Faculty

Cristina Abbona-Sneider

Lecturer in Italian Studies
Director of Language Studies

A native of the Langhe region in Piedmont, Cristina holds a PhD from Brown University and a Laurea in Lettere cum laude from the University of Torino. After receiving her doctorate, she taught at the University of Pennsylvania from 2003 to 2006; in her last year there she served as the Director of the Italian Language Program and Undergraduate Chair. Cristina returned to Brown University in 2006.

As Director of Language Studies, Cristina coordinates and administers the Italian Language Program at Brown and serves as supervisor and trainer for teaching assistants, one of the most challenging and gratifying parts of her job. She is also Concentration Advisor for Italian Studies and on campus Advisor for the Brown-in-Bologna Program.

Every semester Cristina teaches courses at the advanced level (IT500 and IT600) and either at the elementary (IT100-200) or at the intermediate level (IT300-400).

Her research interests include curriculum design, the use of technology in language instruction, and teaching language and culture through film. She is also interested in new techniques of teaching advanced level writing - she is working on the use of wikies and discussion boards in third year language courses.

Cristina is member of the AAUSC, MLA, AATI and AAIS and she participates regularly in conferences. Her last presentations were:

• The use of Wiki for Collaborative Storytelling
• American Association of Teachers of Italian, Washington DC, 2007


• From Pen to Mouse: Teaching and Learning Italian with Technology
• Roundtable Co-organizer and Chair
• American Association of Italian Studies, Colorado Springs, CO, 2007


• Lo studio dell’italiano in America oggi
• American Association of Italian Studies, Genova, Italy, 2006

Contact Information

E-mail: Cristina_Abbona@Brown.edu
Tel: (401) 863-3970