AI VERSUS HUMAN ENGLISH-VIETNAMESE TRANSLATION: A STUDY AT A PRIVATE UNIVERSITY

Authors

  • Bùi Kim Phượng Bình Dương University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
  • Nguyễn Minh Trang Bình Dương University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.46827/ejmts.v6i1.718

Keywords:

AI-assisted translation, human translation, neural machine translation, post-editing, novice translators

Abstract

The rapid progress in Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, particularly in Neural Machine Translation (NMT) systems, has significantly impacted translation practices across the world. The use of AI systems like ChatGPT and DeepL is becoming more popular, and young translators in translation programs in Vietnam are more likely to use these systems in their academic work. However, there is little research on the pedagogical implications of these systems. This research focused at examining the effectiveness of AI-assisted translation and human translation in English-Vietnamese language pair for 67 English major students at Binh Duong University. A mixed-methods design was employed, in which two translation tasks were assigned: independent human translation and AI-assisted translation followed by post-editing to discover the two research questions. An analytic rubric was used in assessing translation quality, and descriptive statistics and thematic analysis were employed in data analysis. The results show that AI-assisted translation is superficial in nature, as only semantic accuracy is fulfilled while terminology, cultural sensitivity and pragmatic ability are lacking. The AI tool scored on average Fair to Good, while human translation scored Very Good on all nine criteria. Novice translators over-relied on the AI tool and lacked the critical thinking required in the post-editing phase, although they recognized its importance. More than half also expressed the need for pedagogical support. The study indicates that the AI tool should be used as a supplement, not a substitute, in the pedagogical process and recommends that teaching AI literacy, critical review, fast engineering, and post-editing should be done along with human translation.

Author Biographies

  • Bùi Kim Phượng, Bình Dương University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

    Bùi Kim Phượng is a lecturer at the Informatics & Foreign Language Center, Binh Duong University (IFLC-BDU), Vietnam. She has been teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) at the tertiary education level for two years. She can be reached at phuongbinhduongbui@gmail.com.

  • Nguyễn Minh Trang, Bình Dương University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

    Nguyễn Minh Trang is a lecturer at the Faculty of Foreign Languages, Binh Duong University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. He has been teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) at the tertiary level for over 25 years. He has several publications in international journals. His research interests include academic listening, ELT issues, translation and interpretation studies. He can be reached at nguyenminhtrang@hotmail.com.

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Published

2026-06-26

Issue

Vol. 6 No. 1 (2026)

Section

Articles