Melissa A Bowles

Associate Professor of Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese
Director of Second Language Acquisition and Teacher Education
Affiliated Faculty of Latin American and Caribbean Studies
Associate Professor of Linguistics

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Contact Information

Specializations / Research Interest(s)

classroom second language acquisition, heritage language acquisition, language testing and assessment,

Education

  • Georgetown University, Ph.D. (with distinction)
  • Georgetown University, M.S.
  • University of Virginia, B.A. (with highest distinction)

Distinctions / Awards

  • Helen Corley Petit Scholar (AY2011-2012), College of Liberal Arts & Sciences

Publications

Books

  • Bowles, Melissa A. The think-aloud controversy in language acquisition research. Routledge, 2010.

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Book Contributions

  • Bowles, Melissa A., and Silvina A. Montrul. "Instructed L2 acquisition of Differential Object Marking in Spanish." Georgetown University Roundtable on Linguistics. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 2009.
  • Montrul, Silvina, and Melissa A. Bowles. "Negative evidence in instructed heritage language acquisition: A preliminary study of Differential Object Marking ." Proceedings of the 2007 Second Language Research Forum. Somerville, MA: Cascadilla Proceedings Project, 2008. 252-262.
  • Bowles, Melissa A., and Silvina Montrul. "The role of explicit instruction in the L2 acquisition of the a-personal." Proceedings of the 2006 Hispanic Linguistics Symposium . Somerville, MA: Cascadilla Press, 2008. 25-35.
  • Leow, Ronald P., and Melissa A. Bowles. "Attention and awareness in SLA." Mind and context in adult second language acquisition: Methods, theory, and practice . Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 2005. 179-203.

Journal Articles

  • Bowles, Melissa A. "Exploring the role of modality: L2-heritage learner interactions in the Spanish language classroom. ." The Heritage Language Journal 8.1 (2011): 30-65.
  • "Measuring implicit and explicit linguistic knowledge: What can heritage language learners contribute? ." Studies in Second Language Acquisition 33 (2011): 247-271.
  • Bowles, Melissa A. "Concurrent verbal reports in second language research. ." Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 30 (2010): 111-127.
  • Montrul, Silvina, and Melissa A. Bowles. "Is grammar instruction beneficial for heritage language learners: Dative case marking in Spanish. ." The Heritage Language Journal 7.1 (2010): 47-73.
  • Montrul, Silvina, and Melissa A. Bowles. "Back to basics: Incomplete knowledge of Differential Object Marking in Spanish heritage speakers. ." Bilingualism: Language and Cognition 12.3 (2009): 363-383.
  • Bowles, Melissa A. "Task type and reactivity of verbal reports in SLA: A first look at an L2 task other than reading. ." Studies in Second Language Acquisition 30.3 (2008): 359-387.
  • Bowles, Melissa A., and Ronald P. Leow. "Reactivity and type of verbal report in SLA research methodology: Expanding the scope of investigation. ." Studies in Second Language Acquisition 27.3 (2005): 415-440.