Self-assessment based on textometric tools in teaching of translation

In the context of teaching translation courses, different French translations of the same English original text (President Barack Obama's 2009 inaugural address) are compared. The translations can be divided into those produced by professional translators, those produced by automated tools, and translation learners. Textometric tools allow us to explore the similarities and differences between translations. Using paragraph alignment makes it possible to build a comparison network from which the textometric calculations produce explicit results. The vertical analysis of translations highlights the portions of the original text which translators proceeded in the same way. Using this same approach, we can also, conversely, locate the fragments that leaded to different translations and explore the range of translations. The digital resources compiled during the process of comparison are invaluable for assessing the quality of translation work produced by learners. They also provide the latter with an effective self-assessment tool.