My research questions derive from working with students and teachers in K-12 education and teacher preparation with the ultimate goal of improving literacy instruction and assessment at various levels.  I am a mixed methods researcher using a combination of quantitative and qualitative data collection to answer my research question(s).  In addition, I believe strongly in educational research being mutually beneficial, being that the research process and resulting conclusions should support growth and development of the participants in the research, myself as a teacher educator, and the field of literacy education overall.

Current Research Topics/Questions:

Reading Comprehension Instruction

• Longitudinal Multi-Site Study: How do undergraduate teacher candidates’ reading habits, attitudes, comprehension skills, and knowledge of reading comprehension instruction impact their ability to teach children how to make inferences when reading narrative text?
• What should we be doing in the “We Do” of comprehension strategy instruction?

Teacher Preparation/Development

• What are the experiences of student teachers completing the edTPA and how do these impact student teachers’ development?
• What is needed to develop and sustain school-wide literacy assessment?