At Penn State and Georgia Tech
I started my Ph.D. program in German Linguistics and Language Science at Penn State in fall 2012. Since then, I have had the privilege and pleasure to explore various facets of linguistics and, at the same time, engage with students both inside and outside of the classroom. If you are interested in my teaching experience at Penn State, please visit my teaching page for more information.
At Penn State, many additional learning and research opportunities opened for me. The German linguistics program is part of the Center for Language Science (CLS), an interdisciplinary group with a focus on language science and bilingualism. Among many other opportunities, such as a weekly speaker series in which local and invited scholars present and discuss their research, CLS-affiliated students have ample research opportunities abroad through the NSF-funded PIRE program. CLS graduate students also organize the annual young scholar speaker series, an opportunity for scholarly exchange and networking. I had the honor of co-organizing this key event in 2013/14, inviting Dr. Krista Byers-Heinlein to speak.
At Penn State, many additional learning and research opportunities opened for me. The German linguistics program is part of the Center for Language Science (CLS), an interdisciplinary group with a focus on language science and bilingualism. Among many other opportunities, such as a weekly speaker series in which local and invited scholars present and discuss their research, CLS-affiliated students have ample research opportunities abroad through the NSF-funded PIRE program. CLS graduate students also organize the annual young scholar speaker series, an opportunity for scholarly exchange and networking. I had the honor of co-organizing this key event in 2013/14, inviting Dr. Krista Byers-Heinlein to speak.
Penn State is also the first Bilingualism Matters (BM) chapter in the United States. This international organization originated at the University of Edinburgh, UK, under the leadership of Dr. Antonella Sorace. As a member of the BM steering committee since 2015, I wholeheartedly share the vision of BM: promoting bilingual education to parents, educators, and everyone interested. To put this mission into action, BM organizes many outreach events at schools, child care centers, libraries, festivals, etc., to inform people about the challenges and advantages of bilingualism. In the picture to the left, I am reading a story in English, German, and Korean to children in the Barnes & Noble Bilingual Reading Corner. Several Korean heritage language schools in Germany showed interest in bilingual education and invited me to talk about possible advantages of bilingualism.
After graduating from Penn State, I worked one year as a postdoctoral teaching fellow at Georgia Tech. Here I had the opportunity to develop and teach a new course which I titled "Introduction to German Linguistics." I enjoyed working with each student on their individual research project related to a Germanic linguistic phenomenon. In collaboration with other colleagues from German and Linguistics, the final project presentation was featured as a poster session at an event we organized, "Language and Technology Day."
Working at Georgia Tech gave my research a new spin. The focus on foreign language learning as asset for career development and global competency impacted not only my research interests but also my communication with students when discussing advantages of learning a second language and pursuing international experience via study abroad programs or interning at international companies. |