Early Reading Success: Skills for Young Learners

Gail Gillon (Ngāi Tahu iwi) serves as Founding Director of the University of Canterbury Child Well-Being Research Institute and Co-Director of the Better Start National Science Challenge. Her internationally acclaimed research focuses on children's literacy development, particularly the relationship between spoken and written language. As a leading expert in phonological awareness intervention, she has revolutionized approaches to preventing reading difficulties in at-risk young children. Her work spans multiple areas including early literacy development, speech-language pathology, and interdisciplinary practices across health and education. Through the Child Well-Being Research Institute, she leads multidisciplinary research aimed at enhancing learning success and healthy well-being of children within the context of their whānau and community. Her contributions include developing innovative assessment tools in English, Te Reo Maori, and Samoan, while her research has earned numerous prestigious awards and has been widely published in leading journals. As Co-Director of the Better Start National Science Challenge, she guides a comprehensive 10-year research program focused on ensuring successful life starts for all young children in Aotearoa New Zealand, with particular emphasis on culturally responsive approaches to child development and wellbeing.

Dr. Amy Scott serves as Senior Lecturer and programme coordinator for the Better Start Literacy Approach microcredentials at the University of Canterbury's Child Well-being Research Institute. Her research focuses on early literacy and language development, particularly in supporting teachers and families to create optimal learning environments. Her work with the Better Start Literacy Approach (BSLA) has shown significant success in improving children's phonics, phoneme awareness, word reading, spelling, and oral narrative abilities across diverse populations. As Project Manager of the Successful Literacy and Learning theme within the Better Start National Science Challenge, she has contributed to developing evidence-based literacy teaching approaches that incorporate cultural responsiveness and family engagement. Her research has demonstrated particular effectiveness in supporting teenage parents with literacy intervention and implementing large-scale literacy programs. Her academic background combines Psychology and Speech and Language Therapy with Honours from the University of Canterbury, providing a strong foundation for her work with diverse populations including young children, adolescents, and children with special needs. Currently, she leads professional development initiatives for teachers while continuing research on integrated vocabulary instruction and its impact on reading and spelling skills.

Brigid McNeill serves as Associate Professor in the College of Education, Health and Human Development at the University of Canterbury, where she leads groundbreaking research in childhood literacy development. An internationally recognized expert in childhood apraxia of speech, her work has been supported by prestigious grants including the Fast-Start Marsden from the Royal Society of New Zealand. Her research spans multiple areas including phonological awareness intervention, classroom spelling instruction, and teacher preparation for literacy education. As theme leader for A Better Start's Successful Literacy and Learning initiative, she has contributed significantly to understanding early reading development and intervention strategies. Her influential publications include studies on phonological awareness in children with speech disorders, teacher preparation for language and literacy instruction, and integrated intervention approaches. Her work has earned numerous citations, with over 4,300 references to her research, reflecting her substantial impact on the field. Currently, she focuses on enhancing literacy outcomes for children with speech sound difficulties while developing innovative methods to prepare teachers for supporting early literacy development in at-risk populations.