February 2012
Sarah Katz selected to participate in literacy research event in the Netherlands
Sarah Katz of MCPER's Promoting Adolescents' Comprehension of Text and Texas Center for Learning Disabilities projects has been selected to take part in the sixth European Graduate School on Literacy Research from August 25 to 30 in Egmond aan Zee, the Netherlands. The event, sponsored by Radboud University Nijmegen, will focus on scholars exchanging literacy research. Newer researchers will have an opportunity to meet with established educational researchers about topics including text and reading comprehension, spelling and numeracy, neural processes, individual differences, and connections between spoken and written languages. The event will host 40 doctoral students and postdoctoral fellows from around the world.
Save the date: MCPER postdoctoral fellows to meet with Christopher Lemons
Christopher Lemons from the University of Pittsburgh School of Education will meet with MCPER postdoctoral fellows on October 19, 2012. MCPER will publish more information when it becomes available.
Netherlands scholar to speak at solution-focused professional colloquium
Jos Kienhuis of Fontys University of Applied Sciences in the Netherlands will present "Solution-Focused Techniques in School Settings: Interdisciplinary Perspectives" from 11 a.m. to noon on March 2 in The University of Texas School of Social Work (SSW 2.132). To RSVP, send an e-mail with the subject line "Kienhuis" to: rsvp@meadowscenter.org.
MCPER postdoctoral fellows to meet with Steve Yussen
Steve Yussen of the Institute of Child Development at the University of Minnesota will meet with MCPER postdoctoral fellows from 1 to 2 p.m. on February 15 in the Pittenger Room (SZB 418). This event is by invitation only.
Steve Yussen to present research findings on adult book groups
Steve Yussen—professor and director of undergraduate studies at The Institute of Child Development at the University of Minnesota—will present "Discussing Contemporary Fiction: Lessons From Adult Book Groups" at 2:30 p.m. on February 15 in the Dean's Lounge (SZB 238). The presentation will examine findings of a yearlong study of two book groups, highlighting the factors of discussion and individual preferences relative to perspectives in reading. To RSVP, send an e-mail with "Yussen" in the subject line to: rsvp@meadowscenter.org.
Yussen is currently editor of Educational Researcher and is the former dean of the College of Education and Human Development at the University of Minnesota. His research interests include reading comprehension, narrative thinking and memory, and cognitive development.
MCPER researchers train Texas Juvenile Justice Department reading teachers
MCPER researchers Maria Longhi, Michelle Lambert-Yuhasz, and Jennifer Wick-Schnakenberg led a professional development session for Texas Juvenile Justice Department reading teachers on February 6 and 7. The session, part of the work of the Texas Juvenile Justice Department project within the Dropout Prevention Institute, focused on instructional strategies for phonological awareness, reading fluency, and vocabulary.
Art C. Graesser to lead Meadows Distinguished Lecture on conversational agents
Art C. Graesser, professor of psychology and co-director of the Institute of Intelligent Systems at the University of Memphis, will present a Meadows Distinguished Lecture from 4 to 5:30 p.m. on February 23 in the Dean's Conference Room (SZB 238), with a reception to follow. The presentation, "Conversational Agents That Track and Help Student Learning," will include a discussion of the AutoTutor learning environment as well as the new Operation ARIES! scientific reasoning game. To RSVP, please send an e-mail with "Graesser" in the subject line to rsvp@meadowscenter.org.
Graesser's research interests include questioning, text comprehension, reading, artificial intelligence, and learning technologies, and he has helped design, develop, and test software integrating learning, language, and psychology for tutoring and other instructional applications. He is a recipient of the American Psychological Association's 2011 Distinguished Contributions of Applications of Psychology to Education and Training Award, and this month the University of Memphis will present him with the its highest research recognition: the first Presidential Award for Lifetime Achievement in Research. Graesser is also a senior research fellow at Oxford University.
MCPER postdoctoral fellows to meet with Art C. Graesser
On February 24, MCPER postdoctoral fellows will have an opportunity to meet with Art C. Graesser, professor of psychology and co-director of the Institute of Intelligent Systems at the University of Memphis. This event is by invitation only.