About Me

I am a Departmental Lecturer in Applied Linguistics at the Department of Education, University of Oxford. I teach and supervise on the MSc in Applied Linguistics & Second Language Acquisition and on the MSc in Applied Linguistics for Language Teaching. If you want to find out more about my (completed and current) research projects, see my publications and presentations, or check out my academic blogposts and media appearances, feel free to scroll through the pages of this website. Do not hesitate to get in touch if you have comments about my work or ideas for collaboration! You can contact me via email, as well as through Twitter and BlueSky

Academic Bio

I have a BA in Linguistics from UCL, as well as an MSc in Applied Linguistics & Second Language Acquisition and a DPhil in Education from the University of Oxford.  Furthermore, I obtained a CELTA from UCL’s Centre for Languages and International Education and possess substantial experience of teaching English to adults and children in diverse academic settings. I am an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA) and serve on the Executive Board of ELLMEnet, an international network of researchers and practitioners working in the field of early language learning and multilingual education for children between 0-7 years.

Research Interests

My research explores the linguistic, experiential and socioemotional factors that underpin (pre)school-aged children's acquisition of English as a second language, with a particular focus on how children's knowledge of a first language affects their development in the second language. I am also interested in how children's second language knowledge can be measured and improved: on the one hand, I develop suitable tests and evaluate existing tasks; on the other hand, I design and implement arts-based interventions aimed at developing children's oral language and soft skills. The role that the arts play in supporting language teaching, learning, and maintenance is a topic that I explore through the Creative Approaches to Teaching English (CreATE) Group, which I formed and convene at Oxford. 

Other Interests

I am a trained stage actress, and can often be found performing in English and/or Greek with Theatre Lab Company and Praxis Oxford Theatre Group. I am also an associate of Collide Theatre, with whom I have collaborated on numerous creative and research projects since their creation in 2015. In addition to acting, I like painting, baking and going for long walks in nature with my squirrel-chasing dog!