How does language affect thought itself? How does language impact our understanding of the world around us?
Explore these questions through an online workshop designed for everyone who is interested in gaining new perspectives on language acquisition and cognition. The goal of this workshop is to get participants thinking critically about the intersections between language, thought and enhancing intercultural awareness. The workshop will be led by Dr. Brianne Orr-Álvarez, assistant professor of teaching at the Department of French, Hispanic and Italian Studies.
In this workshop, participants will have the opportunity to reflect on how language, thought and culture shape their daily experiences, as well as defining the relationship between language and culture and how both, together, lead towards intercultural awareness. They will also have the opportunity to share experiences in which they have engaged in intercultural/language exchanges and whether they have gained a new cultural awareness from them.
About the presenter:
Dr. Brianne Orr-Álvarez teaches all levels of the undergraduate Spanish language curriculum at FHIS, in addition to literature and culture courses that grapple with different aspects of the Hispanic context, including politics, gender, and resistance in Latin America.
Dr. Orr-Álvarez is the Director of the FHIS Learning Centre, a peer-to-peer teaching and learning service that offers students the opportunity to work closely with skilled student tutors on core aspects of language fluency and proficiency that are outlined by international guidelines for linguistic and cultural knowledge assessment and achievement (ACTFL and CEFR).
In addition to her presence at FHIS, Dr. Orr-Álvarez has taught in the “Authority and Resistance” stream of the Arts One Program, a theme-based interdisciplinary writing-intensive program for first year students. She is also one of the 2019 Jump Start Faculty Fellows whose learning community centered on the overarching theme of “Language and Power.”
Event brought to you by:
UBC Tandem Language Learning Program
UBC Department of French, Hispanic and Italian Studies
UBC Global Lounge
