Joey Balke

I'm a PhD student in Linguistics at the University of Arizona, focusing primarily on semantics and pragmatics.  After completing my undergraduate degree at the University of Toronto in 2021, I joined UofA in 2022.  My current research explores how humans can say and understand things that aren’t quite “true” in a traditional sense.  We joke, we exaggerate, we speak metaphorically, but we are typically understood in the end.  Why?  Shouldn’t this break our current understanding of logic and truth?  Additionally, I'm interested in ethnographic linguistics—how communities of thought and practice develop and maintain specialized meanings within their linguistic environments.  My interdisciplinary interests extend to cognitive science, epistemic philosophy, communication studies, and literature, where I'm especially curious about how these fields intersect with semantic and pragmatic understandings of “meaning.”

Alongside research, I'm really committed to linguistics pedagogy.  I am currently completing both the Certificate of College Teaching and the certificate program through the Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching, and Learning (CIRTL).  Through these programs, I have learned many integrate innovative, inclusive teaching practices that enhance student engagement and learning in the linguistics classroom.