Language lessons of COVID-19 and linguistic disaster preparedness

Li Yuming

Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Language Resources and Research Center for Standardized Use of Chinese Language, Beijing Language and Culture University

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Editor’s note: This is a translated and shortened version of an article first published in Chinese as “战疫语言服务团的故事” in the CPPCC Newspaper on March 9, 2020. Translated by Dr Zhang Jie, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, and Dr Li Jia, Yunnan University, Kunming.

In this article, Professor Li Yuming not only recounts the rapid linguistic response of Chinese applied sociolinguists to the COVID-19 epidemic but also outlines a program for “emergency linguistics,” a research specialisation devoted to language and communication aspects of disaster preparedness.

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The outbreak of COVID-19 has required the whole of China to stand together against the epidemic with the mobilisation of national resources to assist Hubei, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak. One of the difficulties in mobilising trans-provincial resources is the language barrier between doctors and patients in clinical communication. To solve the urgent needs of language communication between doctors from other parts of China and local patients, the medical assistance team of Qilu Hospital of Shandong University compiled The Guidebook of Wuhan Dialect for Medical Assistance Teams, Audio Materials of Wuhan Dialect for Medical Assistance Teams, and The Handbook of Doctor-Patient Communication within 48 hours after the team arrived in Wuhan. This is an instance of the provision of language services as part of the emergency response.

The example demonstrates the necessity for linguists to participate in fighting COVID-19. As linguists, we should not let medical personnel be distracted by also having to deal with language and communication barriers.

On February 10, 2020, Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Language Resources of BLCU and the National Institute of Chinese Language Matters and Social Development of Wuhan University, together with more than a dozen research institutes and enterprises, initiated a program to join the fight against COVID-19 by offering language services.

Under the guidance of the Department of Language Information Management of the Chinese Ministry of Education, the Handbook of Hubei Dialects for Medical Assistance Teams was compiled to facilitate communication between medical assistance teams and patients in Hubei province. The Handbook includes 76 sentences and 156 words which are commonly used in diagnosis and treatment along with their equivalents in the dialects of Wuhan, Xiangyang, Yichang, Huangshi, Jingzhou, E’zhou, Xiaogan, Huanggang, and Xianning.

Although team members lived in different localities, they performed the tasks with tacit cooperation and managed to play to their respective strengths. With their devotion for three days and three nights, seven types of language service products were made available on WeChat, a dedicated webpage, converging media, video clips, Tik Tok, a 24/7 telephone hotline, and instant translation software.

The Handbook of Hubei Dialects for Medical Assistance Teams was of significant help to front-line medical personnel. Not only was it suitable for different groups of people in various scenarios, but also bolstered the confidence of medical workers. It was very well received. Almost 30 WeChat official accounts related to linguistics re-posted the handbook, setting a precedent for WeChat official accounts in fighting against the epidemic. So far, the total clicks of the handbook on WeChat have amounted to nearly 30,000; for the recording, around 340,000; and for the online version, more than 100,000. Furthermore, nearly 6,000 copies of pocketbooks published by the Commercial Press were distributed free of charge directly to the medical assistance teams in Hubei.

Apart from compiling the handbook of Hubei dialects, language services later expanded to foreign languages targeting international students and foreign residents who began to return and come to China with the effective prevention and control of the epidemic and the resumption of work and production. To better inform these foreigners of the updated information about the coronavirus and to protect their safety, Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Language Resources of BLCU, as a core member of the program, developed A Guide to the Prevention and Control of COVID-19 Epidemic in Foreign Languages promptly and efficiently on February 27.

The Guide includes 75 sentences commonly used in daily precautions, entry precautions, medical treatment, and personal protection. So far, the Guide has been written in more than 20 languages including Japanese, Korean, Persian, Italian, Arabic, English, German, Russian, and French, with versions including video clips, multimedia cards, and software system.

Since the launch of the Guide, not only has it received attention and support from the Ministry of Education, the State Language Commission, the National Center for Disease Control, the Foreign Affairs Office of the People’s Government of Beijing Municipality, the Chinese embassies and consulates abroad, but has also been welcomed by overseas Chinese students.

As the novel coronavirus has been spreading in other parts of the world, the Guide has now also been shared by foreign communities over the Internet and won positive feedback from some Chinese diplomatic missions.

Through such practices, China’s anti-epidemic progress and experience can be disseminated abroad, serving as humanitarian assistance for the international community in the prevention and control of the virus.

The Guide will continue to be updated based on the latest development of the epidemic at home and abroad, with more languages being added.

Another project we are working on is named Plain Chinese. Plain Chinese was successfully developed and is currently being tested. The project is tailored to international students and foreigners in China in the hope that they could be better informed about COVID-19, even if their Chinese language proficiency is limited. It is also helpful to those Chinese people who lack proficiency in Putonghua.

During and after any public emergency, mental health and psychological well-being is vital. Therapeutic interventions constitute another area for the provision of language services, and therefore constitute another duty for linguists to take on. Psychologists and linguists are expected to work hand in hand to deliver strategies for “linguistic comforting” during and after the COVID-19 disaster.

It is too early to draw conclusions as the disaster is yet to end, but I do wish to offer my reflections based on our provision of language services over the past 20 days.

First, being a scholar should not confine us to writing papers and imparting knowledge, but must include having a sense of social responsibility, the awareness and capability to solve practical problems. In recent decades, a group of Chinese sociolinguists have been calling people’s attention to language in social life (yuyan shenghuo).

[Translators’ note: ‘语言生活 yuyan shenghuo’ is defined as the various and varied activities of using, learning and studying spoken and written language, language knowledge, and language technology in Li, Yuming (2016). Yuyan Fuwu Yu Yuyan Chanye [Language services and the language services industry]. East Journal of Translation (4), 4-8.]

This group has been advocating for attention to language-related problems in social development. Collectively, these linguists are known as the school of language in social life (语言生活派 yuyan shenghuo pai).

The reason why the language services program was able to rally so many volunteers, at a single call, is that these scholars actually were spurred to action by their convictions, i.e. to put their academic strength into the practice of the great cause of the motherland. Apart from the mission for research and education, scientific and educational studies also carry a social responsibility. In the fight against the epidemic, we should not simply care about self-protection, but instead, contribute ideas and exert efforts for the containment of the virus.

Second, information technology needs to be given full play in the prevention and control of epidemics. The current epidemic is characterized by immobility of people and commodities, but free flow of information.

Without information technology, it would have been far more difficult to fight this disaster. As a matter of fact, members of the language services program have not yet met each other in person, but have done an outstanding job with the help of online group chat.

Moreover, the development and promotion of language service products effectively utilized the previously established corpus, the modern language technology developed, and the inter-disciplinary talents cultivated during the construction of language resources. The progress made highlights the significance of China’s achievements in terms of the Internet and modern information technology.

Third, a plan on language services in emergency response needs to be included in the prevention and control of public emergencies. It is a critical test for the national governance system and management competence to effectively handle public emergencies. In recent years, the prevention and control of public emergencies in China have made remarkable progress, with many statutes and contingency plans enacted, such as the Emergency Response Law of the People’s Republic of China, the National Plan on Emergency Response, and the Regulation on Response for Public Health Emergencies. Meanwhile, particular units specializing in public emergency management and services have also been established. However, linguistic contingency plans are still absent from those solutions. Through the current public health emergency, importance should be attached to filling this gap as soon as possible.

It is proposed that the plan on language services in emergency responses shall include at least three aspects, namely:

First, we shall formulate the National Mechanism and Plan on Language Services in Public Emergency Response, or simply revise the current statutes, regulations and plans, such as the Emergency Response Law of the People’s Republic of China, the National Plan on Emergency Response, by adding relevant content.

The details of language services in public emergency response, however, remain to be investigated. The following might be worthy of consideration: the selection of channels through which the information is released, e.g. telephone, radio, television, network media (Weibo and WeChat included); the languages that are supposed to be used in information dissemination, including Putonghua, plain Chinese, Chinese dialects (varieties), ethnic languages, signed languages, and foreign languages; possible communication barriers and concrete solutions; application of various modern language technologies; mechanisms and plans on language services in emergency response at different levels; and, other language-related content in various aspects of emergency response, such as prevention and preparedness, monitoring and early warning, emergency response and rescue, post-emergency recovery and reconstruction.

Second, a standing language service institution for public emergencies will need to be set up. During ordinary times, only a few in-service staff or researchers will be needed while others hold their original posts. When an emergency arises, they can be urgently summoned to offer various language services.

Third, greater importance will need to be attached to language-related studies in public emergency response. Language services in emergency response is actually a problem of language application within a particular sphere and for a specific purpose. It is a special type of language situation. We should draw on the practical experience of such language services at home and abroad and take advantage of the academic achievements made in applied linguistics, to actively conduct research in this domain and establish the discipline of “emergency linguistics.” In doing so, linguists are able to contribute more to public emergency response. What is more, research centers devoted to language access in emergency response shall be founded, which are aimed at dealing with different types of public emergencies such as natural disasters, accidents, public health incidents, social security incidents, and to cultivate specialized talents by integrating with the existing departments of public emergency management and services.