story by Claire Miller
Three faculty members from Georgia State University’s College of Education & Human Development were awarded grants from the Sandra Dunagan Deal Center for Early Language and Literacy as part of the center’s Research Grant Initiative for Early Language and Literacy Practices.
Assistant Professors Brennan Chandler and Isabel Vargas-Bell received funding for a project entitled, "Supporting Paraeducators in Enhancing Language and Literacy (SPELL)," and Assistant Professor JeanMarie Farrow received funding for a project entitled, "Rethinking Practice-Based Learning Theory in the AI Era: A Structured Composing Tool to Enhance Early Literacy and Language Development."
Grant recipients are awarded up to $50,000 for a one-year research project on “early language and literacy practices for children birth through age eight that create the conditions for all children to be on the path to third grade reading proficiency,” according to the center’s website.
Chandler and Vargas-Bell’s project will recruit 15 paraprofessionals in Atlanta-area schools to implement an evidence-based spelling program called "Spelling Mastery" over a 14-week period.
The researchers will conduct pre- and post-tests with 75 students to assess the program’s effectiveness in improving students’ word reading, spelling and sentence writing.
“Through enhanced implementation efforts, we anticipate that students will make substantial and statistically significant gains on these literacy measures,” Chandler and Vargas-Bell wrote. “This project aims to not only improve immediate student outcomes, but also establish a model for scalable, sustainable literacy intervention that addresses a critical need for consistent and high-quality spelling instruction.”
Farrow’s project will train 20-30 Pre-K, kindergarten and first grade teachers from underserved rural and urban districts to use an artificial intelligence- (AI) driven composing tool.
The research-based AI tool will help teachers develop structured composing lessons for their classrooms that specifically address students’ language skills, including handwriting, spelling, vocabulary, syntax, and idea generation and organization, according to Farrow.
“Teachers can connect their learning directly to lesson planning and teaching, while AI-enhanced features allow them to adapt lessons to meet the specific needs of their students,” she explained.
This training will give educators access to high-quality research and tools that can help them improve young children's language and cognitive development.
“We believe that research and teaching should work hand in hand to foster knowledge generation within communities,” Farrow said. “Our goal is for teachers to gain a deeper understanding of research on early writing development and strategies to support it, while also learning from teachers about how they adapt these strategies to meet the unique needs of their students.”