Revised March 2023.
Magda Oiry (she/her)
moiry@umass.edu
University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Home
Education
2003-2008 PhD in linguistics
University of Nantes (France)
Dissertation Title (translated title adapted from French): Acquisition of Long-Distance Questions by French native speakers. Direct vs. Indirect strategies and alternative questions
Mention très honorable avec les félicitations du jury – with highest honors
Supervisor: Professor Hamida Demirdache (PhD MIT 1991)
Grants and fellowships
2021-2022 ADVANCE fellow
2018-2019 TIDE ambassador – University of Massachusetts at Amherst (Teaching for Inclusiveness, Diversity, & Equity)
Spring 2018 Climate Ambassador program – University of Massachusetts at Amherst (lead conversations on campus climate within staff, faculty and student sub-groups)
2006-2007 Research & teaching grant
French ministry of Education and Research.
Amount: 12,600 euros
2003-2006 PhD fellowship
Doctoral Fellowship & research grant awarded by the French ministry of Education and Research.
Amount: 48,600 euros
2002-2003 MA Merit Scholarship
Amount: 3780 euros
Teaching positions
Current Senior Lecturer Department of Linguistics, University of Massachusetts
2018-2019 Full-time Lecturer Department of Linguistics, University of Massachusetts
2015-2018 Full-time Lecturer Department of Linguistics and Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures, University of Massachusetts
2012-2015 Full-time Lecturer Department of Linguistics and Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures, University of Massachusetts
2010- 2012 Lecturer Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures, French and Italian Unit, University of Massachusetts
2008-2010 Lecturer Department of Linguistics, University of Massachusetts
2003-2007 PhD fellow instructor Department of Linguistics, University of Nantes
Services
2018-current Undergraduate advisor
Professional development (liaison, organizer and active faculty member)
Director of certificates: coordinator for TESOL (2020), American English Linguistics (communication, diploma coordinator)
2019-2020 Gender Equity in Linguistics (Co-Founder)
2017-2019 Linguistics department Gender equity effort group (co- founder)
2017- 2018 CHFA Senior Lecturer Review Committee
2016- 2017 CHFA Senior Lecturer Review Committee
Courses taught
2022-2023
(Fall off)
101 People and their language (large Gen Ed SB, D lecture 150+ students)
401 Introduction to syntax
2021-2022
101 People and their language (large Gen Ed SB, D lecture 150+ students)
401 Introduction to syntax
591B Second language acquisition
711 Seminar on language acquisition
2020-2021
101 People and their language (large Gen Ed SB, D lecture 150+ students)
397LH Second language acquisition
401 Introduction to syntax
411 Introduction to language acquisition
499H Honors thesis
101 UWW Online (Cancelled)
2019-2020
101 UWW Online (3 semesters)
101 People and their language (large lecture 150+ students)
401 Introduction to syntax
411 Introduction to language acquisition
591B Second language acquisition
Professional development
2018-2019
101 People and their language
101 honors
401 Introduction to syntax
411 Introduction to language acquisition
591B Second language acquisition
Professional development
101 CPE Online (3 semesters)
2017-2018
101 People and their language
101 honors
591B Second language acquisition
Professional development
230 Intermediate French (two classes)
101 People and their language CPE Online (3 semesters)
2016-2017
On parental leave in the Fall
LLC:
240 French 4 skills
250 Literature and language
Linguistics: Professional development
2015-2016
Linguistics:
397LH L1 and L2 topics
591B Second language acquisition theories and research
Professional development
LLC:
240 French 4 skills
371 Advanced grammar and composition
2014-2015 On leave
2013-2014
Undergraduate and graduate level courses at the Linguistics and LLC departments
401 Introduction to Syntax
750 Proseminar in Acquisition of Syntax: with Kyle Johnson.
Professional development
LLC
320 Advanced Grammar and composition
French Phonetics
2012-2013
Undergraduate and graduate level courses
Linguistics:
401 Introduction to Syntax
501 Introduction to linguistic theory and the grammar of English
793 Second year seminar: professional development
LLC:
597v French Literature and Speech Forms
573 Advanced Methods of Teaching Foreign Languages
2011-2012
Undergraduate level courses in LLC and Linguistics
Intensive Introductory French
Intermediate French
Phonetics
Teaching Assistant for Introduction to Language Acquisition in the Department of Linguistics (with Prof. Thomas Roeper).
2010-2011
Undergraduate and Graduate Level Courses in LLC
Intensive Introductory French
Intermediate French
French Literature and Speech Forms
Fall 2009
Undergraduate courses in Linguistics
Introduction to Linguistics (twice)
2006-2007
Undergraduate and Graduate courses
Language Acquisition (twice)
Introduction to Morphology and syntax
Linguistic Tools (stylistics and literature)
2005-2006
Undergraduate courses
Introduction to Morphology and syntax
Linguistic Tools
2004-2005
Undergraduate courses
Introduction to Morphology and syntax (twice)
2003-2004
Undergraduate courses
Introduction to Phonology & Phonetics
Morphology and syntax
Invited talks
Invited to a panel discussion Diversity Lunch & Learn series about “Teaching Diversity in Large Classes” UMass Amherst. March 2020 (postponed, COVID).
“Paramètres et universaux en acquisition du langage” Journée anniversaire de la reconnaissance CNRS du Laboratoire de Linguistique de Nantes (UMR 6310). January 2016.
“Know when to be happy”. Joint work with Jeremy Hartman. Ontologie et typologie des états de la Fédération Typologie et Universaux Linguistiques. , Paris 8. 3/23/2015
“Beyond Theory of Mind and complementation.” Cognitive Brown Bag lunch. Developmental Psychology department at UMass Amherst. Fall 2013.
“Acquisition des questions à longue distance chez les enfants français à l’interface syntaxe-sémantique.” Paris Diderot University (7). Spring 2013.
‘The acquisition of Long-Distance questions: a poverty of stimulus argument.’ University of Maryland. Visit supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation to Valentine Hacquard and Jeff Lidz on “Acquiring the semantics and pragmatics of attitude verbs”. Fall 2012.
Research
Books
Oiry, M. 2011a. L’acquisition des questions à Longue Distance par des enfants de langue maternelle française. Stratégies à dependance directe versus indirecte et questions alternatives. Editions Universitaires Européennes.
Refereed Book Chapters
Oiry M. & Roeper T. 2009. How Language Acquisition Reveals Minimalist Symmetry in the Wh-System. Selected papers from the Cyprus Syntaxfest. Edited by Kleanthes K. Grohman and Phoevos Panagiotidis. Cambridge Scholars Publishing: 11-28.
Oiry M. & Demirdache H. 2006. “Evidence from L1 Acquisition for the Syntax of Wh- Scope Marking in French”. In The acquisition of Syntax in Romance Languages. Language acquisition and language disorders, nº 41. Torrens, V., Escobar, L. (eds.) Amsterdam: John Benjamins: 289-315.
Journal Articles
Oiry, M. (2019) Setting apart Scope Marking questions from sequential questions in children’s productions. In honor of Tom Roeper’75th birthday. University of Massachusetts Occasional Papers. July 2018. Bart Hollebrandse, Jaieun Kim editors.
Oiry, M. 2011b. A case of true optionality: Wh-in-situ patterns like Long Movement in French. Linguistic Analysis (37:1-2) The Optionality of Wh-Movement, Anna Roussou and Christos Vlachos (eds): 112-139.
Dissertation notice
Oiry, M. 2011. Acquisition of Long-Distance Questions in French. Language Acquisition 18: 205-207.
Proceedings & Working papers
Demirdache H. & Oiry M. 2008. “On the Syntax and Semantics of Long-Distance Questions in Child French”. Language Acquisition and Development: Proceedings of GALA 2007. Edited by Anna Gavarró and M. João Freitas. Cambridge Scholars Publishing: 177-188.
Demirdache H. & Oiry M. 2007. On the Felicity Conditions for Long-Distance Questions in L1 Acquisition. Proceedings of BUCLD 31. Edited by Heather Caunt-Nulton, Samantha Kulatilake and I-Hao Woo. Cascadilla Press: 184-195.
Oiry M. 2006. “Direct versus indirect Wh-scope marking strategies in French child grammar”. University of Massachusetts Occasional Papers in Linguistics. University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
Oiry M. 2004. “Les Questions Exceptionnelles en Français L1”. In Actes du Colloque APLIC.
Manuscripts
In progress. Simple partial movement in French.
In progress. Guilliot, N. and Oiry, M. Some questions (and answers) about cleft sentences.
Oiry, M. (2003) Unpublished MA thesis. La compréhension des questions à Longue Distance. University of Nantes.
Oiry, M. (2002) Unpublished MA thesis. La production des questions à Longue Distance. University of Nantes.
Conference presentations
2018
Embedded wh-clefts in non-standard colloquial French. Workshop on Meaning in questions. Konstanz Germany, June 2018.
2017
Factive and negation: kids know when to be happy but are not happy about knowing. LAWNE Fall 2017. 20th anniversary at UMass Amherst.
2016 ‘How children deal with a contextually canceled presupposition’ DGFS Konstanz Germany, February 2016.
2015 French embedded clefts: mood and verb selection. SyMiLa, TOULOUSE, FRANCE. 6/10/2015
2014 French embedded clefts. RALFe, Paris 8, Fall 2014.
2014 Acquisition of factive complements. Joint work with Jeremy Hartman. Van Gogh acquisition Workshop Nantes / Groningen, University of Nantes, France. 10/10/2014
2013 Each and Every. Workshop on the acquisition of quantification. UMass Amherst. Fall 2013. With Seth Cable, Rama Novogrodsky and Tom Roeper.
2011 With Nicolas Guilliot. Some questions (and answers) about cleft sentences. Talk given at LSRL 41, Ottawa, May 2011.
2009 ‘A case of true optionality: Wh-in-situ patterns like Long Movement in French’. Workshop on the Optionality of Wh-Movement, ISTAL 19, Thessaloniki April 5th.
2008 ‘Acquisition of Long-Distance questions in French L1: varying experimental contexts’. Paper presented at UUSLAW (University of Connecticut, University of Massachusetts, Smith College Language Acquisition Workshop).
2007 “On the syntax and the semantics of Long-Distance questions in Child French”. Paper presented with H. Demirdache at GALA 2007. Barcelona.
2006 “On the felicity conditions for long-distance questions in L1 acquisition”.
Paper presented with H. Demirdache at Boston University Conference on Language Development 31 (BUCLD).
2006 ‘Wh– Scope marking in French L1 and their felicitous context’. WoSS 4. Paris VIII.
2006 ‘Wh-Scope Marking and the acquisition of Complementation’. With O. Lungu, H. Demirdache. Paper presented at the Romance Turn II. Utrecht, Pays-Bas.
2005 ‘Wh-Scope Marking in French L1’. Paper presented at UUSLAW (University of Connecticut, University of Massachusetts, Smith College Language Acquisition Workshop).
2004 On The Syntax Of Exceptional Questions in French L1 Acquisition. Paper presented at The Romance Turn, Workshop on the Acquisition of Romance Languages. Madrid (Spain).
2004 ‘Evidence from L1 Acquisition for the Syntax of Wh- Scope Marking’. Paper presented at the 2nd Student Workshop on Syntax and Semantics (WoSS). Universitat autonoma de Barcelona.
2004 ‘Les Questions Exceptionnelles en Français L1’. Poster presented at the APLIC Conference (Acquisition, Pratiques Langagières, Interactions verbales et
Contacts). Université de Sorbonne Nouvelle, Paris.
Editor
Special edition of Glossa on the Acquisition of quantification
Review
Ad hoc reviewer for:
Glossa
Canadian Journal of Linguistics/Revue canadienne de linguistique.
Psycholinguistics
Advising
Student Supervision
Ph.D.: Maria Turrero (LLC), chair
PhD Synthesis Brian Zylich (Computer Science)
Masters: Maria Turrero (LLC), chair.
Cindy Utama (Student Development), for the Graduate Certificate in Cognitive Science (advisor).
Honors thesis:
Jaime Woolcock (Linguistics/LLC, current- Fall 2021)
Rebecca Hoell (LLC), chair.
Generals papers:
Michael Clauss (Linguistics), member of generals committee.
Hannah Greene (Linguistics), member of generals committee
Zahra Mirrazi Linguistics), chair of generals committee.