Aleksandra Olszewska

Aleksandra Olszewska is a Postdoctoral Fellow in Multilingualism at the University of Oslo's Faculty of Humanities, Department of Linguistics and Scandinavian Studies. She teaches courses including Multilingualism (LING1109), Linguistic Method (LING4140), and supervision of Master's theses in Multilingualism. Previously, she was a Visiting Researcher at Georgetown University and completed her PhD at the University of Florida with a dissertation examining identities of refugee-background students in Poland.

• Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction, ESOL/Bilingual Education, University of Florida (2020)
• MA in Applied Linguistics, University of Warsaw (2013)
• BA in Applied Linguistics, University of Warsaw (2010)
• Additional postgraduate studies in Latin American Studies and Cultural Diplomacy

Dr. Olszewska's research centers on multilingualism, migration, social justice, and humanizing research methods. She employs counter-storytelling and arts-based methodologies to explore language identities, particularly focusing on refugee-background students and linguistic racism. Her work critically examines teacher education practices and advocates for socially just pedagogies that affirm students' linguistic repertoires and identities.

Her recent publications reveal consistent themes of linguistic racism, refugee education, and humanizing methodologies across international contexts. She investigates how educational systems respond to migration, with particular attention to Poland and Norway. Her research bridges theoretical frameworks with practical applications for teacher education, emphasizing the importance of recognizing students' full linguistic repertoires and cultural resources.

Scientific Awards

• Fulbright Graduate Student Award
• Delta Kappa Gamma Society International: World Fellowship
• Finalist for AERA Second Language Research Outstanding Dissertation Award (2021-2022)
• Finalist for AERA Arts-Based Educational Research Outstanding Dissertation Award (2022)
• Early Career Scholar Speaker Award, International Symposium on Bilingualism (2021)

Dr. Olszewska has supervised Master's theses in Multilingualism and contributed to significant research projects including STELLAR (Supporting Teachers of English Language Learners Across Rural Settings), funded by the US Department of Education. Her professional development workshop for Polish school faculty demonstrates her commitment to translating research into practical applications that create equitable educational spaces for refugee-background students.