PhD in Translation and Language Sciences (Universitat Pompeu Fabra), MA in Teaching Spanish as a Foreign Language (Universitat de Barcelona, Universitat Pompeu Fabra), PGCE in Modern Foreign Languages (UNiversity of Cumbria), BA in Social Anthropology (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid)
Teaching
I teach the following modules:
- First Year Grammar and Prose
- Second Year Developing Language Skills
- Second Year Prose
- Final Year Oral
- Final Year Developing Writing Skills
Research
My doctoral research revolved around the teaching and assessment of critical literacy among university students of Spanish as a Foreign Language. My research interests include critical literacy, visual literacy, the learning of writing, as well as assessment and peer-assessment processes among language learners.
I am a member of ELE-UK (UK Association for the the Teaching of Spanish in Higher and Adult Education) and am an active member of the ELE-UK Special Interest Group on decolonising the teaching of Spanish. I am also a member of Inter_Ecodal research group, which explores feedback literacy and seeks to involve learners and language teachers in feedback practices in order to increase their degree of autonomy and self-regulation. I have worked as part of Ecodal research group (Pompeu Fabra University), whose main aim was to develop a teaching and assessment model in order to improve multilingual discursive competence.
Publications
- Holguín Vaca, D. & Castaño Arques, A. (2024). "Esta imagen me hizo sentir, pero también pensar": Literacidad visual crítica e interculturalidad en el aula de español. Íkala Revista de Lenguaje y Cultura, 29(2): 1-23
- Holguín Vaca, D., Castaño Arques, A., & García Balsas, M. (2024). "Literacidad visual crítica en el aula de español: implicaciones para su fomento y autoevaluación", Revista Nebrija de Lingüística Aplicada a la Enseñanza de Lenguas, 18(36), 32–62. doi: 10.26378/rnlael1836567
- Castaño Arques, A. and López Ferrero, C. (2023) “Peer-Feedback of an Occluded Genre in the Spanish Language Classroom: A Case Study,” Assessing Writing, 57. doi: 10.1016/j.asw.2023.100756.
- Castaño Arques, A. (2020). Literacidad crítica en ELE: una investigación sobre la lectura entre estudiantes sinohablantes. PhD Thesis. Universitat Pompeu Fabra. Available at: http://hdl.handle.net/10803/668779
Conferences
- ELEUK Conference (June 2023), Leeds. Presented paper Critical visual literacy in the Spanish-as-an-additional-language classroom: A multidimensional model towards its promotion and assessment.
- 32nd ASELE Conference (August-September 2022), Verona. Presented paper Formative peer feedback when writing occluded genres in the Spanish as a Foreign Language: Feedback in the classroom.
- Interuniversity Conference on the Teaching of Language and Literature, at Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona (March). Presented paper Identifying critical capacity among learners of Spanish.
- Conference on Teaching Spanish as a Foreign Language, Bangkok, Faculty of Humanities, Chulalungkorn University, Thailand (January 2018). Presented paper Critical practices in the reading class – An experience with Chinese learners.
- “Criticality in Education (Research): Definitions, Discourses and Controversies”, international conference at University of Helsinki, Finland (August 2017). Presented paper Developing criticality in the Spanish language class: A teaching unit to assess reading.
Professional affiliations
- Fellowship from Advance HE
- Member of ELE-UK
- DELE Examiner