Language Sciences is pleased to have supported the 8th Annual Language Sciences Undergraduate Research Conference (LSURC) that happened on February 28 and 1 March, 2025, lending a dynamic space for undergraduates to present their research and learn from each other. As the conference came to a fruitful close, we spoke with winners from different categories about their experiences.
This year's best oral presentation went to Hope Trischuk who discussed Assessing Intuitions about Obviation in Learners of Anishinaabemowin.
I’m curious to hear more about your research project. What inspired you to pursue this topic?
I got involved in this project as a result of working with my supervisor, Dr. Christopher Hammerly. He does a lot of work with Anishinaabemowin, and when he was discussing project ideas, working with and developing pedagogy for second-language learners really stood out to me. In the field of language revitalization, I think focusing on how language learners actually learn has a lot of practical and theoretical benefits.
I would love to know your thoughts on the LSURC experience. How did you find the event, and what do you think it means for undergraduate research at our institution?
I became aware of LSURC over the course of my degree through student outreach in class. LSURC is a great opportunity to develop projects more formally and practise academic skills. I appreciated the opportunity to present research as it develops and receive questions and feedback. Giving a stage to undergraduate research is so empowering, and often overlooked. It is a great opportunity for all students - research can seem like an intimidating world to break into, but getting to be face to face with peers and learn from them can lower that boundary.
Looking ahead, where do you see your research taking you in the next year or two?
This summer will be the data collection period for the study I presented on! I am excited to put the workshop into practise and learn more about how Anishinaabemowin learners understand obviation. Afterwards, I would like to develop a paper from my work, and refine the study to get the best body of research possible. I would be excited by a longitudinal version of the study, for instance!
How do you think UBC can better support undergraduate research initiatives?
I think by supporting events like LSURC, to show research that is going on, and events that show off the labs we have in linguistics, students can get a better sense of what is available. I think research can be so intimidating as a new student, but the experience is worth it. My journey started with an email after meeting my supervisor at an event like this, and I think it makes a big difference to students when events celebrating research are encouraged.
Congratulations to Hope again! To read our Q&As with other winners, please follow the links below:
Best poster presentation: "Laughing Ultrasound: Speech-like or it’s Own Behaviour?" presented by Victor Wong, Dayeon Choi, and Ragul Loganathan
2nd place poster presentation: "The Effect of Musical Genre Expectations on Sung Accent Perception" presented by Maddy Walter and Sabrina Luk