussed in lectures (15%).

AI/machine translation and commentary will be due at 11.30pm on 29 October (week 12).

Word length: Translation = +- 500 words of original text, two translations generated. Commentary = 1000 words.

Overall weighting 30%

Feedback will be provided within two weeks where feasible. 25% of overall mark.

Assessment Task 3

Tutorial Presentation and class performance

Tutorial presentation/discussion lead on a shared translation task. Students will give a tutorial presentation (10 minutes) on the relevant task for their selected week, and discuss problems and solutions encountered in the text with the class (15%). Students are expected to actively engage with each other's presentations by asking questions and contributing to commentary in each tutorial presentation (10%). 25% of overall mark.

Assessment Task 4

Self-directed reading and discussion in-class (10 iterations, weeks 1-5, 7-11)

Students choose a short text from their own engagement with contemporary Indonesian media/publications/platforms, and share their reflections on reading and understanding this text during a class discussion in tutorial 2. A short summary of key discussion points will be submitted on Canvas weekly. Marks will be awarded for active and constructive participation in class discussions, and documented evidence of reading and reflection through the forum. Verbal and written feedback will be provided at regular intervals in class and through Canvas, including feedback before census date. Each iteration is worth 3%, overall value of the assessment item is 30%.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a core part of our culture as a community of scholars. At its heart, academic integrity is about behaving ethically. This means that all members of the community commit to honest and responsible scholarly practice and to upholding these values with respect and fairness. The Australian National University commits to embedding the values of academic integrity in our teaching and learning. We ensure that all members of our community understand how to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support academic integrity. The ANU expects staff and students to uphold high standards of academic integrity and act ethically and honestly, to ensure the quality and value of the qualification that you will graduate with. The University has policies and procedures in place to promote academic integrity and manage academic misconduct. Visit the following Academic honesty & plagiarism website for more information about academic integrity and what the ANU considers academic misconduct. The ANU offers a number of services to assist students with their assignments, examinations, and other learning activities. The Academic Skills and Learning Centre offers a number of workshops and seminars that you may find useful for your studies.

Online Submission

The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.

Hardcopy Submission

For some forms of assessment (hand written assignments, art works, laboratory notes, etc.) hard copy submission is appropriate when approved by the Associate Dean (Education). Hard copy submissions must utilise the Assignment Cover Sheet. Please keep a copy of tasks completed for your records.

Late Submission

Late submission of assessment tasks without an extension are penalised at the rate of 5% of the possible marks available per working day or part thereof. Late submission of assessment tasks is not accepted after 10 working days after the due date, or on or after the date specified in the course outline for the return of the assessment item. Late submission is not accepted for take-home examinations.

Referencing Requirements

Accepted academic practice for referencing sources that you use in presentations can be found via the links on the Canvas site, under the file named “ANU and College Policies, Program Information, Student Support Services and Assessment”. Alternatively, you can seek help through the Students Learning Development website.

Extensions and Penalties

Extensions and late submission of assessment pieces are covered by the Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure The Course Convener may grant extensions for assessment pieces that are not examinations or take-home examinations. If you need an extension, you must request an extension in writing on or before the due date. If you have documented and appropriate medical evidence that demonstrates you were not able to request an extension on or before the due date, you may be able to request it after the due date.

Privacy Notice

The ANU has made a number of third party, online, databases available for students to use. Use of each online database is conditional on student end users first agreeing to the database licensor’s terms of service and/or privacy policy. Students should read these carefully. In some cases student end users will be required to register an account with the database licensor and submit personal information, including their: first name; last name; ANU email address; and other information. In cases where student end users are asked to submit ‘content’ to a database, such as an assignment or short answers, the database licensor may only use the student’s ‘content’ in accordance with the terms of service — including any (copyright) licence the student grants to the database licensor. Any personal information or content a student submits may be stored by the licensor, potentially offshore, and will be used to process the database service in accordance with the licensors terms of service and/or privacy policy. If any student chooses not to agree to the database licensor’s terms of service or privacy policy, the student will not be able to access and use the database. In these circumstances students should contact their lecturer to enquire about alternative arrangements that are available.

Distribution of grades policy

Academic Quality Assurance Committee monitors the performance of students, including attrition, further study and employment rates and grade distribution, and College reports on quality assurance processes for assessment activities, including alignment with national and international disciplinary and interdisciplinary standards, as well as qualification type learning outcomes. Since first semester 1994, ANU uses a grading scale for all courses. This grading scale is used by all academic areas of the University.

Support for students

The University offers students support through several different services. You may contact the services listed below directly or seek advice from your Course Convener, Student Administrators, or your College and Course representatives (if applicable).

• ANU Health, safety & wellbeing for medical services, counselling, mental health and spiritual support
• ANU Diversity and inclusion for students with a disability or ongoing or chronic illness
• ANU Dean of Students for confidential, impartial advice and help to resolve problems between students and the academic or administrative areas of the University
• ANU Academic Skills and Learning Centre supports you make your own decisions about how you learn and manage your workload.
• ANU Counselling Centre promotes, supports and enhances mental health and wellbeing within the University student community.
• ANUSA supports and represents undergraduate and ANU College students
• PARSA supports and represents postgraduate and research students