This semester, Felipe Guedes M. Vieira joins the UGA community as a Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA) in the Department of Romance Languages. As he begins teaching Portuguese, he brings with him years of experience in language education and research in Brazil. Below, Felipe shares more about his journey to UGA.

I was always fascinated by languages and by the different ways people communicate and make sense of the world. Over time, this interest became much more than a personal passion: it became the path I chose for my education and my career. I grew up in a very small town called Denise, in Mato Grosso, Brazil, and, during my undergraduate studies, I moved to Porto Alegre, in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, where I earned my bachelor's degree in Portuguese and English from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS). There, I discovered that studying a language also means studying people, cultures, identities, and the ways we interact with one another. During my undergraduate studies, I had the opportunity to teach Portuguese and English in different contexts, including public schools, university extension programs, and classes for immigrant students. These experiences showed me how powerful the classroom can be as a space for connection and cultural exchange.

After graduating, I continued my academic journey as a master's student in Psycholinguistics at UFRGS. My research focuses on language learning, bilingualism, and oral fluency in Portuguese as an Additional Language. Through my research, I became particularly interested in understanding how people perceive language use and how different experiences and perspectives can shape the way we evaluate communication. 

Teaching has always been an important part of this journey. Every group of students has taught me something new about language and about myself as a teacher. I have learned that teaching a language is not simply about vocabulary and grammar; it is also about creating opportunities for students to see the world from a different perspective and to develop connections with people and cultures beyond their own.

Now, as a Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant at the University of Georgia, I have the opportunity to bring more Portuguese and Brazilian culture to the UGA community. I hope to share not only the language itself, but also the diversity of Brazil (its different regions, traditions, histories, music, literature, and ways of life). At the same time, I am excited to learn from my students and from the community I am now part of.