Teaching Approach

Teaching centers on connecting students with real-world applications of their learning. When students discover how academic concepts relate to their daily lives, they experience transformative moments of understanding. These connections make teaching rewarding. Using multimedia and current events helps students relate coursework to their experiences, facilitating lasting comprehension and retention. Their enthusiasm grows as they make these discoveries independently, often leading them to seek out more learning opportunities in my classes. Classrooms should foster exploration and critical thinking. When content connects meaningfully to students' lives and aspirations, engagement flows naturally. I create these connections by incorporating interactive activities and real-world examples. 

Motivation & Cultural Competency in Language Education 

Technology Integration & Modern Teaching Tools 

Modern education demands the thoughtful and strategic integration of technological tools to create enriched learning experiences that resonate with today's digital-native students. Interactive presentation and collaboration platforms such as Prezi, Canva, Padlet, and Nearpod have revolutionized classroom engagement by offering dynamic ways for students to interact with course material and demonstrate their understanding. These tools transform traditional lectures into interactive experiences where students can actively participate, share ideas, and receive immediate feedback. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has also emerged as an invaluable educational resource, offering capabilities for developing writing prompts, structuring comprehensive outlines, and enhancing students' grasp of complex concepts through adaptive learning pathways. The implementation of digital media extends beyond content delivery, creating opportunities for meaningful peer connections, collaborative learning exercises, and the cultivation of a strong classroom community. These technological resources, when properly integrated, foster an environment where students can engage with course material more deeply while developing essential digital literacy skills that will serve them throughout their academic and professional careers. 

Clear guidelines for AI use in education are essential for maintaining academic integrity. Students must properly credit AI when it generates substantial original content like images, complete written pieces, or creative works. However, when AI creates work without meaningful student engagement—such as writing entire essays or creating complete project components—students must acknowledge these AI contributions and understand how this affects their overall engagement with course materials and analytical skills, as well as the consequences for their grade and academic standing. Basic AI assistance such as grammar checking, spell-checking, or minor editorial suggestions doesn't require attribution. These distinctions create clear boundaries around AI usage while recognizing its value as a supplementary learning tool. Through such guidelines, we can promote responsible AI integration that enhances—rather than undermines—educational objectives and academic honesty. 

AI tools democratize academic support by providing widespread access to writing assistance. However, clear boundaries around their use remain crucial. We must preserve assignment value and learning objectives. Recognizing AI's evolving role in academics is of utmost importance as it can help students develop their critical thinking and writing skills, but we must refrain from becoming overly reliant on automated assistance. The ultimate goal is to leverage AI's educational benefits while keeping students actively engaged in their intellectual growth.

Building Student Relationships & Adaptive Teaching 

Regular feedback collection and implementation is fundamental to ensuring course content and teaching methods remain effective and responsive to student needs. Through experience working with neurodiverse students and those with learning disabilities, I've developed flexible teaching strategies that adapt to different learning styles while maintaining academic rigor.

Creating authentic connections with students while preserving professional boundaries is essential for an optimal learning environment, particularly as a young professor working with students close in age. This delicate balance requires thoughtful relationship-building while upholding clear academic standards. When this dynamic is successfully navigated, it creates a classroom atmosphere where students feel comfortable participating while respecting instructional authority. Students become more engaged in their learning, actively participating in discussions and showing genuine interest in course material.

The key is to be approachable and supportive while maintaining professional boundaries - like an accessible mentor who clearly remains in an educational role. This balanced approach allows for effective classroom management and consistent achievement of learning objectives while accommodating diverse student needs and learning preferences. Through regular feedback and adaptive teaching methods, we create an environment where students feel supported yet challenged to grow academically.

Lesson Plans and Class Activities

Las preposiciones de lugar con actividad de Quizlet (SPAN 101)

This interactive lecture focused on teaching Spanish prepositions of location through a gamified approach using Quizlet's team mode feature. Students were randomly assigned to teams where they had to collaborate to identify correct prepositions in various spatial contexts. The team-based format encouraged active participation and peer learning, as students needed to discuss and defend their answers with teammates before submitting their final responses. The competitive element of the Quizlet team game created an engaging atmosphere while reinforcing vocabulary retention and proper usage of spatial prepositions. Students particularly benefited from the collaborative aspect, as it provided opportunities for natural language practice through peer discussion and debate about correct answers.

¡Preséntense! (SPAN 101)

This presentation and accompanying activities are usually done during the first week of the Elementary Spanish class. The students are given the information necessary to learn how to present themselves and others, and through the activity, they can practice these skills. As you may note, the activity sheet has gone through some modifications to cater to the students needs. 

Guest Lecture: Identidades/Labels y el tercer espacio/third space (Spanish Heritage class)

This unit was prepared during my Heritage Teaching class back in 2021. It was featured in one of the Spanish Heritage classes at Texas Tech University, where I lead the discussion with the students about creating our own third space in class and redefining what it means to have an identity that does not fit in the mainstream understanding. Through a poem by Puerto Rican writer Fortunato Vizcarrondo titled "¿Y tu agüela a ónde ejtá?", students can question about what it means to create your own identity, no matter what society may think about. The poem questions the lineage of a hypothetical subject who hides their grandmother because she is black and the subject is ashamed of it. The unit is supposed to be taught during several class sessions, but can be modified to be taught as a single lecture. 

Guest Lecture: Re-leyendo a Inca Garcilaso de la Vega en su contexto (SPAN 334), Duke University

March 20th, 2025

This lecture explored Inca Garcilaso de la Vega through the lens of cultural theory, examining how concepts of heterogeneity, acculturation, and transculturation manifest in his work. Drawing from Mazzotti's "Mestizo Dreams," the discussion analyzed how Garcilaso's writings demonstrate both transcultural processes and advocacy for cultural heterogeneity, situating his work within its historical and cultural context. Class PowerPoint and whiteboard notes of the students discussions.

Syllabi

Undergraduate Course

Introduction to Spanish American Literature and Culture (SPAN 334), Duke University

This syllabus, originally created by Prof. Richard Rosa, has been enhanced to better support student learning. I have updated all material links to improve accessibility and added complete citations for all readings. By incorporating proper citation formats throughout the syllabus, I aim to model the academic writing standards expected in student essays. This approach reinforces the importance of academic integrity and proper attribution while providing students with practical examples of correct citation practices. 

Graduate Course Syllabus Proposal

From Slavery to Freedom: Questions of Belonging and Black Subjectivity in Cuban and Puerto Rican Literature in the Late 19th and Early 20th Century 

This syllabus explores the literary representations of Black identity, freedom, and belonging in Cuban and Puerto Rican literature during a pivotal period of social transformation. Currently under development, this material is being refined as a potential course offering for my academic job market applications. 

Undergraduate Course Syllabus Proposal

Visualizing Race: Representations of Race in Early Modern Iberian Empires

This syllabus proposal outlines a course examining visual and textual representations of race across the Spanish and Portuguese empires during the early modern period. Currently under development, this material is being refined for potential submission as a special topics course in Spanish for either Spring 2026 or Fall 2026. 

Rubrics

The following rubrics were created for SPANISH 334: Introduction to Spanish American Literature and Culture at Duke University. These rubrics guide students on writing expectations in Spanish. As a required course for Spanish majors and minors, SPANISH 334 serves as a stepping-stone for students to develop their writing and reading skills while broadening their understanding of Hispanic history, culture, and literature.