E-learning translation turns the text, audio and video in a course into another language. Localisation goes further and adapts the examples, images, units, legal references and names so the course reads as if it was written for people in that country. To run one course well in several languages, plan for translation before you build the English version, have each language reviewed by people in that country, and decide early how your LMS will give learners the right version and how you will keep every version up to date.
This guide is for UK learning teams with staff, franchisees or partners abroad.
What is the difference between translation and localisation?
Translation changes the words. Localisation changes whatever else would make the course feel foreign to the people taking it.
Typical localisation changes:
- Examples and scenarios. A complaint scenario set in a UK high street branch may need a different setting or product to ring true in Madrid or Warsaw.
- Imagery. Photos show clothing, vehicles, plug sockets, signage and PPE, and staff notice quickly when these are wrong for their country.
- Units and formats. 08/10/2026 is 8 October to a UK reader and 10 August to an American one, and many European languages write one and a half as 1,5. Currency, distances and phone numbers change too.
- Legal references. A reference to the HSE or UK GDPR may mean nothing elsewhere. The local equivalent has to come from your legal or compliance lead in that country, because a translator can tell you what the words mean but not which rules apply.
- Names and tone. Character names should sound local. French and German both have a formal and an informal “you”, so decide which one you use before translation starts.
Localisation matters even without translation: a UK course going to colleagues in the United States still needs its spelling and references checked.
How to plan e-learning for translation before you build
Translation costs least when it is planned before the English course is built.
Keep text out of images
Words baked into an image, diagram or screenshot have to be rebuilt by hand for every language. Keep text as live text, laid over images where needed, and keep the layered source files for every graphic. If staff use software in their own language, plan fresh screenshots in that interface.
Allow room for text expansion
Translations from English usually come out longer, and short phrases grow the most. The W3C’s guidance on text size in translation gives the example of “views”, which becomes visualizzazioni in Italian, three times the length. Buttons, tabs, labels and drag-and-drop items are where this breaks layouts, so design screens where text can wrap and boxes can grow.
Plan mirrored layouts for right-to-left languages
Arabic, Hebrew, Persian and Urdu are written from right to left. In these versions the whole screen mirrors: text aligns right, navigation swaps sides, progress bars run the other way and direction arrows flip. The W3C explains how web content handles right-to-left text and layout. Logos and most photos stay as they are, and English product names inside an Arabic sentence can display in the wrong order if the course is not built for it, so someone who reads the language should check every screen.
Choose fonts that support every script
Many brand fonts only cover the Latin alphabet, and some miss accented letters used in Polish or Turkish. Check every target language before the build and choose a matching font for any script your brand font lacks, such as Arabic, Cyrillic or Thai. Missing characters show up as empty boxes.
Write the English with translation in mind
Use short sentences, one term for one thing, and no idioms that only work in English. Start a glossary on day one listing your key terms and the ones that stay in English, such as product names.
Voiceover or subtitles for translated e-learning?
Decide this early, because audio and video drive much of the cost and how easily you can update the course later.
| Option | Works well for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Subtitles and on-screen text | Talking-head video, content that changes often | Learners reading subtitles and on-screen text at the same time; longer translations need re-timing |
| Professional voiceover | Scenario modules, audiences who learn better by listening | The script must be final before recording; every change means booking the voice artist again |
| Synthetic (AI) voice | Content that changes often, many languages | Pronunciation of names, acronyms and product terms; quality varies between languages |
Animations timed to the English narration will need re-syncing, because translated audio runs to a different length. Every language also needs its own captions or transcript.
How to translate a SCORM course and deliver it through your LMS
Start from the original project file in the authoring tool if you can. Many authoring tools export the course text for translation and import it back, keeping the layout and interactions intact. Translating inside a published SCORM zip is possible but fiddly.
There are three common ways to deliver it:
- One package per language. Simplest to build and test, but reports are split by language and a learner who switches language starts again.
- One multi-language package. The learner picks a language at launch, and the LMS holds one course and one completion record. Any change in any language means republishing the whole package.
- Language versions managed by the LMS. Some platforms attach several language versions to one course and show each learner the one that matches their profile.
Decide how learners get the right version: from their profile language (often fed from your HR system or single sign-on), by country, or by letting them choose. Translate the LMS itself too, including menus, enrolment emails and certificates. If you are choosing a platform too, ask how it handles language versions; our LMS page covers what the Capytech LMS includes.
Test every language in the LMS before launch, as you would the English package. Our guide to turning PowerPoint and PDFs into SCORM covers the checks. Each version should also declare its language in the code, as WCAG 2.1 success criterion 3.1.1 asks, so screen readers pronounce the text correctly.
Who should review translated e-learning?
A translated course needs two kinds of review: a qualified linguist checks accuracy and grammar, then a subject matter expert in each country checks the terminology, procedures and examples.
In-country review is where timelines usually slip, because reviewers are busy local managers. These steps help:
- Agree the glossary and tone with each country before translation starts.
- Ask reviewers to work in the built course, so they see each phrase in context and spot layout problems.
- Brief them to check accuracy, terminology and local fit, and to leave the overall design alone.
- Name one reviewer per language, agree their time with their line manager and set a deadline.
Our post on quality assurance for e-learning projects covers review and testing in more detail.
How to keep language versions in sync when the English changes
This is where costs creep. A one-line change to the English becomes a change in every language: translate, review, re-record any audio, republish and test. Small updates add up, and versions drift apart when some languages miss a change or local teams edit their own copies.
To keep control:
- Finish and sign off the English before translation starts.
- Keep every language in one master project where your tool allows it, and show a version number in each course.
- Use translation memory, so only the sentences that changed are translated again.
- Batch minor changes into planned releases, and fast-track only safety and legal changes.
- Keep a change log that shows which languages have each update and when they went live.
- Agree what local teams may change, so their edits are not lost at the next update.
Can you use machine translation or AI to translate e-learning?
Yes, as a first draft, as long as a qualified person reviews it. Machine translation and AI tools produce fluent text in seconds, and that fluency is the risk: a wrong safety step or a reversed compliance rule can read perfectly well. Short on-screen labels such as “Close” or “Record” are easy to mistranslate because the tool cannot see what they do, and the same term can come out differently on different screens.
If you use it, give the tool your glossary where it accepts one, and have a linguist edit the output before in-country review. Check where the text is sent and stored, and do not paste confidential material into a public AI tool without your organisation’s approval. Decide by risk: safety, legal and customer-facing content needs full human translation and review.
What drives the cost of e-learning translation?
The main factors are:
- Languages. How many, and whether any use right-to-left or non-Latin scripts.
- Word count. All of it, including feedback, quiz options, alt text, transcripts and audio scripts.
- Audio and video. Subtitles, voiceover or a synthetic voice, and how much re-syncing is needed.
- Depth of localisation. Rewritten scenarios, new imagery or reshoots.
- How the English was built. Text inside images and missing source files add rework.
- Review and testing. The number of review rounds, and testing each language in your LMS.
- Updates. Keeping every language current is an ongoing cost.
How Capytech builds multilingual e-learning
We build custom e-learning with translated versions that are produced and updated together, so no country is left on an old version. Capytech has delivered training in English, Arabic, French and many other languages, and our courses support right-to-left layouts such as Arabic and Hebrew. Every module is built to WCAG 2.1 AA and published as SCORM 1.2, SCORM 2004 or xAPI for your LMS.
If you need modules built quickly from your own documents, FastTrack delivers them on a fixed monthly fee, with no upfront build cost and unlimited updates.
Frequently asked questions
They produce versions of a course for other languages and countries. Translation covers the on-screen text, audio and video. Localisation adapts examples, images, units, names and legal references so the course suits each country.
Often, yes, but it is harder. The text is spread across many files inside the package, so editing it directly is fiddly and easy to break. If the course needs a refresh anyway, rebuilding it in each language can be the better option.
Separate packages are simpler to build and test. A multi-language package gives you one course and one set of completions in the LMS, but every change means republishing the whole package. Check what your LMS supports before you decide.
It depends on the word count, the amount of audio and video, and the number of languages. In-country review is often the longest stage, so name reviewers and agree deadlines before translation starts.
Only as a first draft. Compliance content needs accurate terminology and the right local legal references, so have a linguist edit the machine output and a subject matter expert in each country review it.
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