Research

Projects

The WRITE Project

The WRITE project, led by Dr. Hope K. Gerde and funded by the Institute of Education Sciences, aims to support the development of early reading and writing skills for preschool-aged children, including composing ideas, handwriting, understanding that writing conveys meaning, and spelling. The WRITE System includes iWRITE, a fully online professional learning program for early childhood educators to promote high quality early writing opportunities in the classroom as well as a set of early writing assessment. Through additional funding from the Institute of Education Sciences, we are currently creating two writing assessments, the cWRITE, an assessment to understand children’s current writing skills, and the tWRITE, an observational system to understand how a preschool teacher is supporting their students’ writing and areas where they could improve using the iWRITE.

Publications from this study

Gerde, H. K., & Bingham, G. E. (in press). Teachers’ beliefs and usage of video exemplars and engagement features of an online professional learning system for promoting early writing. Technology, Knowledge, and Learning. IF: 3.3 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10758-023-09702-5
Gerde, H. K., & Bingham, G. E. (2023). Using the science of early literacy for professional development for writing. In S. Cabell, N. Patton-Terry, & S. Neuman (Eds). Handbook on the Science of Early Literacy. Guilford.
Bingham, G. E., & Gerde, H. K. (2023). Early childhood teachers’ writing beliefs and practices. Frontiers in Psychology, 14. IF: 3.8 https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1236652
Bingham, G. E., Gerde, H. K., Pikus, A. E., Rohloff, R., Quinn, M. F., Bowles, R. P., & Zhang, X. Y. (2022). Examining teachers’ early writing knowledge and practices. Reading and Writing, 35, 2201-2227. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-022-10299-x IF: 2.87
Bingham, G. E., Gerde, H. K., Zhang, C., & Zhang, X. Y. (2022). Supporting the writing development of emergent bilingual children: Universal and language specific approaches. The Reading Teacher, 76(4), 390-399. IF: 1.78
Chandler, M., Gerde, H. K., Bowles, R. P., McRoy, K. Z., Pontifex, M. B., & Bingham, G. E. (2021). Self-Regulation moderates the relationship between fine motor skills and writing in early childhood. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 57, 239-250. doi: 10.1016/j.ecresq.2021.06.010
Quinn, M. F., Bingham, G. E., & Gerde, H. K. (2021). Who writes what when?: Examining children’s early composing. Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 34, 79–107. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-020-10063-z

Project NEST

Project NEST (Nurturing Environments for Success Together) is a two-year initiative led by the Texas A&M Institute for Early Childhood Development & Education in partnership with the Texas Workforce Commission. Its purpose is to strengthen inclusive early childhood education in rural Texas, with a focus on the Brazos Valley and Panhandle regions.

Grounded in evidence-based practices, the project addresses three key challenges identified by the State:

Training early childhood educators to support neurodiverse learners
Equipping teachers to promote positive behavior for all children
Fostering social development, peer interaction, and play

The project combines in-person workshops, individualized virtual coaching, and professional learning communities (PLCs) to build rural educator capacity, improve implementation fidelity, and cultivate sustainable networks of support. Approximately 200 early childhood educators from Texas Rising Star programs will participate in workshops, with a targeted group of educators receiving intensive video-based coaching and PLC support.

By promoting local teams to lead, Project NEST aims to strengthen rural community connections, enhance educator capacity, and improve outcomes for young children with and without disabilities, while also generating pilot data to inform potential statewide expansion.

Learn More About Project NEST

BIRDI Project

The Bilingual Reading Difficulty Identification (BiRDI) project is led by Dr. Marc Goodrich (Texas A&M University) and Dr. Lisa Fitton (University of South Carolina) and funded by the National Institutes of Health. This collaborative project is designed to address misidentification of developmental language disorder and dyslexia in young bilingual children.

By engaging in this project, we hope to recommend specific assessment protocols that teachers can use to identify students who need additional supports in language and reading, while accounting for contextual factors such as whether students receive instruction in their home language or only in English.

We are currently working with schools in Texas and South Carolina to examine these issues in kindergarten, first grade, and second grade students.

Research assistants working in the BiRDI lab have opportunities to gain numerous research skills, including administering standardized assessments of academic skills, collaborating with school staff, data entry and project management, and learning how to disseminate research findings.

Student Research Opportunities

Gain Hands-On Research Experience Alongside Faculty Mentors

Using an apprenticeship model, Institute faculty mentor students through each step of the research process — from idea generation to presenting and publishing research.

Institute faculty collaborate across Texas A&M University with disciplines including education, psychology, public policy, nursing, and agricultural economics, while partnering with schools, clinics, child care programs, and the Becky Gates and Charlotte Sharp Children’s Centers to support research-based practices for young children and families.

The Institute offers hands-on research opportunities for undergraduate students, graduate students, and post-doctoral fellows through federally funded projects supported by organizations such as the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Department of Education, and the National Science Foundation.

Being a part of a team that helps push the field forward is something really, really exciting to me.

Want To Get Involved?

Interested in learning more about student research opportunities with the Institute?
Contact Jennifer Cardona to learn about current projects, research experiences, and ways to get involved.

Contact Jennifer Cardona

Apply to Conduct Research

The Texas A&M University Children’s Centers at Becky Gates and Charlotte Sharp are interested in engaging in research and instructional projects that enhance our knowledge of children’s development, evidence-based practices for early education and family engagement and effective teacher development that aligns with the goals and interests of the Children’s Centers and the mission of Texas A&M University.

Each research or instructional project is reviewed by the Children’s Centers Research Review Committee to ensure that the rights of children and families are protected and that the research or Instructional project is practical in our unique settings.

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