Yan Guo

Yan Guo

PhD

Positions

Professor

Werklund School of Education, Specialization, Language and Literacy

Contact information

Web presence

Phone number

Office: 403.220.2681

Background

Educational Background

Doctor of Philosophy Teaching English as a Second Language, University of British Columbia, 2002

M.A. English Lang & Or Literature, University of Regina, 1995

M.A. English Lang & Or Literature, Shandong Normal University, 1989

B.A. English Lang & Or Literature, Shandong Normal University, 1986

Biography

Dr. Yan Guo is a full professor in the Educational Studies in Language and Literacy. She was born and raised in China. She obtained her BA and MA in English from Shandong Teachers’ University. From 1989 to 1992, she taught English to English majors at the same university. In 1992, she moved to Regina and completed her MA in English in 1995. Then she moved to Vancouver and completed her Ph.D. in Language and Literacy Education from the University of British Columbia in 2002. From 200 3 to 2004, she taught undergraduate courses at the University of Alberta. In 2004, Dr. Yan Guo joined the Faculty of Education at the University of Calgary where she teaches graduate courses in Teaching English as an Additional Language and literacy and undergraduate courses in the teacher education program. 

Professional & Community Affiliations

Dr. Yan Guo offers her expertise to a variety of government and non-government organizations across Canada and in China. She supports the following institutions with her knowledge in the areas of immigration, English as an Additional Language (EAL), diversity, cultural competence, minority parent engagement, and English as a Foreign Language (EFL): Alberta Education, The Calgary Board of Education , Southern Alberta Institute of Technology , Bow Valley College, EducationMatters, Immigrant Services Calgary, the Coalition for Equal Access to Education for Ethnocultural Parents and Youth, Immigrant Sector Council of Calgary (ISCC), Calgary Chinese Community Service Association, Ethno-Cultural Council of Calgary, Language Research Centre, and China Interdisciplinary Group. She has been a visiting professor at the following universities: 

  • Beijing Foreign Studies University 北京外国语大学
  • Beijing Language and Culture University 北京语言大学
  • Jinan University 暨南大学
  • City University of Macau 澳门城市大学
  • Shandong Teachers’ University 山东师范大学
  • Harbin Institute of Technology (Weihai)  哈工大(威海)

Dr. Guo has served for the following community organizations: 

  • Calgary Board of Education (CBE) Languages Advisory Committee
  • Alberta Network for Immigrant Women (ANIW), Board Member
  • Calgary Immigrant Women’s Association (CIWA), Margins to Engagement Advisory Committee
  • EducationMatters, Board Member of the Governors and Grant Committee Member

Research

Areas of Research

Scholarly Activity

Dr. Yan Guo employs interdisciplinary approaches in her research, involving sociolinguistics, education, sociology, and philosophy. Her research examines the intersection of language, race, culture, and identity from sociopolitical and sociocultural perspectives. While some focus on Canada, other works are more international. Over the years she has developed research expertise in the following areas:

  • Transnational identities and translanguaging practices of immigrant children; refugee children's school integration
  • Internationalization of higher education
  • Introducing immigrant parent knowledge to teacher education
  • Exploring linguistic, cultural, and religious diversity with pre-service teachers
  • Intercultural communication between immigrant parents and Canadian teachers
  • Critical discourse analysis of English as a global language and critical multilingualism
  • Second language writing and identity
Interests:
  • Second language acquisition (SLA)
  • Sociolinguistics
  • Language and culture
  • Identity development
  • Diversity
  • Social justice
  • Chinese immigrants in Canada
  • Multicultural education
  • Discourse analysis
  • Immigrant parent engagement
  • Preparing teachers for ELLs
  • English as a foreign language (EFL)
  • Globalization-internationalization studies

Courses

Course number Course title Semester
EDER 66911 LEC 05 05 Aspect of Secd Lang & Culture 2021
EDER 66950 LEC 03 03 Aspect of Secd Lang & Culture 2021
EDUC 435 SEC 08 S08 Literacy, Language and Culture 2021
EDER 66978 LEC 02 02 Aspect of Secd Lang & Culture 2020
EDUC 53502 SEC 01 S01 Splz'n II Elem Engl Lang Learn 2020

Projects

Current:
  • Exploring Initial School Integration among Syrian Refugee Children, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) Grant, principal investigator (Co-PIs, Shibao Guo and Srabani Maitra)
  • Examining EAL Policies and Practices in Alberta and Community Advocacy, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) Insight Grant, principal investigator 
  • Knowledge Construction of ESL Parents and Pre-Service Teachers and its Mobilization, PI, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Standard Grant
  • Learning for global mindedness: An inquiry into pedagogical practices, Teaching and Learning grant, Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning, University of Calgary, Co-PI with Shibao Guo
  • Building international partnership to foster talent mobility between Canada and China, the University International Grants Committee, Co-PI with Shibao Guo
  • Teaching under China’s market economy: Five case studies, Education International, Brussels, Co-Principal-Investigator (PI: Shibao Guo; Co-Investigators: Gulbahar Beckett, Qing Li, Linyuan Guo)

Publications

  • Home-school relations: International perspectives. Guo, Y. (Ed.). Singapore: Springer. (2018)
  • Spotlight on China: Changes in education under China’s market economy. Guo, S., & Guo, Y. (Eds.). Rotterdam: Sense Publishers. (2016)
  • Spotlight on China: Chinese education in the globalized world. Guo, S., & Guo, Y. (Eds.). Rotterdam: Sense Publishers. (2016)