Elvis Coimbra Gomes
PhD in Linguistics
Teaching
Having grown up in Switzerland, and being the first in my family of Portuguese immigrants to have studied in higher education, I am especially attuned to the challenges students from national/ethnic minority groups can face. Academia is a strange world that requires one to adapt to an elitist culture, and learn its own specialized language. As such, I try as best as I can to:
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speak in an accessible language when explaining complex concepts
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maintain an interactive and supportive relationship with students
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present concrete examples students can relate to when explaining theories
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provide students with exercises where they can apply the learned methods
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provide well-explained, illustrative, numbered power point slides containing all used references
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encourage students to develop their critical thinking and communication skills
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provide criteria-based assessment grids containing constructive feedback that explicitly tell students how to improve
My goal is to forge a community of mutual learners that do not get intimidated by the power dynamics between students and lecturers, but actively engage with what they learn. All of this, while creating a welcoming and respectful atmosphere for disadvantaged social groups (e.g., women, LGBT+ people, ethnic/national minorities, and people with disabilities). Ever since my teacher training at the Haute École Pédagogique de Vaud – especially after attending a module on assessment strategies taught by Dr. Raphaël Pasquini – I've been interested in creating methods to assess students at the university level. I mostly follow the paradigm of "assessment for/as learning" by providing students formative assessments or self-assessments where they can regulate their learning process when acquiring (inter)disciplinary and transversal skills. Moreover, when teaching English language, I tailor my lessons according to students' needs by drawing from different approaches (task-based language teaching, content and language integrated learning, present-practice-produce, etc.). In order to get an idea of the kind of assessment grids that I promote, I can send you a PowerPoint document containing step-by-step instructions on how to create one. Just send me a mail with a request.
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Teaching Experience
A = Autumn semester S = Spring semester
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2023- English Language Teacher (B1-C2) at the Language Center, University of Lausanne.
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2024(S) MA – The Language of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, University of Lausanne.
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2024(S) BA – English Composition, University of Lausanne.
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2023(A) MA – Language & Health Communication, University of Lausanne.
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2023(A) BA – Introduction to Discourse Analysis, University of Lausanne.
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2023-24 BA – Practicing English Proficiency, University of Lausanne.
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2023-24 BA – Introduction to English Linguistics, University of Lausanne.
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2023(S) MA - Language & Sexuality, University of Lausanne.
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2023(S) BA – Introduction to English Linguistics, University of Lausanne.
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2023(S) BA – Introduction to Discourse Analysis, University of Neuchâtel.
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2022-23 English Language Teacher (B1-B2), Centre d'enseignement professionnel de Vevey.
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2021-22 English Language Teacher (A2-B1), École secondaire Montreux-Est.
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2021-22 BA – Introduction to English Linguistics, University of Lausanne.
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2021(A) BA – Introduction to Discourse Analysis, University of Lausanne.
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2020(S) BA – Health, Discourse and Communication, King's College London (Teaching assistant).
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2019(A) BA – Language and Health Communication, Queen Mary Uni of London (Teaching assistant).
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2015/17 Examiner at Swiss high school English (B2) graduation exams.
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2013-17 English Language Teacher (A1-A2), École de la Cressire.
Invited Guest Lectures / Workshops
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Coimbra-Gomes, E. (2024). Constructive Grading: Assessment Strategies for the English Department. University of Lausanne (Switzerland). 10 October.
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Coimbra-Gomes, E. (2023). Assessment Strategies for the English Department. University of Lausanne (Switzerland). 23 November.
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Coimbra-Gomes, E. (2022). Critical Discourse Analysis. Linguistic Research Methods. University of Lausanne (Switzerland). 2 December.
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Coimbra-Gomes, E. (2017). Introduction to Queer Linguistics and Its Application to Sexual Orientation OCD. Language & Gender. Venice International University (Italy). 3 April.
Coimbra-Gomes, E. (2017). Applying Corpus Linguistics to Analyze CMC Discourse: a Very Brief Introduction. The Sociolinguistics of Cyberspace. Venice International University (Italy). 3 April.
Coimbra-Gomes, E. (2016). Social Media and Corpus Linguistics in Health Communication: the case of Sexual Orientation Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Language and Social Media. University of Neuchâtel (Switzerland). 16 November.
Coimbra-Gomes, E. (2015). Online Identity Creation. Language and Social Media. University of Lausanne (Switzerland). 10 November.