As the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese (AATSP) celebrated the 105th Annual Conference in Salamanca, Spain, this summer, two of World Language and Cultures’ Spanish faculty were there to present and celebrate the occasion.
Karin Hillstrom, assistant professor of German and Spanish, and Dr. Lisa Twomey, associate professor of Spanish, both went to Salamanca to contribute to AATSP’s mission of promoting “the study and teaching of the Spanish and Portuguese languages and their corresponding Hispanic, Luso-Brazilian, and other related literatures and cultures at all levels of education.”
This year’s conference theme was “New Horizons for Communication and Culture” and presentations varied from topics related to teaching language, culture, literature, and translation, to other subjects such as literary analysis or political issues in a given country.
Hillstrom and Twomey only learned they had both applied to go once their proposals were accepted. When they found out, Hillstrom said, “We were very excited to travel together, because we knew we were going to live a very enriching experience in a university city so rich in history and, at the same time, the cradle of Spanish. In addition to that experience, we were joined by two colleagues who retired from Concordia a few years ago. They joined us at our presentations to give us their support and to be there for us. It was amazing!”
Twomey added, “I always enjoy going to conferences (especially in beautiful places like Salamanca), and I get inspired by learning from experts across the world. But to be able to share that with a colleague, compare notes, and think about what we are doing at Concordia in the context of what other colleges are doing made the conference more meaningful and fun.”
This was Hillstrom’s first time attending the AASTP conference and her first time in Salamanca. She presented on strategies for teaching a translation class. She is also a certified healthcare interpreter and translator. She works to help students strengthen their Spanish abilities through several upper-level practical application courses. Hillstrom regularly teaches classes revolving around Spanish language skills for professionals, including Business Spanish, Introduction to Spanish Translation, and Spanish for Healthcare Professions, which will be offered Spring 2024. She will be attending the annual American Translators Association Annual Conference in October and believes that attending a conference with friends and colleagues is one of the best gifts a person can give to their academic career.
This was Twomey’s second AATSP conference. Because she teaches many different levels and topics related to Spanish at Concordia, she enjoyed the opportunities that allowed her to learn so much about all of them, ranging from literature and film to teaching beginners Spanish more effectively. She enjoys it, calling it a conference that “energizes and inspires me as an educator and scholar.” 
Twomey presented on how she uses Flipgrid to do virtual exchanges between her Spanish classes. She focused mostly on how her Spanish 111 and 112 students connect with English-language learners in Spain with the goal of developing both linguistic and cultural knowledge. While communicating effectively in the target language is an important component of this project, the development of intercultural competence via authentic interactions with people in a Spanish-speaking country has proven to be the greatest success. Twomey would like to continue her work with the Flipgrid exchange to analyze students’ progress in developing their intercultural sensitivity and communicative competence. She is also excited to attend the Hemingway Society’s international conference next summer with a paper on a parallel reading of one of Hemingway’s works and that of a Spanish author, Ignacio Aldecoa.
Twomey’s main takeaway from the conference was "that we are doing great things in our department at Concordia. Some of the presentations I attended showed me that we are being creative and innovative in our classrooms in ways that other Spanish programs in the country are just discovering. That felt good! We can always improve and learn, but we should be proud of our work.”
Written by Emma Skuza ’22, World Languages and Cultures administrative assistant