Education
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M.A. Candidate in TESOL (May 2017 - present)
University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma​
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B.A. in Linguistics (August 2014 - May 2017)
University of Oklahoma​, Norman, Oklahoma
Research Experience
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Research Assistant to Dr. Mark Norris (May 2017 - Current)
Department of Modern Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics​
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Roland Lehr Phi Beta Kappa Award for Distinguished Undergraduate Research
Campfire Verses and Vampire Curses: Metathesis as a Phonological Device​
Language Learning Biography
English is my first language. The languages that I ‘know’ are, Spanish, Japanese, and Kiowa; all three of which were learned in a formal classroom setting. I learned Spanish in high school before taking it again in college, and took Spanish and Japanese as part of my degree requirements. I took Kiowa for ‘personal enrichment.’ The languages where I am most ‘me,’ are Spanish, because I’ve studied it the longest, and Kiowa, because it’s my native language.
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My motivation for language learning comes from growing up in a predominately Mexican community and wanting to speak with my friends in their language. Regarding learning, the formal classroom setting is what I am familiar with. I tried self-study with Japanese, but I didn’t know where to begin and it quickly petered out as most self-reference books are not well-designed for beginners, in my opinion. Having a teacher guide me in my learning was beneficial, because I wanted to have my errors corrected and explained.
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A motivating learning experience was with Kiowa, because I learned more about my culture in the process. During my learning, I was able to converse a little with one of my elders, and teach my mom some phrases she didn’t know.
A severely demotivating experience was with my beginning Japanese class, which was taught by a professor who was rigid and mean. She used a lot of drills, and gave very little help when I talked to her during her office hours. At the end of the semester, she told the class not to expect to learn much more if we continued because the language was so difficult.
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My most influential language teacher was my third Spanish professor, Ashwini Ganeshan. This was partially because she was a Spanish linguist. I was able to pick her brain as I began learning more about linguistics and Spanish. She gave me advice on how to learn multiple languages (she speaks seven), and gave me extra resources when I asked for help improving my reading comprehension.
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Learning multiple languages has given me a stronger appreciation of the cultures that are tied to the language. Since I never had the opportunity to learn my own language until recently, I think it’s very important to provide better/easier access to language learning. I also think teacher-student relationships are key in formal learning settings because they can either hinder or help the student in their language learning.
What does it mean to 'know' a language?
What does it mean when people say they 'know' a language?
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Does it mean you understand the language as well as your first? Does it mean you are conversationally fluent? Or does it mean you know a handful of phrases such as, 'Where is the bathroom?'
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Depending on who you ask, this answer can vary widely. The answer can even change for the individual over the course of time. Before I studied linguistics, I took this question at face value. I assumed 'knowing' was in reference to fluency (a tricky topic in itself). However, during my undergraduate studies in linguistics, I learned a lot of things about a lot of languages. I can definitively say I 'know' things about Spanish, Japanese, and several other languages. However, there are very few that I could confidently use to navigate around with if I found myself in the language's home country.
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For the sake of clarity and simplicity, I define 'knowing' a language as having studied the language actively (formally or through self-study) for a period of six months (roughly one U.S. semester) or longer.