| Meet a Colleague
Research in language learning and internationalization Nicole Keng is a new lecturer in English at the Language Centre. She joined the University of Vaasa in August after having worked two years in Coventry University, UK and four years at Xi'an Jiaotong Liverpool University (XJTLU) in China. She is a teacher, but also a researcher. Nicole Keng did her PhD in English language learning at University of York, UK. At the time she was 23 and the youngest PhD Candidate of the university. She also did her MA degree in England, but grew up in Taiwan. – My recent research is about vocabulary learning. I did a study with Finnish students of how they learn vocabulary. I found that Finnish students are shy and learn by reading a lot. They don’t really know how to apply the language. This is the reason why they are not so confident in the real situations where they have to use the language, she explains. She recently gave a presentation about vocabulary acquisition in Higher Education Settings by Chinese, French and Finnish Learners. In this comparative study she evaluated the knowledge of English vocabulary of Greek or Latin origin. According to the results, Finnish students knew better the English words which were not Greek or Latin origin, but still outperformed both French and Chinese speakers on words with Greek or Latin origin. – I have so much teaching that it is difficult to find time for research, but I don’t want to give up. Right now I’m developing a new research project on digital learning through internationalization. How we could do digital learning by creating links with other universities and by developing virtual platforms. Keng seems very happy in her new home town Vaasa. In her free time she likes to explore the little coffee shops – Othello in Palosaari and café Ylikiva at the city centre. She goes to the yoga class and loves knitting with her colleagues. – I was lucky to get an apartment near work. This is the first time in my life I just enjoy being at home, she says.
DECEMBER 2015
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