installation des lacunes

English translation: weaknesses taking root / weaknesses becoming established

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)

French term or phrase:	installation des lacunes
English translation:	weaknesses taking root / weaknesses becoming established
Entered by:	B D Finch

09:56 Jun 1, 2017

French to English translations [PRO]
Science - Education / Pedagogy

French term or phrase: installation des lacunes

Payez attention aux lacunes qui s'installent, malgre aux capacite de cet eleve

Vertrad KudoZ activity Questions: 2140 (6 open) (123 without valid answers) (104 closed without grading) Answers: 38 Romania
Local time: 08:56

weaknesses taking root / weaknesses becoming established

Explanation:
I think "lacunes" in this context are probably weaknesses rather than gaps. However, you really haven't given sufficient context to be sure.

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Note added at 3 hrs (2017-06-01 13:16:52 GMT)
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Another possibility: weaknesses becoming entrenched.

https://goo.gl/A4AfVJ
"To tackle the entrenched weaknesses in pupils’ writing a systematic programme of teaching sentence construction, in each year group, has been imposed. This is having a demonstrable impact on pupils’ writing currently. So too is the focus on presentation. Pupils, and teachers, are being required to raise their game. The difference between the work in books prior to March, and now, is stark. Discussion with pupils about their work reveals that they do understand what is being taught but they are severely hindered by their very low skill base."

Note that the lack of a comma after "pupil's writing" makes the above read as though it was the pupils who were writing "a systematic programme of teaching sentence construction"!

wvde.state.wv.us/abe/tcher_handbook_pdf/section5.pdf
Education and Workforce Development, Building 6, Room 230, 1900 Kanawha .... It is important to determine students' strengths and weaknesses at the outset to help them .

Selected response from:

B D Finch
France
Local time: 07:56

Grading comment

Thanks!
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer

Summary of answers provided

3 +3

gaps that are starting to appear

Tony M

3 +2

weaknesses taking root / weaknesses becoming established

B D Finch

Summary of reference entries provided

Définition de lacune

mchd

lacune - vs - retard

Nikki Scott-Despaigne

Discussion entries: 7

Answers

47 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): +2

weaknesses taking root / weaknesses becoming established

B D Finch
France
Local time: 07:56
Works in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 121

Grading comment

Thanks!

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)

agree

katsy: A definite yes to taking root/becoming established. I was wondering if one could say errors/mistakes. (consistently conjugating wrong for ex.)// Difficult for "lacunes" I agree, esp.without context, except to agree with you that 'gaps' doesn't seem right

10 mins

-> Thanks katsy. I think "lacunes" are more likely to be general types of gap in intellectual processing, rather than specific errors, and more likely to be called weaknesses than gaps.

agree

Tony M: 'weakness' is a jolly good synonym for the 'knowlegde shortfall' Marie-Christine is talking about.

12 mins

-> Thanks Tony

neutral

Daryo: yes for "taking root", but not convinced about "weaknesses"

1 hr

-> It would be useful to have some more info about the "lacunes".

neutral

mchd: weakness ne semble pas adapté ici : http://dictionary.cambridge.org/fr/dictionnaire/anglais/weak...

3 hrs

-> Meaning B2 in your ref. "Weakness" is a term frequently used in educational contexts. It has the advantage of implicitly allowing for possible strengthening to occur.

neutral

Nikki Scott-Despaigne: My experience of the use of "lacunes" (as a parent and as a teacher) is that they area gaps in knowledge. Weakness implies a poor performance and/or mediocre ability, not lack of knowledge, altho' that may be the outcome.

15 hrs

-> I'm sure you're right, but how can a gap in knowledge become established as permanent in the way the Asker describes?

18 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): +3

lacunes qui s'installent gaps that are starting to appear

Explanation:
It's important not to lose the reflexive nature of this verb here!

And the use of the simple present tense suggests to me 'are appearing', which might legitimately be extended to 'are starting to appear' — depending, of course, on your wider context!

Without knowing quite what these 'lacunes' involve, I can't think of anything better than 'gaps', but with your knowledge of the context, you might be able to do better; are these development gaps, gaps in knowledge, etc.?
s'installer is rather stronger than merely 'appear', but difficult to know quite the best way to take it here; perhaps something like 'are starting to take root' — again, your wider context should help you find the right verb.

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Note added at 1 jour21 heures (2017-06-03 07:10:53 GMT)
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I think Nikki's 'setting in' is a better suggestion for the verb.

Tony M
France
Local time: 07:56
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in category: 38

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)

agree

Chakib Roula: I definitely agree with starting to appear.

2 mins

-> شكرا Chakib! Most kind of you :-)

neutral

B D Finch: Difficult as the Asker has failed to supply adequate context and they may be blind-spots rather than gaps.

7 mins

-> Thanks, B! :-) Indeed, yes.

neutral

mchd: les lacunes, ce sont les connaissances insuffisantes, il est vrai que ce texte est écrit dans un français bien loin d'être académique !

11 mins

-> En effet ! Les enseignants écrivent parfois comme les médecins ;-) Yes, 'insufficient knowledge' = 'gaps in knowledge' or as B says, 'weaknesses'; like "I missed doing algebra 'cos I was sick" / Can you help us with « s'installer », which is key here?

agree

Nikki Scott-Despaigne: In education, "lacunes" are gaps in one's knowledge. I think it wld be best to include "knowledge" in the answer. "Setting in" might be another choice for what is happening.

15 hrs

-> Thx! I like 'setting in'; I'm wary of using just 'knowledge', since insufficient context: it could equally be (e.g.) developmental (age?)

agree

David Hayes

1 day 20 hrs

-> Thanks, David!

neutral

GILLES MEUNIER: c'est plutôt lourd comme formule....

2 days 22 hrs

-> Not reall in EN, it's quite idiomatic and the sort of jargon we use in education.

Reference comments

4 hrs

Reference: Définition de lacune

Reference information:
Un outil fort utile !
La définition est évidente, pas besoin de contexte supplémentaire !

lacune

nom féminin

(latin lacuna, fossé)

Définitions
Synonymes
Difficultés

Insuffisance dans ses connaissances : Avoir des lacunes en mathématiques.

mchd
France
Native speaker of: French

16 hrs peer agreement (net): +2

Reference: lacune - vs - retard

Reference information:
sbssa.spip.ac-rouen.fr/IMG/docx/idees_d_appreciations_ien-2.docx

See "combler les lacunes".

http://croisez-les-fils.over-blog.com/article-6366892.html

Just a note :
Having "lacunes" means you are likely to get behind and have "retard".
You can also get behind and create "lacunes.
Getting behind is about "retard". It can sometimes be caught up.
A "retard" is "rattrapé", or not.
A "lacune" is "comblé", or not.

Nikki Scott-Despaigne
Specializes in field
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in category: 148

Note to reference poster

Asker: Very helpful, thanks!

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installation des lacunes

English translation: weaknesses taking root / weaknesses becoming established

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English translation: weaknesses taking root / weaknesses becoming established

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