People and institutions involved
IES program contact(s)
Products and publications
Easterbrooks, S. R., Lederberg, A. R., Antia, S., Schick, B., Kushalnagar, P., Webb, M. Y., Branum-Martin, L., & Connor, C. M. (2015). Reading among diverse deaf and hard of hearing learners: What, how, and for whom? American Annals for the Deaf, 159 (5), 419-432.
Webb, M. Y., Lederberg, A. R., Branum-Martin, L., Connor, C. M. (in press). Evaluating the structure of early English literacy skills in deaf and hard-of-hearing children. Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education.
Project website:
Related projects
Supplemental information
Projects: The Center's primary research will involve three sets of studies: (1) an identification study, (2) iterative design studies, and (3) promise studies.
Identification Study
At least 120 students in each grade (Kâ2) with moderate to profound hearing loss will participate in this study during Years 1â2. Data will be collected on a number of child factors including background, phonological awareness, literacy, and language skills, as well as classroom practices, teacher background, and family characteristics. The team will analyze the data to: (1) understand the language and literacy abilities in students who are deaf or hard of hearing; (2) describe classroom instruction that students receive in a variety of elementary school settings; and (3) investigate language and literacy skills over the school year as a function of child, classroom, and school characteristics as well as interactions between child and instructional characteristics.
Iterative Design Studies
During years 2â4, the team will develop interventions that can be adapted to students with moderate to profound hearing loss, including students who speak English, use sign language, or use both languages. These interventions will teach early reading skills, vocabulary, English syntax, and advanced language and cognitive skills. An iterative design process will be used to develop each intervention separately.
Promise Studies
After developed, the promise of the interventions will be evaluated with students in pre-K through Grade 3 using a number of research designs, including cluster randomized controlled trials, pre- and post-test group designs, and single-case design. Students will be assessed on a variety of distal and proximal measures to determine whether the intervention shows promise for improving language and literacy outcomes.
Key Personnel: Georgia State University: Amy Lederberg, Susan Easterbrooks, Lee Branum-Martin, Mi-young Webb; University of Arizona: Shirin Antia; University of Colorado at Boulder: Brenda Schick; Rochester Institute of Technology: Poorna Kushalnagar; Arizona State University: Carol Connor
IES Program Contact:
Dr. Amy Sussman
Email: Amy.Sussman@ed.gov
Telephone: (202) 219-2126
Questions about this project?
To answer additional questions about this project or provide feedback, please contact the program officer.
