Faculty and graduate students from the School of Communication Science and Disorders (SCSD) presented at the Society for the Scientific Study of Reading (SSSR) conference in Copenhagen, Denmark, on July 11-13, 2024.

SSSR hosts an annual international conference on literacy research that draws top researchers in the field. Presentation topics include classroom instruction and intervention for children (and adults) who struggle with reading and writing.

Associate Professor Dr. Sana Tibi was on the conference planning committee, chaired a symposium, and presented a talk. “The biggest takeaway is that there is so much value in attending a specialized conference where one gets the opportunity to listen to different scientists talking about the latest advances in their research, listen to other scholars from the international community, and learn about the scientific research in literacy in English and other languages that differ in their writing systems,” Tibi said.

SCSD had a significant amount of involvement in the conference, with the following attendees: professors Hugh Catts, Kelly Farquharson, Sana Tibi and Carla Wood, as well as doctoral students Mary Allison Moody, Lydia Kim, and Audrey Hendrix.

Doctoral student Audrey Hendrix presented a poster titled, “Measuring morphological complexity in teachers’ instructional dialogues” with co-authors Sana Tibi, Carla Wood, Chris Schatschneider and Jeanne Wanzek. Hendrix shared, “Attending the SSSR conference allowed me to meet and learn from experts in literacy instruction. I am inspired to continue learning from experts and, with their guidance, find impactful areas to study.”

Associate Professor Kelly Farquharson and doctoral students Mary Allison Moody and Lydia Kim co-authored a poster titled, “Sonority and phonological task performance: A systematic review.”

“Doctoral students gain invaluable experiences by traveling, networking, and presenting their research findings [at conferences],” Farquharson said. “Like many conferences, SSSR offers students an opportunity to meet their ‘research heroes’.  I firmly believe that providing funding for doctoral student conference travel should be a high priority in order to provide robust opportunities for young scientists.”