Bio


Agripino is as Advanced Lecturer in Portuguese at the Stanford Language Center. He earned his Ph.D. in Linguistics from the University of New Mexico with a research focus on “Subject Expression in Brazilian Portuguese.” Over the years, Agripino has made significant contributions to the field of linguistics and Portuguese language studies, with publications that include the "Modern Brazilian Portuguese Grammar" (co-authored) and several research articles in notable journals.

In addition to his academic accomplishments, Agripino has a rich history of teaching, having been a faculty member at the Middlebury Language Schools and an ESL instructor at the University of New Mexico. He has also held administrative roles, including co-chairing the Portuguese Special Interest Group (SIG) and coordinating pronunciation courses at the Middlebury Portuguese Language School.

Agripino's expertise is further highlighted by his role as a rater and tester of Oral Proficiency Interviews (OPIs) and as a rater of Written Proficiency Tests (WPTs), both in Portuguese.

His professional affiliations include the American Organization of Teachers of Portuguese (AOTP), American Portuguese Studies Association (APSA), Linguistic Society of America (LSA), and the American Council of Teachers of Foreign Languages (ACTFL), among others.

Academic Appointments


Additional Program Affiliations


  • Center for Latin American Studies

Professional Education


  • Ph.D., University of New Mexico, Linguistics (2012)
  • MA, University of New Mexico, Portuguese Literature and Cultural Studies (2004)

Projects


  • When Positive Transfer is not enough in 3rd Language Acquisition, Stanford University

    Analysis of several Oral Proficiency Interviews (OPIs) of intermediate-low to intermediate-high learners of Brazilian Portuguese (BP) as a third language focused on the marking of gender agreement in noun phrases in BP. The results have shown that the learners' proficiency level in BP is a better predictor of accurate gender marking than their experience with Spanish, whether as a second language or a native language. These findings shed new light on how the teaching of third languages should be conducted and require a restructuring of how positive transfer factors into the learner's interlanguage.

    Location

    Chicago, IL

    For More Information:

2023-24 Courses


All Publications


  • Modern Brazilian Portuguese Grammar: A Practical Guide Whitlam, J., Silveira, A. S. Routledge. 2022
  • Modern Brazilian Portuguese Grammar: Workbook Whitlam, J., Silveira, A. S. 9781032244426. 2022