Professor Martin Ward

Profile

I have been teaching at the University of Leeds since 2017, having also graduated from Leeds in 1999 with a BA in Chinese and Japanese Studies (first class honours). I gained my M.Ed (2003) and PhD (2006) in Asian Culture from Hiroshima University in Japan as a Monbusho Scholar. My Phd thesis (in Japanese) examines the work of CMS missionary J.R. Wolfe in Fujian Province in the 1860s and 70s, in particular exploring the somewhat political nature of his missionary work in the context of the unequal post-Tianjin Treaty China. A crucial aspect of the meeting of cultures and civilizations is the role of translation, and my research focus later moved to centre around translation studies and translation pedagogy.

Responsibilities

• Professor of Chinese and Japanese Translation
• AHC Faculty Academic Lead for Global Campus Experience
• University Lead for Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL)

Research interests

I am engaged in on-going scholarship into the teaching of Chinese and Japanese to English translation at higher education institutions. In 2020 I established the international East Asian Translation Pedagogy Advance (EATPA) network to bring together practitioners in the field of Chinese/Japanese/Korean translation pedagogy at universities around the world to stimulate pedagogical advances within the field.

I conduct scholarship on Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) to underpin the scaling up of COIL at the University of Leeds.

In addition to this, I also conduct research into the translation of Chinese political discourse and the translation of wartime Japanese military archives housed in China, regularly give presenting my work in these fields at international conferences.

Qualifications

• PGCAP
• Fellow Advance HE
• PhD (Asian Culture)
• M.Ed (Asian Culture)
• B.A. Chinese and Japanese Studies

Professional memberships

• Overseas Expert of the Translators Association of China (TAC)
• European Society for Translation Studies (EST)
• Advance HE
• JAITS (Japan Association for Interpreting and Translation Studies)
• East Asian Translation Pedagogy Advance (EATPA)

Student education

I have previously taught Japanese language and religion in Japan and China, and now mainly teach Chinese and Japanese to English translation at undergraduate and postgraduate (MA) level. I also supervise PhD students with research projects in the field of Chinese or Japanese to English translation. The focus of my pedagogic research has been the role of translation modules in strengthening students’ employability skills. This plays out in my teaching through the way I have been developing opportunities for students to engage in collaborative online international learning (COIL) into various areas of my teaching practice, providing students the opportunity to work collaboratively on translation projects embedded in modules at Leeds with their peers around the world, and develop key subject-specific, generic, and intercultural communication skills.

Recognising my achievements, I have been awarded:

Early Career Faculty Teaching Award in the Faculty of Arts, Humanities, and Cultures (2021)

University of Leeds Early Career Teaching Award in 2022

University of Leeds Sustained Excellence Teaching Award in 2024

I am the AHC Faculty Academic Lead for Global Campus Experience, working to further enhance the international student experience at Leeds and also embed COIL into student education across the Faculty.

I also lead the work on embedding COIL across the University of Leeds.

Research groups and institutes

• Japanese
• Chinese
• Translation
• East Asian Studies
• Centre for Translation and Interpreting Studies