Teaching Fellow 
Research Interests: narratives of migration with a focus on irregular trans-border movement across the Americas. Trump Era narratives of irregular migration; migrant justice and literary activism; ethics, aesthetics, and politics of migration narratives (in progress PhD thesis in Queen`s Cultural Studies); Muslim women`s writing in response to post-September 11; Latina writing on migration; female migrants` voices and identities; transnational, postcolonial, and diasporic migration narratives; literature and Intercultural Communication (in progress PhD thesis in Communication Sciences at Hacettepe University)
Previous research: Sociolinguistic aspects of learning and teaching English as a foreign language; identity construction in ESL/EFL course books for adults in EU and associated countries
E-mail: o.atar@queensu.ca
Office: B176 Mackintosh-Corry Hall, Room 120
Office hours: Monday 10:30-11:30; in person or online with appointment
Education
PhD in Cultural Studies, Queen’s University, (on going)
PhD in Communication Sciences, Hacettepe University, (on going)
MA in English Language Teaching, Marmara University, 2007
BA in English Language Teaching, Marmara University, 2003
About
Ozlem is currently writing her PhD thesis on narratives of migration with a focus on irregular transborder movement across the Americas. Trump Era narratives of irregular migration that bring migrant justice and literary activism together comprise her main corpus. The ethics, aesthetics, and politics of migration narratives mark the parameters of her reading, writing, and teaching.
Ozlem is also about to complete another research project on contemporary im/migrant Latina and Muslim women`s writing. She examines exemplary novels by members of these two disparate groups by focusing on migrants` hybrid and in-between identity construction as a response to othering in the post-9/11 United States. Her goal is to bring fictive migration narratives under the purview of Intercultural Communication, and she proposes a comprehensive tool kit to read such narratives critically. Her research draws on Critical Intercultural Communication theory and research; transnational migration literature, research and theory; postcolonial theory; and feminist literary criticism.
Previously, she wrote on sociolinguistic aspects of learning and teaching English as a foreign/second/additional language. Her M.A. dissertation explored identity construction in English coursebooks for adults in European Union and associated countries
Ozlem is an experienced teacher. She taught English as a foreign language at prestigious universities in Turkey: Galatasaray University (Istanbul), Hacettepe (Ankara) and Middle East Technical University (Ankara). She also designed and conducted two special interest/elective undergraduate courses at Hacettepe University. Since September 2018, Ozlem has assisted various LLCU, FILM and writing courses at Queen`s University. In each, she has taken a very proactive role and guest lectured twice.
For Ozlem, teaching and learning are interactive processes, through which participants grow and develop together, helping one another, and yet each at their own pace. Ozlem believes continuous and two way feedback is essential for students` and her own academic, personal, and professional growth.
Teaching
Ozlem teaches LLCU 295/3.0 Narratives of Migration (Section 001) in Fall 2021