Pedagogical Research

¡Sí se puede!

In addition to Peninsular literature, Geoffrion-Vinci also investigates language acquisition in heritage speakers of Spanish.  Her 1998 article “Chicano Spanish: The Problem of the Underdeveloped ‘Code’ in Bilingual Repertoires” (Modern Language Journal 82.4 (1998)), co-authored with Stanford University Professor Guadalupe Valdés, was the result of ongoing investigations in this field.  Her textbook, ¡Sí se puede! Un curso transicional para hispanoparlantes nativos [Yes You Can!  An Transitional Course for Native Speakers of Spanish] (Boston: Cengage,  2008), co-authored with Professor María Carreira (State University of California, Long Beach) is based on this early research and on many years teaching Spanish for Heritage Learners. In the area of language pedagogy, Geoffrion-Vinci has participated in several projects aimed at enriching the classroom language-learning experience through technology.  She has developed interactive computer programs for Spanish courses at beginning, intermediate and advanced levels using iMovie, Facebook, ComicLife, PowerPoint, and Skype.  She is one of the primary architects of the Lafayette World Languages e-Portfolio Initiative, currently underway in the FLL Department. She represented Lafayette as a plenary speaker at the 2009 2nd annual Patriot League Academic Conference at Bucknell University where she presented the department’s cutting edge research in e-portfolios.

Dept. of Foreign Languages & Literatures, Lafayette College