Distinguishing English in a Spanish Textbook

[CarmenG]

Hi.  I'm transcribing a third year Spanish textbook into UEB.  I'm using the Spanish code for the accented letters and the question marks and exclamation points.  The book is about 75% Spanish and 25% English.  I'm using Method 3, which discourages use of the code change indicator, but I have instances where text can be misread and context and formatting don't make it clear which language is in use.  I'm attaching a copy of a page from the ToC.  Here the entry Camping, Nature could be misread as Campo', Nature.    How can I best identify these as English text?

• This topic was modified 5 years, 4 months ago by CarmenG.

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[Patrick Janson]

Hi Carmen,

Thanks for your patience. I consulted two other FL experts and we put our heads together. Our thoughts are these: for the TOC, if you are using the bold emphasis on the Spanish, it will be clear to the reader that the non-bold is English. If you didn’t want to use all the bold on Spanish sentences in the TOC, it would be permissible to reverse the emphasis and add it on the English terms. Either way, the emphasis in print (or the one you create) should make it clear to the reader.

As for the accents in other “front matter” materials such as Author/Reviewer lists (oh, I guess you revised your question but I'll answer it anyway), we are suggesting you use UEB modifiers. The Spanish modifiers can be saved for reading/learning portions of the text.

Best,

Patrick

[morrowka]

Hello, Carmen: First of all, as a foreign language Braille reader & proofreader, THANKS FOR ALL YOU DO. What you do in transcribing foreign language materials is a rather complicated process, if done correctly. When it comes to distinguishing between FL & English text, I would lean toward doing more, rather than less, unless the actual rules dictate otherwise. I see nothing wrong with utilizing the code switch indicator. In the "old days", the argument would be that the Braille reader can distinguish between contracted English and uncontracted Spanish with no difficulty. . .but this presumes one thing: That the Braille reader is a native English speaker. As our world, and our schools, become more diverse in population, this presumption is no longer as valid. Second language learners, including Braille readers, are still subject to the schools' foreign language requirements. Any additional assistance the transcriber can provide would always be welcome. I believe we need to begin taking second--and yes, in this instance--third & subsequent--language learners into account when we consider the needs of the Braille reading population.

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