Teaching

"In learning, you will teach; and in teaching, you will learn." -Phil Collins

My teaching journey took root shortly after I graduated from Goucher College in Baltimore, MD. Fresh from an eye-opening semester abroad in Salamanca, Spain, I was inspired to share the diversity of Hispanic cultures. I found myself teaching a diverse array of students in the Baltimore area—from young children in pre-elementary settings to adults preparing for travel. Each class was an opportunity to connect across cultures and ages.

The experience of tutoring Spanish speakers in English, coupled with my personal journey as an American-born child of Filipino immigrants, steered me towards pursuing an  M.S. in Education at The University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education. It was there, during my graduate studies, that I discovered my passion for linguistics while teaching ESL courses focused on conversational skills and grammar in Philadelphia.

This newfound passion led me to the Linguistics Department at UPenn. A year-long fieldwork course with Prof. Bill Labov proved to be a transformative experience and inspired me to pursue a PhD in Linguistics at the CUNY Graduate Center. At the Graduate Center, I seized the opportunity to expand my teaching repertoire within higher education at LaGuardia Community College in Long Island City, Queens. There, I not only taught introductory linguistics courses but also leveraged my master’s in education to teach academic ESL writing and reading. Additionally, I earned certification in the CUNY Assessment Test for Writing (CATW), preparing students to excel in the exam.

Since Fall 2022, I have been a part of the English Department at Hunter College, CUNY, where I initially taught  an introductory course on sociolinguistics. This writing-intensive course explores how language functions within society, examining factors like class, gender, ethnicity, race, and age. Guiding students as they collect their own data and apply qualitative and quantitative research methods has been a highlight of this role. In 2023, I further expanded my teaching portfolio to include courses such as rhetoric/composition theory at Hunter College and First-Year Writing at NJIT. These writing-focused courses allowed me to extend my pedagogical approach.

Spring 2024 marked the launch of a particularly special course, ‘New York City English,’ which I developed based on my doctoral dissertation research. This course explores the distinctive features of the NYCE dialect and the diversity of its speakers, and challenges common myths about linguistic variation across boroughs. Through this course, students engage in a hands-on research project, gaining practical experience in data collection, analysis, and presentation. This course not only enriches students’ understanding of sociolinguistics but also serves as a culmination of my academic and teaching experiences.

Highlights:

      • I developed and taught the course  “New York City English” related to my own dissertation research. 
      • At LaGCC, I began teaching a ‘Zero Textbook Cost course’, which reduces prohibitive textbook costs. Instead of publisher’s textbooks, I incorporated a mix of Open Educational Resources textbooks, links to scholarly and professional websites, and resources from CUNY library databases. 
      • I am certified to teach online, mainly using the Blackboard Learn application. I incorporate technology into classroom learning through quizzes, exams, reflection papers, videos, etc. This came in particularly handy when all educational institutions went fully remote during the COVID-19 global health pandemic.
      • I am adept at teaching within multiple modalities such as online, hybrid, synchronous, or in-person.
      • I believe in sensitivity to and understanding of the diverse academic, socioeconomic, cultural, ethnic background and disabilities of college students, particularly in urban environments with diverse populations.

Courses Taught:

At Hunter College:

  • Engl 33382: New York City English (Spring 2024, Spring 2025)
  • Engl 120: Expository Writing  (Spring 2024, Fall 2024)
  • ENGL 330 / Anthr 325: Sociolinguistic (Fall 2022, Spring 2023, Fall 2023 (Syllabus), Spring 2025)
  • ENGL 301: Composition Theory and Practice (Fall 2023)

At LaGuardia Community College:

  • ELL 101: Introduction to Language (Fall 2009, Spring 2010, Fall 2010, Winter 2011, Spring 2011, Summer 2011, Fall 2011, Winter 2012, Spring 2012, Summer 2012, Fall 2012, Winter 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014, Winter 2015, Spring 2016, Spring 2020; total of 28 sections)
  • ELN 101 Introduction to Bilingualism (Winter 2013)
  • ESR 099: Basic Writing for Non-native Speakers (Summer 2012)
  • ESA 099: Composition and Reading (Winter 2012, Winter 2013)

At New Jersey Institute of Technology:

  • ENGL 101: Intro to Academic Writing (Fall, 2023)