Research and Researchers
Organizations that can help us understand the Science of Reading body of Research
Ontario Human Rights Commission
Right to Read Inquiry Report
(2022) The Right to Read inquiry report highlights how learning to read is not a privilege but a basic and essential human right. The report includes 157 recommendations to the Ministry of Education, school boards and faculties of education on how to address systemic issues that affect the right to learn to read. The report combines research, human rights expertise and lived experience of students, parents and educators to provide recommendations on curriculum and instruction, early screening, reading interventions, accommodation, professional assessments and systemic issues. Implementing the OHRC’s recommendations will ensure more equitable opportunities and outcomes for students in Ontario’s public education system.
NEW!
September 2024 Two-Year Anniversary Update
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Professional Journal with membership
- COMPASS - a repository of reliable guidance and resources
- Recommended books
- Recommended webinars
- Recommended resources
- Annual conference
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Professional journal with membership
- Structured Literacy facts and resources
- Professional directory of teachers/clinics offering structured literacy
- Podcast
- Annual conference
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FREE Reading 101 Basic Training
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OUTSTANDING videos about all things literacy
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brief explanations about every literacy topic
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practical strategies for both the classroom and families
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certificate of completion provided!
In this webinar, Dr. Holly Lane, director of the University of Florida Literacy Institute, helps you distinguish fact from fiction when it comes to understanding the difference between "research-based" and "evidence-based", and the many levels of evidence and trustworthiness of each.
Decoding Dyslexia is a grassroots movement led by parents who are concerned with the limited access to interventions for children with dyslexia in schools. They are parents, tutors, teachers & students who believe that all children have the right to read, and they have made a profound difference in advocating for better reading instruction overall.
We can learn a lot from students. They have ways of knowing and ways of being that are unique, and they have insights that could help us support them. Ask them.
In the videos below, these students (despite well above average intelligence) share what it felt like to struggle with reading in the classroom, and how it felt when they learned that there is a way to make sense of reading and spelling that doesn't depend upon guessing or memorizing.
mangpor2004 (Photographer). (2004). Child Reading at Desk at School. [digital image]. Shutterstock Royalty Free purchase.
Kovack, M. (2018). Gloria: Feelings About Learning to Read. [Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3loD7gunlhE
The following list contains a few leaders that I have come to trust over the past 20-30 years due to the quality and complexity and integrity of their research and insights. I have also tested out this research in my practice, and have seen the benefits. I appreciate the dedication and wisdom that these researchers bring to the conversation. This list does not include everyone, and I add to it when I can.
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Dr. Jane Ashby, Professor of Reading Science, Mount St. Joseph University
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Dr. Diane August (development of literacy in second-language learners)
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Dr. Todd Cunningham (Founder - Bright Lights Psychology Clinic in Toronto)
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Dr. Nell Duke (Comprehension, Informational Text, Project-Based Instruction)
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Dr. Steven Dykstra (has a practical & fun way of explaining things through analogy)
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Dr. Linnea Ehri, Educational Psychologist, Distinguished Professor Emerita, Graduate Center, CUNY
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Dr. Nadine Gaab (Principal Investigator, Gaab Lab - Early ID/Screening)
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Dr. Claude Goldenberg (language minority students, particularly those from Spanish-speaking backgrounds)
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Dr. Deb Glaser (author of the Reading Teachers Top Ten Tools - I have taken this training and it was excellent - Deb is approachable and easy to listen to. RTTTT is thorough, and easy to understand. I highly recommend this as a place to begin!)
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Margaret Goldberg, M.A., Co-Founder of Right to Read Project
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Nancy Hennessy, MEd (author of The Reading Comprehension Blueprint
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Dr. Jeannine Herron, Neuropsychologist, Director: Talking Fingers; Author
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Dr. Marcia Henry, Professor Emerita San Jose U, President of IDA ('92-'96)
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Dr. Tiffany Hogan, Harvard Research Associate (specializes in the genetic, neurologic, and behavioural links between oral and written language development, with a focus on co-morbid speech, language & literacy disorders. Her webinars about Developmental Language Disorder are outstanding!)
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Dr. Laura Justice (specializes in early childhood education language development. I have attended her keynote addresses and read much of her research - SO engaging & knowledgeable)
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Dr. Pam Kastner, PaTTAN (PennTraining & Tech Assistance Network)
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Dr. David Kilpatrick (author of Equipped for Reading Success, Reading Development and Difficulties
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Dr. Holly Lane (Director of the University of Florida Literacy Institute - author of UFLI)
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Dr. Louisa Moats (author of LETRS training, Speech to Print, and much research)
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Dr. Tim Rasinski (fluency, foundational reading skills)
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Dr. Mark Seidenberg (terrific blog!) (author of Language at the Speed of Sight)
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Dr. Linda Siegel (author of the book Understanding Dyslexia and Other Learning Disabilities)
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Dr. Sally Shaywitz, (author of Overcoming Dyslexia, and prominent neurobiological researcher)
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Dr. Pamela Snow (great blog)
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Dr. Louise Spear-Swerling
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Dr. Kieth Stanovich, Canadian Emeritus Professor of Applied Psych & Human Development, University of Toronto
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Dr. Stephanie Stollar, Assistant Professor at Mount St. Joseph University, Founder of Reading Science Academy
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Dr. Joseph Torgesen, Emeritus Professor of Psychology & Director Emeritus at the Florida Center for Reading Research
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Dr. Jan Wasowicz (manages the SPELLTalk Listserv, which is extremely informative and interactive - Owner of Learning by Design, Inventor of Earobics)
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Dr. Maryanne Wolf (author of Proust and the Squid)