Hispanic Linguistics, Second Language Acquisition, Sociolinguistics
Within the broader field of Applied Linguistics, I primarily research how learners of Spanish develop sociolinguistic competence (ability to produce speech appropriate to the social situation) by examining the perception and production of features of the language that vary (two or more ways to say the same thing). My interest lies in adult second language learners of Spanish and also heritage language learners of Spanish. I also investigate second language pedagogy practices that lead to increased sociolinguistic competence and best practices for teaching culturally and linguistically diverse learners.