PIRT Fellow Alumni
Jessica Logan
Jessica is in her fourth year at Florida State University under the advisement of Chris Schatschneider. She recieved her M.S. in research psychology from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga before starting work at Florida State. Research projects include work in preschool language and literacy and exploring the rapid serial naming task, as well as educational applications of structural equation modeling, hierarchical linear modeling, item resonse theory, latent class analysis, and eye tracking techniques.
Publications
Logan, J. A. R., Schatschneider, C., & Wagner, R. K. (2008). Serial naming and isolated naming in the prediction of reading. Manuscript submitted for publication.
Logan, J. A. R., & Petscher, Y. (2008). Progress monitoring of student growth: A latent class analysis approach. Manuscript submitted for publication.
Logan, J., Piasta, S., Juatice, L., Schatschneider, C., Petrill, S., & Pence, K. (2008). Expressive language growth in preschoolers: The contribution of classroom attendance. Manuscript submitted for publication.
Logan, J. & Schatschneider, C. (2008). Proposed critical components of rapid serial naming. Manuscript submitted for publication.
Shayne Piasta
Shayne graduated from Florida State University and the Florida Center for Reading Research PIRT program in 2008, with a Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology. While at FSU/FCRR, research projects included Dr. Wagner’s longitudinal study of reading comprehension and Dr. Connor’s study of individualizing student instruction, as well as work on preschoolers’ development of alphabet knowledge. Her research interests include early and emergent literacy skill development, evidence-based practices for promoting literacy development, and educational research design and analysis. Shayne was awarded the inaugural Outstanding Institute of Education Sciences Pre-Doctoral Fellow Award in 2008, and is currently serving as a postdoctoral research scientist in the Preschool Language and Literacy lab at The Ohio State University.
Publications
Wagner, R. K., Piasta, S. B., & Torgesen, J. K. (2007). Learning to read. In M. Traxler & M. A. Gernsbacher (Eds.), Handbook of psycholinguistics (2nd ed.). San Diego, CA: Academic Press.
Piasta, S. B., Connor, C. M., Fishman, B., & Morrison, F. J. (in press). Teachers’ knowledge of literacy concepts, classroom practices, and student reading growth. Scientific Studies of Reading.
Connor, C. M., Piasta, S. B., Glasney, S., Schatschneider, C., Fishman, B., Underwood, P. & Morrison, F. J. (in press). Individualizing student instruction precisely: Effects of child-by-instruction interactions on students’ literacy. Child Development.
Bailet, L. L., Repper, K. K., Piasta, S. B., & Murphy, S. P. (in press). Emergent literacy intervention for pre-kindergarteners at risk for reading failure. Journal of Learning Disabilities.
Zucker, T. A., Justice, L. M., & Piasta, S. B. (in press). Pre-kindergarten teachers’ verbal references to print during classroom-based large-group shared reading. Journal of Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in the Schools.
Presentations
Piasta, S.B., Anthony, J., Phillips, B.M., Williams, J.M., & Francis, D.J. (2009, February). Understanding children’s knowledge of letter sounds using item response theory. Poster to be presented at the Pacific Coast Research Conference, San Diego, CA.
Piasta, S. B., & Connor, C. M. (2008, July). Exploring the roles of teacher knowledge and explicit decoding instruction in promoting student word recognition gains. Poster presented at the Fifteenth Annual Meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Reading, Asheville, NC.
Piasta, S. B. (2008, June). Promoting preschoolers’ acquisition of alphabet knowledge: A comparison of two instructional approaches. Paper presented at the Institute of Education Sciences Research Conference, Washington, D. C.
Piasta, S. B., & Wagner, R. K. (2008, February). The impact of instruction on alphabetic learning: A meta-analysis. Poster presented at the Pacific Coast Research Conference, San Diego, CA.
Piasta, S. B., & Wagner, R. K. (2007, March). Prediction of kindergarteners' alphabetic knowledge: A comprehensive model of letter and child characteristics. Paper presented at the Society for Research in Child Development Biennial Meeting, Boston, MA.
David Purpura
David is an IES PIRT postdoc at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in the Math Education Department. He is currently completing his clinical internship at the Louise R. Goldhagen Multidisciplinary Evaluation and Consulting Center. He recently defended his dissertation entitled, “Informal Number-Related Mathematics Skills: An Examination of the Structure of and Relation Between these Skills in Preschool.” David’s research interest is in the interrelation of children’s early academic skills and dysregulated executive functioning. He is particularly interested in disentangling the overlap between early mathematics achievement and attention problems by further evaluating the constructs of these two domains. He is also interested in the application of advance research methodology and statistics such as Item Response Theory, Structural Equation Modeling, and Hierarchical Linear Modeling to the broader field of psychopathology and education.
Publications:
Piasta, S. B., Purpura, D. J., & Wagner, R. (In press). Developing Emergent Literacy Skills: The Impact of Alphabet Instruction. Reading & Writing.
Purpura, D. J., & Lonigan C. J. (2009). Conner’s Teacher Rating Scale for preschool children: A revised, brief, age-specific measure. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 38, 263-272.
Lonigan, C. J., Anthony, J. L., Phillips, B. M., Purpura, D. J., Wilson, S. B., & McQueen, J. D. (2009). The nature of preschool phonological processing abilities and their relations to vocabulary, general cognitive abilities, and print knowledge. Journal of Educational Psychology, 101, 345-358.
Desmond, S. A., Soper, S. E., Purpura, D. J., & Smith, E. (2009). Religiosity, Moral Beliefs, and Delinquency: Does the Effect of Religiosity on Delinquency Depend on Moral Beliefs? Sociological Spectrum, 29, 51-71.
Purpura, D. J., Wilson, S. B., and Lonigan, C. J. (submitted). ADHD Symptoms in Preschool Children: How well do symptoms fit DSM-IV-TR criteria?
Purpura, D. J., Piasta, S. B., & Lonigan, C. J. (submitted). The Impact of a Number Identification Intervention on Early Mathematics Skills.
Purpura, D. J., & Lonigan, C. J. (in preparation). Informal number-related mathematics skills: An examination of the structure of and relations between these skills in preschool.
Purpura, D. J., & Lonigan, C. J. (in preparation). Can Externalizing Behavior Symptoms be Altered by an Early Reading Intervention?
Lonigan, C. J., Wilson, S. B., Purpura, D. J., & Clancy-Menchetti, J. (in preparation). Evaluating the components of an emergent literacy intervention for children at-risk of reading difficulties.
Purpura, D. J., Puranik, C., and Lonigan, C. J. (in preparation). Print Concepts: Is the unitary structure age dependent?
Shauna Wilson
Shauna is a 5th year PIRT student and is working on her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology. Shauna has been involved with several projects, including the use of technology in teaching middle-school science, evaluation of emergent literacy screening tools, assessment of self-regulation and theory of mind in preschoolers, and validity of preschool approaches to learning in predicting academic outcomes throughout elementary school. Shauna's primary interest is in the intersection of externalizing behaviors and emergent literacy. Her dissertation is an exploration of the relation of temperament, literacy, and behavior.
Publications:
Lonigan, C. J., & Wilson, S. B. (2008). Report on the Revised Get Ready to Read! Screening Tool: Psychometrics and normative information. Technical Report. Tallahassee, FL: Author.
Wilson, J. H., & Wilson, S. B. (2007). The first day of class affects student motivation: An experimental study. Teaching of Psychology, 34, 226-230.
Wilson, S. B., & Kennedy, J. H. (2006). Helping behavior in a rural versus urban setting: Professional and casual attire. Psychological Reports, 98, 229-233.
Wilson, S. B., & Lonigan, C. J. (2008). An evaluation of two emergent literacy screeners for preschool children. Manuscript submitted for publication.
Wilson, S. B., & Lonigan, C. J. (2008). Identifying preschool children at-risk of later reading difficulties: Evaluation of two emergent literacy screening tools. Manuscript submitted for publication.
