Mattia Zingaretti (Laurea, MSc, PGCert, FHEA)

PhD Linguistics & English Language

  • Linguistics and English Language
  • School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences

Contact details

Address

Street

2.17, Dugald Stewart Building

City
3 Charles Street, Edinburgh
Post code
EH8 9AD

Biography

Background

Mattia Zingaretti is an  AHRC-funded PhD Researcher in Linguistics and English Language at the University of Edinburgh. In his PhD research, he investigates the changes that occur in bilingual speakers' first language (i.e., first language 'attrition'), using psycholinguistic methods. His research interests include language acquisition and attrition, the linguistic/cognitive/emotional impact of bilingualism, and the implications of bilingualism for language teaching and learning. As a passionate Higher Education instructor and Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, he has been teaching various pre-honours and honours courses in linguistics and language acquisition in the Linguistics and English Language department, and Italian language courses in the Department of European Languages and Cultures. Mattia also volunteers for Bilingualism Matters, collaborating regularly on different events and projects which aim to bridge the gap between research and the wider public.

Qualifications

  • PhD in Linguistics and English Language, University of Edinburgh (2018-present)
  • PGCert in Academic Practice (Higher Education), University of Edinburgh (2020-2021)
  • MSc in English Language, University of Edinburgh (2016-2017)
  • Laurea (BA) in English and German, University of Rome "La Sapienza" (2013-2016)

Undergraduate teaching

2021-2022

  • LEL (PPLS): Tutor in First Language Acquisition (Honours) [SEM1] and Second Language Acquisition (Honours) [SEM2]
  • DELC (LLC): Tutor in Foundation Italian Language 1 [YR] 

2020-2021

  • LEL (PPLS): Tutor in First Language Acquisition (Honours) [SEM1] 
  • DELC (LLC): Tutor in Foundation Italian Language 1 [YR] and Italian 1 [YR]

2019-20

  • LEL (PPLS): Tutor in First Language Acquisition (Honours) [SEM1], Second Language Acquisition (Honours) [SEM2] and Child Bilingualism: Language and Cognition [SEM2]; Guest Lecturer in Second Language Acquisition [SEM2]

2018-19

  • LEL (PPLS): Tutor in Linguistics and English Language 1A [SEM1], Linguistics and English Language 1B [SEM2], First Language Acquisition (Honours) [SEM1], Second Language Acquisition (Honours) [SEM2], and Linguistics and English Language 2D: Cross-Linguistic Variation - Limits and Theories (marking only) [SEM2]

Current research interests

Psycholinguistics; developmental linguistics; first/second language acquisition; first language attrition; bilingualism and cognition; bilingualism and hate speech; bilingualism and education; teaching and learning in Higher Education

Past research interests

English varieties and dialects; English as a lingua franca; English language teaching and learning

Knowledge exchange

  • Social Media Ambassador (research-focus) for Linguistics and English Language, School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences (September 2018-September 2020)
  • Volunteer at Bilingualism Matters (2017-present)

Affiliated research centres

Project activity

  • AHRC/SGSAH-funded PhD research investigating second language acquisition and first language attrition in adult bilingual speakers, with Prof A Sorace, V Chondrogianni and D R Ladd
  • A Linguistic Investigation of Hate Speech (ALIHAS): Una Europa-funded project analysing hate speech from a linguistic perspective (https://www.bilingualism-matters.org/network/edinburgh/projects/alihas) - part of the Edinburgh research unit exploring the link between bilingualism and hate speech perception, with Prof A Sorace and Dr M Garraffa
  • Teacher Education about Multilingualism (TEAM): Erasmus+ funded project aiming to educate pre-service & in-service teachers about multilingualism (https://www.bilingualism-matters.org/network/edinburgh/projects/team-project) - involved in the co-creation of materials on second language acquisition and first language attrition for the linguistic module with Prof A Sorace and R Spelorzi, and materials on multilingual learners' strategies in learning additional languages for the educational module with Prof A Wach and R Spelorzi
  • PPLS-funded research project exploring the linguistic and cognitive effects of an intensive online language learning course of Italian, with R Spelorzi and Prof A Sorace

Current project grants

PhD Studentship: Arts and Humanities Research Council Doctoral Training Partnership (AHRC DTP), managed by the Scottish Graduate School for Arts & Humanities (SGSAH).

Invited speaker

  • Zingaretti, M. (2022, April 4). The relationship between second language acquisition and first language change across language domains: Discussing data from English learners of Italian. Edinburgh University Bilingualism Research Group, Edinburgh, Scotland.

  • Zingaretti, M. (2021, November 3). Can native speakers ’forget’ their first language? Discussing findings and implications of research on second language acquisition and first language attrition. Edinburgh University Translation Society, Edinburgh, Scotland.

  • Zingaretti, M. (2020, October 21). Every translator is bilingual, but is every bilingual a translator? The role of bilingualism in translation. Edinburgh University Translation Society, Edinburgh, Scotland.

Organiser

  •  (2021, June 16). Workshop co-organiser, "Rethinking participation for multilingual learners in hybrid teaching", University of Edinburgh Learning and Teaching Conference, Edinburgh, Scotland.
  • (2019, June 4-7). Conference co-organiser, "University of Edinburgh Linguistics and English Language Postgraduate Conference", Edinburgh, Scotland.

Papers delivered

  • Zingaretti, M., Chondrogianni, V., Ladd, D. R. & Sorace, A. (2022, March 25). The dynamics of late bilingualism: First language change in adult language learners. [Paper presentation]. Fourth International Conference on Language Attrition and Bilingualism, New Haven, Connecticut.

  • Zingaretti, M., Garraffa, M. & Sorace, A. (2022, March 11). The impact of bilingualism on hate speech perception and slur appropriation: A first study on Italian UK residents [Paper presentation]. Excessive Language in Public Discourse, Helsinki, Finland.

  • Zingaretti, M., Garraffa, M. & Sorace, A. (2021, November 12). L’impatto del bilinguismo sulla percezione del linguaggio d’odio e sulla riappropriazione dell’insulto: un primo studio sugli italiani residenti nel Regno Unito [Paper presentation]. Workshop Internazionale ALIHAS - A Linguistic Investigation of Hate Speech, Bologna, Italy.

  • Spelorzi, R. & Zingaretti, M. (2021, September 17). A week abroad from the comfort of your home: Preliminary results of an intensive online language course [Paper presentation]. The Third Year Abroad Conference - The Year Abroad: Reimagined, jointly organised online by Keele University and Regent's University London, England.
  • Zingaretti, M. & Spelorzi, R. (2021, May 25). The challenges of inclusive education in times of distance learning [Paper presentation]. Learning for Citizenship Conference - Supporting Migrant Students Through the Pandemic, Nottingham, England.
  • Zingaretti, M. (2019, September 21). Between acquisition and attrition: First language change in late second language learners [Poster presentation]. Bilingualism Matters Research Symposium, Edinburgh, Scotland.
  • Zingaretti, M. (2019, April 16). When a foreign language interferes with your native language: The relationship between L2 acquisition and L1 attrition in English-Italian and Italian-English bilingual adults [Poster presentation]. Experimental Methods in Language Acquisition Research XV, Utrecht, Netherlands. 

In the press

This article was published on