CV – Szymon Gredżuk, PhD

Relevant Employment

Lecturer at University of Gdańsk, Poland
October 2020 – Present (Part-Time)

Teaching

Introduction to Maritime History and Culture of East Asia (Course conducted in Polish)

Japanese Language (Course conducted in Polish and Japanese): Beginner Level

Research

Monograph Project: Publication of my monograph about Beniowski (in Polish).

Okinawa – Ryūkyū Research Group: Research project about Kumiodori theatre with Dr Sylwia Dobkowska.

Translator / Interpreter Polish, Japanese, English
October 2018 – Present (Freelance)

Amareya Theatre & Guests. Independent Without Borders: Poland in Japan. Project

The Voices of the Cooks. Performative Cooking and Reading Session. Online Event Translation. 30 Dec. 2020.

Home – Escape – Home (Dom-Bieg-Dom). Online Multimedia Performance. Production Work and Rehearsals Translation. 27-29 Dec. 2020.

Home – Escape – Home (Dom-Bieg-Dom). Online Multimedia Performance. After-talk Translation. 29 Dec. 2020.

The Ainu Meets the Poles. The Legacy of Bronisław Piłsudski in Contemporary Poland and Japan. Online Webinar Translation. 18 Dec. 2020.

Research Fieldwork in New Zealand. Translation and Interpretation for Prof. Minoru Kobayashi, Bunkyō University. March and August 2019.

Lecturer at Nicolaus Copernicus University, Toruń, Poland
October 2019 – October 2021 (Full-Time)

Teaching

Introduction to Japanology (Course conducted in Polish): Introduction to the Japanese traditional culture, geography, language, history, art, literature, rituals, traditions, politics, economy, and the contemporary pop culture.

History of Japan (Course conducted in Polish): Module 2 Medieval to Early Modern

History of Japan (Course conducted in Polish): Module 3 Contemporary History

Japanese Language (Course conducted in Polish and Japanese): Japanese language studies for undergraduate students of Japanese Philology.

Living in Japan (Course conducted in Japanese): I designed this course for the postgraduate students. Throughout 16 weeks they learn how to rent a place to live, buy and register a car, negotiate a contract, choose an insurance in Japan, etc.

Lecturer at Meio University, Okinawa, Japan

April 2019 – September 2019 (Part-Time)

Intercultural Communication (Course conducted in English): The course is conducted through lectures, seminars and workshops. Topics involve globalisation, multilingualism, belonging, identity, cultural values, acculturation, racism, gender studies, and practical application of verbal and nonverbal communication across cultures.

Research Assistant at University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan
January 2018 – Present (Part-Time)
Research, translation, interpretation, and fieldwork assistance (Japanese and English)

Research Project
March 2019 – Present. Comparative research project on socioeconomic disparities and its influence on health and education among indigenous populations of New Zealand and Okinawa.
Principal Investigator: Prof. Minoru Kobayashi, Bunkyō University

Publications
Kobayashi Minoru, Kengo Kakazu, Isao Katagiri, Szymon Gredżuk. How effective is mixed method for the lesson analysis? On example of a study into how “mutual praising” influences motivation to exercise in the physical education lesson in the upper grades of primary school. Poster for World Association of Lesson Studies (WALS) International Conference in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. September 2019.

Katagiri Isao, Kengo Kakazu, Chiharu Iwaya, Yuko Murayoshi, Szymon Gredżuk, Minoru Kobayashi. Issues with Teacher Training in Japan. Poster for World Association of Lesson Studies (WALS) International Conference in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. September 2019.

Independent Research Project at Meio University, Okinawa, Japan
February 2019 – August 2019

Ryūmya and Yui: The research project aims to develop a playscript for students at Meio University. The playscript is performed by students in the Drama Production class in April-August 2019, supervised by a theatre studies researcher – Dr. Sylwia Dobkowska. In my part of the project, I conducted research in the local history and modified the script of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet to the circumstances of the 15th century Miyako Island.

Education

PhD in Comparative Culture and Area Studies
April 2016 – March 2019
Full-Time (MEXT Scholarship), Comparative Culture and Area Studies at University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan
Thesis: International Legends of Count Benyowsky’s Memoirs and Travels: A Comparative Study on Coastal Narratives of Eastern Europe, Japan and the Ryukyus. (Written in Japanese)

MA in Philology, Japanese Studies
October 2011 – October 2014
Full-Time, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznan, Poland
Dissertation: Undersea Ruins off Yonaguni – the Westernmost Island of Japan. (Written in Polish)

MEXT Scholarship, Japanese Language and Culture Program
October 2013 – August 2014
Full-Time, University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan

Erasmus Scholarship, Japanese Studies
October 2012 – February 2013
Full-Time, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic

BA (Hons) in Philology, Japanese Studies
October 2007 – September 2010
Full-Time, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznan, Poland
Dissertation: Undersea Ruins off Yonaguni Island in the far South of Japan. (Written in Polish)

Publications and Conferences

Dobkowska, Sylwia and Szymon Gredżuk. Japanese Theatre – Resource Pack. Between.Pomiędzy Education 2021. https://www.between.org.pl/education/2021/15

Gredżuk, Szymon and Sylwia Dobkowska. ‘Przekład kulturowy: Teatr w Japonii.’ Between.Edukacja Kosmopolis 2020, Webinarium. (22 October 2020)

M Kobayashi, M Takakura, K Kakazu, S Gredzuk, T Masuzawa, A Kyan, Y Ganaha, H Endoh, “Study of factors related to social and emotional skills in early childhood in Japan,” European Journal of Public Health, Volume 30, Issue 5, September 2020. https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckaa166.388

Gredżuk, Szymon and Sylwia Dobkowska. Okinawa Research Group – Kumiodori. 101 lat relacji polsko-japońskich. Perspektywy, działania, więzi. Muzeum Sztuki i Techniki Japońskiej Manggha. 27-28 lutego 2020. (27 February 2020)

Gredżuk, Szymon and Sylwia Dobkowska. Kumiodori – 300 Anniversary of Theatre from Okinawa. Connections. Between the word, the sound and the image: A Centenary of Polish-Japanese Diplomatic Relations. Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poland. 4-6 December 2019. (5 December 2019)

Kobayashi Minoru, Kengo Kakazu, Isao Katagiri, Szymon Gredżuk. How effective is mixed method for the lesson analysis? On example of a study into how “mutual praising” influences motivation to exercise in the physical education lesson in the upper grades of primary school. Poster for World Association of Lesson Studies (WALS) International Conference in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. September 2019.

A study of foreign maritime accounts on early modern Japan, with the focus on Maurice Benyowsky’s Memoirs and Travels. Public defence of the doctoral thesis at the University of the Ryukyus. 2 February 2019. (Conducted in Japanese)

Rogue exploration and charting of the Northern Pacific by M.A.Benyowsky (1771). 17th International Conference of Historical Geographers 2018 Warsaw. 15 July – 20 July 2018. (Presented in English)

(Hi)stories from the coastal contact zones. Japan in maritime writing of M.A.Benyowsky. Presented at ASCJ 2018 (Asian Studies Conference Japan). 30 June – 1 July 2018. (Presented in English)

The Island where Usmayans live, as described by Ivan Ryumin. Arrival of the Eastern Europeans on Amami Ōshima (1771). International Review of Ryukyuan and Okinawan Studies. (Written in Japanese)

Maritime Writing and Island History at Crossroads – M.A.Benyowsky on Amami Ōshima. Presented at RETI 2017 in Okinawa. 17 November 2017. (Presented in English)

Undersea Ruins of Yonaguni Island. Research Papers of Japanese Language and Culture Students. Vol. 12. March 2015. Nishihara: University of the Ryukyus Exchange Students Center. (Written in Japanese)

Awards

2022 Research Grant (group research grant) from the University of Gdańsk in Poland. Arts and Humanities Support Programme. Between.Pomiędzy Research Group, project title Theatre – Literature – Management, 2022-2024.

2022 Research Grant (individual research grant) from the University of Gdańsk in Poland, UGrants First Grant.

2019 President’s Research Excellence Award
University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan, March 2019
PhD Research Project 2016-2019: International Legends of Count Benyowsky’s Memoirs and Travels: A Comparative Study on Coastal Narratives of Eastern Europe, Japan and the Ryukyus. (Written in Japanese)

Certificates

JLPT – Japanese Language Proficiency Test, level N1

TOEFL – English Language Certificate, score 109/120

Diving Instructor – NAUI 56841