Background
Oliwia Szymanska is a senior lecturer at the Department of Linguistics and Scandinavian Languages. She holds a doctoral degree from Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poland. She has previously worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Center for Multilingualism in Society across the Lifespan and as a senior lecturer in Norwegian as a second language at the University of Oslo. Before moving to Norway, she was an assistant professor and head of Norwegian language studies at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities in Warsaw. She has also taught Norwegian to physicians in specialist healthcare, published teaching materials, and developed language proficiency tests.
Her research focuses on second language acquisition among adult learners of Norwegian, with particular attention to communication in multilingual healthcare settings and the integration of effective practices into language training. She is currently developing a course that provides students with practical and theoretical training in creating multimodal learning resources for vocational Norwegian language instruction.
Academic interests
My research focuses on second language acquisition in adult learners. I have examined the acquisition and use of Norwegian, particularly among Polish learners, using both quantitative and qualitative methods. Since my MA, I have studied conceptual transfer and its role in second language processing.
My doctoral work analysed how spatial conceptualisation influences the use of prepositions in a second language. I later focused on figurative language, exploring cross-linguistic equivalence and the conditions for establishing L1–L2 links. I have also investigated the acquisition of metaphorical expressions, including factors affecting their retrieval, retention, and production.
During my postdoctoral project at MultiLing, I researched communication in healthcare, identifying practices that support sustainable interaction and examining how these can be integrated into language training for physicians. This included work on figurative language in patient communication.
I am currently piloting a course that provides practical and theoretical training in creating multimodal learning resources for vocational Norwegian language instruction.
- Second language acquisition and teaching
- Second language theories
- Norwegian as a second/foreign language
- Language for specific purposes
- Communication in multilingual workplaces
- Student-created multimodal learning resources for vocational Norwegian language instruction
Courses taught
NOAS 1100 Innføring i norsk som andrespråk
NOAS 2101 Norsk språkstruktur i et andrespråksperspektiv
NOAS 2102 Andrespråksundervising og andrespråkslæring
NOAS 2105 Skriftkyndighet i et andrespråksperspektiv: lesing og skriving
NOAS 2106 Didaktikk for yrkesrettet norskopplæring
NOAS 4101 Andrespråksforskning i faghistorisk lys
NOAS 4103 Grammatiske emner i et andrespråksperspektiv
NOAS 4190 Masteroppgave i norsk som andrespårk
NOR 3090 Bacheloroppgave i nordisk
LING1109 Flerspråklegheit
MULTI4190 – Master's Thesis in Multilingualism
NORINT0110 Norwegian for international students
NORINT0114 Norwegian for international students
NORINT1110 Norsk grammatikk i et innlærerperspektiv
NORINT0122 – Norsk grammatikk for internasjonale studenter på trinn 2-nivå
NORINT0120 Norwegian for international students
Membership
Circle U - European University Alliance, teacher coordinator (2026-)
Next Generation Literacies, member (2024-)
(New) MultiLing - Centre for Multilingualism in the Society across the Lifespan, vice coordinator (2024-)
MultiLing Extended Leadership Team, member (2023-2024)