Our Advanced Researchers are our group of in-service teachers, committed to exploring literacies research and practice in their own classrooms. Advanced Researchers include three kinds of teachers:
Meet our current Advanced Researchers (links to their Academia profiles in their pictures, when possible):
- Novice Researchers who completed their BAs and wish to continue as LSLP researchers.
- Master's students (both from ML2 or past Novice Researchers) pursuing their research on literacies.
- MA graduates who wish to continue as LSLP researchers after graduation.
- LSLP researchers pursuing their doctoral degrees.
Meet our current Advanced Researchers (links to their Academia profiles in their pictures, when possible):
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ELIZABETH AGUDELO, B.A. (Effy)
Effy holds an Honors B.A. in English-Spanish Education at Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, Medellín. She joined LSLP in the second semester of 2016. A music enthusiast and performer, she is a member of #TeamCaL, specifically interested in the intersection between music fandom and English literacies. |
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ZEIDY Y. AGUDELO-LOPERA, M.A. (Zey)
Zeidy finished her M.A. in Learning and Teaching Processes in Second Languages at Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana (2020) and an English teacher at Rodrigo Correa Palacio Public School. She joined LSLP in 2018 2018. Her current research is exploring how high school students in public schools use multimodal texts within affinity spaces to enhance their communicative competence. As a public school teacher, Zeidy is part of our research expansion into exploring how to implement the idea of literacies in second languages in our local schools. Zeidy will also continue her training as a higher education instructor as Dr. Berry's Teaching Assistant in his Research Seminar I course at ML2. |
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SEBASTIÁN CASTAÑO, B.A. (Tavarez, the Kommisar)
Sebastián holds a B.A. in English-Spanish Education from Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, Medellín. He joined LSLP in 2013 to participating in research on gaming literacies in Medellín. Now that he's part of the XRT, we will soon decide his next steps for research and collaboration, but we expect him to continue helping with other inquiries related to gaming. At present, he is a language instructor at Centro Colombo Americano. Additional research interests of his include professional research in Languages, specially English and Digital Communities In addition to his interests in languages, he has a particular interest in Physics and astronomy. He is also a very active gamer, very keen on Russian culture as part of his gaming experience (that somehow explains his moniker, Tavarez) |
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EDISON F. CASTRILLÓN-ÁNGEL, M.A. (Edison)
Edison finished his M.A. in Learning and Teaching Processes in Second Languages at Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana (2020) and has been a researcher at LSLP since 2018. He is the founder and director of Tour Languages, a language institute outside of Medellín, as well as an instructor at Universidad Católica Luis Amigó. His current research is focused on the notion of Critical Digital Literacies and how to use podcasting from a critical perspective to develop counter-narratives when working with preservice teachers. Edison is already a very promising scholar in the field of CDL, a field that is very much under development in Colombia. In addition to his ongoing duties at Luis Amigó, Edison will join Dr. Berry's as his Teaching Assistant in the Research Seminar I course at ML2 in 2020. |
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KADIR CARDONA-PABÓN, M.Ed. (Kadir)
Kadir is currently finishing his M.Ed. at Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana. He's also an English instructor at a public school in Rionegro, Antioquia, with experience teaching English in higher education. Kadir's current research explores the use of Reciprocal Teaching for digital reading comprehension. |
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MARGARITA DÍAZ-GAMARRA, M.A. (Margarita)
Margarita recently defended her master's thesis and will soon graduate from her MA in Learning and Teaching Processes in Second Languages at UPB. She also holds a BA in English-French Education from Universidad de Pamplona and a Graduate Specialization inE ELT from UPB-Bucaramanga. She has taught English in private schools and institutes. At present she is a teacher at Escuela Normal Superior Cristo Rey, a public school in Barrancabermeja, Santander. Her current research explores the potential of journaling as a tool to introduce students to critical literacy. Her current work will be very useful as we continue expanding our critical literacies research at LSLP. In addition, Margarita is a very special case: She is the first student who is not one of Dr. Berry's advisees! In fact, it was Gloria who mentored her during her thesis and was later invited to join the #LSLPLegion. We look forward to this new trend where our more advanced researchers can invite their own graduate students to work with us! |
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J. DAVID DÍEZ-TRUJILLO, M.A. Candidate (The Witcher)
JDavid is currently pursuing his M.A. in Learning and Teaching Processes in Second Languages at UPB and joined LSLP in early 2020. He is currently an English teacher at Ferrini School in Medellín. He is very interested in studying critical literacies as a means to transform the English curriculum and the use of materials from a stronger critical perspective. He will exploring how to do this as part of his thesis research. In addition, J. David will also be part of #TeamLaV, helping us with the work on gamification that we are currently plotting. |
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--eliana d., M.A. Candidate (Nana)
--eliana d. is currently pursuing her M.A. in Learning and Teaching Processes in Second Languages at UPB and joined LSLP in early 2020. She is currently a public school teacher in Medellín. --eliana d.'s research, which she will develop with Diego for their MA Thesis, will explore how to develop curricula that are inclusive toward LGBTQIA+ students (and teachers), this from a critical literacy perspective. At LSLP, we find Eli's research interests to be very relevant for our work, as we also strive to help schools and teachers engage with literacies from a stronger social justice stance where teachers and teacher educators can see themselves as advocates, allies, and coconspirators. |
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CARLOS ANDRÉS GAVIRIA, B.A. (Charles K-Pop)
Charlie holds an Honors B.A in English-Spanish Education at Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana. He joined LSLP at the beginning of February, 2017 as a member of #TeamLaV. He is currently exploring issues of gaming and identity as part of our gaming project. In addition, he is a K-Pop and Anime aficionado, topics where he is also doing inquiries at LSLP in issues related to digital literacies in second languages. |
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MARJORIE GIRALDO-TONG, M.A. (Marjo)
Marjorie (née Maryori Giraldo) holds a BSc in International Business and a Technological Diploma as a Bilingual Secretary, a BA in English- Spanish Education from Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, and a Master's in Teaching Spanish as a Foreign Language from Universidad de Barcelona. She's currently a Spanish instructor at the Open University of Hong Kong. Previous academic experiences include designing thematic contents for virtual programs at View Corporation and serving as Deputy Assistant for the Middle School Principal at The Columbus School in Medellín. She joined LSLP in 2014 and helped with Phase Two team of the Urban Literacies study and the 21st Century Literacies in P-16 project. During her time in Hong Kong, Marjorie will continue working on publications from Phase Two and possibly collecting more data for future research projects. We also expect to learn about her MA thesis to see how we can weave it with our #Team21inP20 research. |
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TATIANA GÓMEZ-RAMÍREZ, B.A. Candidate (TatyGoRa)
Taty is currently finishing her B.A. in Education at Universidad Nacional Abierta a Distancia (UNAD) and has had a wealth of experience as an English teacher and teacher trainer, including previous work at the British Council. She is also the founder and director at ELT Think Tank, a local initiative to promote new alternatives for professional development for languages teachers in our region. Taty's research interests intend to mix digital literacies and autonomous learning, along with her ongoing concerns for teacher training. Taty will be working on the one hand with #TeamLaV, using her own background and experiences as a gamer-mom and her interest in digital literacies. On the other hand, Taty will also work with #Team21inP20 to expand the existing partnership with ELT Think Tank. |
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GLORIA GUTIÉRREZ-ARISMENDY, M.A. (Glory Dory)
Gloria holds an MA in Learning and Teaching Processes in Second Languages from UPB-Medellín, in addition to degrees in English Teaching and Acting. Her current research (which expands on her thesis) continues to explore the aesthetic dimensions of critical literacy through the use of TheatreSport as an alternative for language learning. She is at present the Research Coordinator at The New School here in Medellín. In addition to her current interests, Gloria is now teaching (along with Mónica) the research courses at the MA in Learning and Teaching Processes in Second Languages and is actively involved in thesis direction. Besides her teaching and research duties, Gloria is also an accomplished actress, performing regularly on stage in different plays in Medellín. |
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JULIÁN LONDOÑO-MAZO, B.A. (Flich)
Julián completed his B.A in English-Spanish Education at Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana (2020) and joined LSLP at the end of 2017, becoming a member of #TeamLaV shortly after. He is at present an English teacher at Colegio Benedictinos. Julian's relationship with gaming is very special: He is a competitive gamer, with plenty of experiences (and fans, as we learned in August 2018, hence his nickname!) in Colombia and abroad. Julián has contributed this wealth of experiences to the new avenues our research has take in the new phase of inquiry and will be helping us in the immediate future as we look at the notion of gamification and how to use it as part of teachers' classroom practices. |
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MARIA CAMILA MEJÍA-VÉLEZ, M.A. (Cami)
Maria Camila holds a B.A in English-Spanish Education (Licenciatura Inglés-Español) from Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana in Medellín, Colombia and an MA in TESOL from LaTrobe University in Melbourne, Australia. She joined LSLP in 2013 to work in Phase One of the Urban Literacies study. Cami's research agenda focuses on issues of early literacy in the Colombian context. Specifically, she would like to explore the impact of children’s first experiences with literature in teaching practices. She has also become more interested in exploring the use of multimodality as a learning strategy in second language classrooms. |
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TYRONE STEVEN ORREGO, M.A. (Tairo Mendoza)
Tyrone finished his B.A. in English-Spanish Education at Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, Medellín in 2018 and is at present pursuing his MA in Education at UPB. He joined LSLP in September, 2014. He has collaborated in the Gaming Literacies project since then, now involved in writing articles. He has a particular interest in Videogames and language learning. So far he speaks Spanish, English and French, but as member of the project, he is would like to inquire about how people develop their own ways of communication in virtual worlds, especially in English and Digital Communities. |
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NATALIA RAMÍREZ, M.A. Candidate (Nati)
Natalia Ramírez finished her B.A in English-Spanish Education at Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana in Medellín and is now pursuing her M.A. in Learning and Teaching Processes in Second Languages. She joined LSLP in 2013 to work on Phases One and Two of our Urban Litreacies studies (and we expect to assist in the consolidating phase that will begin in 2020). Natalia’s current research interests (which will be part of her MA thesis) involve the study of critical literacy theory and practice to explore how preservice education curricula both espouse overt and covert principles and how to infuse a stronger critical literacies perspective in said curriculum. When Natalia is not working on her MA or teaching Spanish, she is devoted to raising Sofia, her baby daughter! |
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J. SEBASTIÁN RAMÍREZ, B.A. (Zebs)
Zebs joined LSLP in August, 2016. He finsihed his BA in English-Spanish Education at Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, Medellín in 2018, At present, Zebs is in a transition stage, where he will continue helping in Phase Two of our gaming literacies study while looking at other avenues of exploration around gaming and visual literacies, topics that he initially developed in his senior thesis. |
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ANDRÉS FELIPE RODRÍGUEZ-MARCIALES, M.A., Ph.D. Student (Andrés)
Andrés is at present pursuing his PhD in Education at Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana. He joined LSLP at the end of 2019 as part of his dissertation work with Dr. Mora. Andrés will share duties as part of #Team21inP20 and #TeamLaV. His dissertation research will focus on the use of gamification as a learning strategy to develop bilingual competence in the social studies class. He will draw form our notion o Language-as-Victory to develop his own conceptual framework. |
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NATALIA ANDREA SALAZAR, M.A. (Nati)
Natalia holds an M.A. in Learning and Teaching Processes in Second Languages from UPB-Medellín, program she completed under a scholarship for public school teachers from the Antioquia Secretary of Education. She was a teacher trainer with the National Ministry of Education. At present, she is in Australia taking language courses and doing some language teaching. She is currently studying the use of multimodal literacy frameworks, Edmodo in particular, as the basis for a renewed vision of English teaching practices in initial teacher education at the Normal school level. Natalia's research will help solidify the research on the use of multimodal design for communicative competence that LSLP has been developing for the past two years, as well as expand our research inquiries in teacher education contexts. |
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TATIANA SALAZAR PATIÑO, M.A. Candidate (Tati)
Tatiana holds a B.A in English-Spanish Education from UPB-Medellín and is pursuing her M.A. in Education at Universidad de Medellín. She is an English teacher at San José de las Vegas school. She joined LSLP in 2014, and was initially involved in our urban literacies study. At present, she continues her inquiries on the links between multimodality and assessment. |
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ANDRÉS E. TOBÓN-GALLEGO, M.A. (Andrés)
Andrés recently completed his thesis defense for his M.A. in Learning and Teaching Processes in Second Languages. He is an English instructor at Universidad Nacional. His research intersects issues of critical literacy and multimodality, with a special interest in implementing the notion of Multimodal Critical Consciousness in elementary school classrooms. |
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DIEGO ZAPATA-PESCADOR, M.A. Candidate (Diego)
Diego is currently finishing his M.A. in Learning and Teaching Processes in Second Languages at UPB and joined LSLP in early 2020. He is currently a public school teacher in Medellín. Diego's research, which he will develop with --eliana d. for their MA Thesis, will explore how to develop curricula that are inclusive toward LGBTQIA+ students (and teachers), this from a critical literacy perspective. |