Kristen McMaster presents on early literacy learning at University of Birmingham

Kristen McMaster, the Guy Bond Chair of Reading in the Department of Educational Psychology, presented “From Theory to Practice: Supporting Inference-Making to Promote Early Literacy Learning” at Nottingham-Trent University on March 15 and at the University of Birmingham School of Education on March 17. The presentations were part of a trip she made to the UK where she met with collaborators and visited schools that are a part of a large, randomized control trial of Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies (PALS) to support primary-school children’s reading.

In her talk, McMaster described how she and her colleagues have drawn on theoretical and instructional design principles to develop and validate the Inference Galaxy, a suite of assessments and instructional tools that show promise to improve early language comprehension in young children. She also demonstrated the Early Language Comprehension Individualized Instruction program (ELCII), shared preliminary evidence of its efficacy, and discussed efforts to enhance its cultural relevance for diverse learners.

McMaster’s research focuses on developing classroom-based and individualized reading and writing assessments and interventions and supporting teachers’ use of data to intensify instruction. She has been PI or co-PI on multiple multimillion dollar research grants funded by the U.S. Department of Education. She has extensive experience developing and providing professional development to practitioners in data-based decision making, curriculum-based measurement, and evidence-based instructional practices.