Dr. Swenson is a Professor in the Dept. of English and International Studies, Osaka Jogakuin University. She has taught at Osaka Jogakuin for more than 20 years and been a language teacher in Japan since the early 1980s, working in a variety of educational environments. She edited the JALT Journal from 1994 to 1998. She has published research in a variety of areas, including content-based instruction, study abroad programs, research methodologies, writing (writing programs, writing methods, writing centers), curriculum design and development, and attitudes and motivation (including ethnocentrism, attitudes toward Japanese culture by L1 English speakers, and attitudes toward other cultures by L1 Japanese). Her current research focuses on content-based approaches to language teaching with an emphasis on media studies, Japanese media and media use in Japan, ethnocentrism and its intersections with media use and motivation, and study abroad programs.

Education
Ph.D., University of Colorado, Boulder