Katharine E. Burns, Ph.D.

Welcome! 

My work in Applied Linguistics and Second Language Acquisition takes an interdisciplinary approach to applied sociolinguistics. I do qualitative research on the ideological underpinnings of language use—in particular, exploring how power dynamics affect language learning. My areas of research include: language ideologies, L2 learner identity formation, language policy & planning, bilingualism/multilingualism, heritage language learning, and L2 learners as emergent bilinguals. I am a faculty member in our department's Ph.D. program in Applied Linguistics and Second Language Acquisition, and I teach undergraduate courses in Applied Multilingual Studies and Hispanic Studies. 

Education

M.A. and Ph.D, University of Arizona, Second Language Acquisition and Teaching (SLAT)

M.A., Spanish Language and Literature, Marquette University

Publications

Ulysse, G.M., & Burns, K.E. (2021). French and Kreyòl in multilingual Haiti: Insights on the relationship between language attitudes, language policy, and literacy from Haitian Gonâviens. Critical Inquiry in Language Studies. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15427587.2021.1974300 

Maa, J., Burns, K. E. (2021). A tale of two language ideologies: Discursive co‐construction of L2 learner identity in Japanese CMC interactions. Foreign Language Annals, 54 (1), 207–232. https://doi.org/10.1111/flan.12514

Burns, K.E. (2020). Beyond the idealized native speaker in L2 Spanish contexts: Standard language ideology, authenticity, and consequences for learner identity construction. In B. Dupuy & K. Michelson (Eds.), Pathways to paradigm change: Critical examinations of prevailing discourses and ideologies in second language education (pp. 32-52). Cengage. 

Burns, K. E. (2020, August). TESOL and emergent bilingualism. Three Rivers TESOL Newsletter, 30 (3). https://tinyurl.com/y5e5g5sv

Burns, K.E. (2018). Marginalization of local varieties in the L2 classroom: The case of

U.S. Spanish. L2 Journal, 10(1), 20-38. https://doi.org/10.5070/L210135863

Burns, K.E., & Waugh, L.R. (2018). Mixed messages in the SHL classroom: Insights from

CDA of textbooks and instructor focus group discussions. Heritage Language Journal, 15(1), 1-24. https://doi.org/10.46538/hlj/15.1

Al Masaeed, K., Waugh, L.R., & Burns, K.E. (2018). The development of interlanguage

pragmatics in L2 Arabic: The production of apology strategies. System, 74, 98-108. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2018.03.001

Research Interests

Bilingualism and multilingualism

Language variation

Language ideologies

Language and identity

(Critical) Discourse analysis

Heritage and community languages

Critical applied linguistics

Graduate Student Advising and Doctoral Committees

Advisees

Qidu Fu (Ph.D. in ALSLA), Fall 2022-present.

Joy Maa (Ph.D. in ALSLA), “Computer-mediated communication in study abroad: Second language acquisition of Japanese speech style.” Dissertation co-director with Naoko Taguchi. Defended March 11, 2024.

Doctoral Committees

Ding Wang-Bramlett (Ph.D. in ALSLA, ABD).

Devon Renfroe (Ph.D. in ALSLA, In Progress). Dissertation directors: Rémi Adam van Compernolle and Uju Anya. 2023-present.

Bianca Brown (Ph.D. in ASLA, ABD). Dissertation director: Khaled Al Masaeed. 2023-Present.

Rossina Soyan (Ph.D. in ASLA, ABD). Dissertation director: Keiko Koda. 2022-Present.

Ding Wang-Bramlett (Ph.D. in ASLA, ABD). Dissertation director: Rémi Adam van Compernolle. 2021-Present.

Dominique Murdock (Ph.D. in SLA, now ALSLA), “Investigating identity awareness in university-level multilinguals: An emphasis on defining investment-based approaches, measurements, and applications.” Dissertation director: Uju Anya. Defended September 1, 2023.

Valentino Rahming (Ph.D. in SLA), "Las historias de Baha-blantes: Investigating investment of intermediate learners of Spanish at a tertiary institution in the Bahamas: A critically conscious approach." Dissertation director: Uju Anya. Defended April 28, 2023.

Joseph Schaefer (Ph.D. in SLA), “Director decisions & dialect: Language policy, ideology, and addressing dialectal variation in L2 Arabic undergraduate programs.” Dissertation director: Khaled Al Masaeed. Defended July 29, 2022.

Nuria Ballesteros Soria (Ph.D. in SLA), “Promoting oral interactional repertoires through dynamic strategic interaction scenario tasks.” Dissertation director: Rémi Adam van Compernolle. Defended May 3, 2022.

Courses Taught

Graduate Seminars

Second Language Acquisition: Theories and Research

Language Policy & Planning [Developed]

Language and Identity [Developed]

Bilingualism [Developed]

Graduate Research Seminar, Second Language Acquisition 

Undergraduate Courses

82-280/76-289: Bilingual and Bicultural Experiences in the United States [Developed]

82-283: Language Diversity and Cultural Identity

82-345: Using Spanish in Social Context [Developed]

82-342: Spain: Language and Culture

82-141/142: Elementary Spanish I / Elementary Spanish II

82-241: Intermediate Spanish I

76-100: Reading and Writing in an Academic Contexts

University and Professional Service

Faculty Senator representing the Department of Modern Languages, 2022-2024 and 2024-2026

American Association of Applied Linguistics (AAAL) Committee on Online Education and Outreach, Webinar Subcommittee Co-chair.

Fulbright Committee Member: 2018, 2019, 2020--Undergraduate Research Office/Fellowships and Scholarships Office at CMU