My research is grounded in theoretical morphology, syntax, and semantics.
In my masters thesis in Chinese linguistics, I developed a new approach to part of speech classification in order to clarify the category of “coverb” which is often misrepresented in language learning materials as a type of preposition despite many of them behaving as verbs. One of the coverbs I studied is the infamous 把 bǎ which is notoriously challenging for second language learners of Mandarin.
In my work towards my masters in Russian, I applied my approach to Chinese coverbs to Russian particles— another part of speech that is often very challenging for teachers and students of Russian as a second language. In summer 2023, I spent most of my time on the particle бы by, which is often given a part of speech label as though it is in an independent word.
As an undergraduate, I was part of a graduate field methods course documenting the split ergative system in Tshangla, an endangered language of eastern Bhutan. I worked with a consultant from Uzbekistan to write my thesis on object-marking and relative clauses in Uzbek and was part of a research group on portmanteau morphology in ergative languages. These experiences ignited in me a love for language documentation, preservation, and most recently, revitalization.
My experience and expertise in second language pedagogy combined with my passion for and belief in the value of minority languages drives my dream to create pedagogical materials for endangered languages to promote their revitalization. My background in theoretical linguistics means that my approach is grounded in empirical study and precise description while my lifelong quest as a language learner gives me valuable insight into the process of second language acquisition.
Recent & Relevant Work
Publications
Jones, G.A. Relearning Russian particles: A proposal for more accurate terminology. (unpublished manuscript)
Jones, G.A. Between two word classes: The secret lives of Mandarin coverbs. (in submission)
Kent, S.J., G.A. Jones, S. Zhambyl, & J.A. Kappen. 2024. Communicating sustainability through language differences with rich point pedagogy, in The Palgrave Handbook of Social Sustainability in Business Education. Palgrave MacMillan. (in publication)
Jones, G. 2023. Between Verb and Preposition: Diachronic Stages of Coverbs in Mandarin Chinese. Master’s Thesis. University of Massachusetts. Amherst, MA.
(earlier publications under previous surname, MacMillan)
MacMillan, G. 2012. Ergativity in Tshangla in UMass Occasional Papers in Linguistics, ed. Anisa Schardl. Amherst, MA: GLSA Publications.
MacMillan, G. 2012. Object marking & relative clauses in Uzbek. Undergraduate Thesis. University of Massachusetts. Amherst, MA.
Presentations
Jones, G. (Г. Джоунс) 15 August 2023. Introduction to the methodology of Russian icon painting (Введение в методологию иконописи). Davis School of Russian at Middlebury College. Lecture.
Jones, G. (Г. Джоунс) 5 August 2023. Visualizing gray areas between parts of speech (Визуализация переходных случаев между частями речи). Graduate Symposium (Аспирантский симпозиум), Middlebury Language Schools.
(earlier presentations under previous surname, MacMillan)
Chow, W.Y., G. MacMillan, S. Shah, I. Kurenkov, E. Lau & C. Phillips. 2014. Partial use of available information in the early stages of verb prediction. CUNY Conference on Human Sentence Processing, Columbus, OH.
Chow, W.Y., C. Smith, G. MacMillan, & C. Phillips. 2013. Argument identity impacts predictions faster than argument roles. CUNY Conference on Human Sentence Processing, Columbia, SC.
Parker, D., G. MacMillan, & C. Phillips. 2013. Illusory Negative Polarity Item licensing: Now you see it, now you don’t. CUNY Conference on Human Sentence Processing, Columbia, SC.
Glynis Jones 