Dr. Amy Elleman
Literacy, Language, and Learning Research Group (L3RG)
About the Lab
The Literacy, Language, and Learning Research Group (L3RG) is an active, collaborative research lab focused on understanding and improving reading comprehension across diverse populations.
L3RG investigates how language and cognitive processes shape reading outcomes for diverse learners. The group is especially interested in how vocabulary acquisition, knowledge, and inferencing contribute to reading and listening comprehension, drawing on experimental and meta-analytic methods. The lab’s work is closely connected to practice and policy, with a strong emphasis on translating research into effective instructional approaches, particularly for students who experience reading difficulties.
Doctoral students in L3RG gain hands-on experience in all aspects of the research process, including study design, data analysis, and scholarly writing. Students regularly collaborate on peer-reviewed publications and present at national conferences, developing a strong foundation for careers in academia, research, and educational leadership. The lab fosters a supportive and intellectually engaging environment where students build methodological expertise while contributing to meaningful, practice-oriented literacy research.
Research Focus and Current Projects
What works in comprehension? A meta-analysis across 50 years of comprehension research
This project aims to comprehensively analyze experimental research to examine instructional, student, and measurement characteristics that may influence comprehension. The team has conducted an up-to-date screening of studies from the past 50 years and coded a vast array of variables from the included research.
Patterns in reading comprehension analysis: A meta-analysis of comprehension meta-analyses
This meta-analysis seeks to analyze the data from reading comprehension meta-analyses across the field. We aim to identify trends in comprehension meta-analyses to advance reading research in meaningful, evidence-based ways.
The role of verbal reasoning in comprehension instruction for listening comprehension among preK–8 students: A meta-analytic review
Lab Members
 | Amy Elleman, Ph.D. Director – Literacy Studies Amy.Elleman@mtsu.edu Amy Elleman, Ph.D., earned her B.S. in Psychology from the University of Maryland in Heidelberg, Germany, and her M.Ed. and Ph.D. from Vanderbilt University. Her research examines key factors that support reading comprehension, including vocabulary, inference generation, and knowledge acquisition. She has extensive expertise in meta-analysis and in the design and evaluation of reading comprehension interventions. Drawing on experience as both a researcher and an educator, Dr. Elleman frequently speaks to professional audiences about bridging the research-to-practice gap in literacy instruction. She currently serves as Director of the Literacy Studies Ph.D. Program at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU), an interdisciplinary program focused on preparing doctoral students to translate literacy research into effective practice. |
 | Debs Pingitore Debs Pingitore is a Graduate Assistant for the Literacy Studies Ph.D. Program at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU), and a Ph.D. candidate in the program. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education, and is a qualified Reading Specialist for Grades preK-12. With almost a decade of experience teaching children and mentoring novice teachers, Debs has a passion for ensuring preservice teachers are exceptionally prepared for their teaching careers. More recently, Debs has served as a guest lecturer and adjunct professor for the College of Education (CoE) at MTSU. She has worked closely with a local school district to narrow the gap between teacher preparedness programs and first placements in the field, and supervised students from the CoE during Residency 1 placements. She is currently teaching the Encode to Decode Curriculum to students in preK as part of a quasi-experimental study. Her research focuses on the components affecting comprehension and strategies to help students learn vocabulary, with an emphasis on meta-analysis and advanced statistical analysis. |
 | Shauna Sweeney Shauna Sweeney is a Ph.D. doctoral candidate of Literacy Studies with an emphasis on Staff Development at Middle Tennessee State University. She is currently a Literacy Instructional Coach at an Elementary school in Rutherford County School District. She has been in education for almost twenty years. Mrs. Sweeney has an M.Ed. in Instructional Coaching, as well as a degree in Early Childhood Education. She is interested in working with new teachers and pre-service teachers in the future and would like to teach education at the college level. Mrs. Sweeney is currently doing her dissertation study on spelling and reading in PreK students. Her other areas of interest include professional development for teachers and writing and phonics instruction in early elementary. |
 | Amanda Freeman Amanda Freeman is a doctoral student at MTSU with over 20 years of experience as a reading specialist and literacy coach in the US and internationally. She is dedicated to advancing equitable literacy outcomes and promoting critical reading and writing practices among diverse learners. Amanda holds an M.Ed. from the University of Pennsylvania, with a concentration in adolescent literacy. Amanda currently serves as a District RTI coordinator in Germantown, Tennessee, focusing on dyslexia-specific intervention for secondary students. She also supports the implementation of evidence-based intervention models in school districts across the US as a Professional Learning Facilitator with Cambium Learning Group and a Literacy Consultant with CORE Learning. Her research interests include classroom discourse, Response to Intervention and Instruction (RTI2), and teacher professional learning. |
 | Brandi MacDonald Brandi MacDonald is a Ph.D. Student and Graduate Assistant in the Literacy Studies program at Middle Tennessee State University. She holds an M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction from Keene State College, certification as a dyslexia practitioner, and has more than a decade of experience as a high school reading specialist and literacy coach. She served as a Peace Corps Response literacy support specialist in Belize, Central America, where she collaborated with the Belizean Ministry of Education, primary school administrators, teachers, and students to implement reading intervention and support educators through professional development. Her research focus is secondary reading comprehension assessment. |
 | Lisa Brill Lisa Brill is a Literacy Specialist at Wilson Language Training and a first year Ph.D. student in Literacy Studies at MTSU. She holds a master’s degree in Language and Literacy from Simmons University and certifications as a Structured Literacy Dyslexia Interventionist (CERI) and Wilson Dyslexia Practitioner. With over twenty years of experience as a classroom teacher, instructional coach, and national LETRS trainer, Lisa supports the implementation of structured literacy programs in schools across the country, including recent work with districts in New York City and Palm Beach County. She currently leads the development of Wilson’s Virtual Teaching & Learning Consults — structured, remote coaching engagements designed to extend and deepen in-person literacy coaching for teachers — launching Back-to-School 2026. Lisa’s contributions to product development and her sustained impact on the schools and colleagues she serves were recognized with the Wilson Q3 Hero Award. Her research interests include early literacy, data-based decision making (with a focus on predictive validity of literacy measures) and how literacy coaching, in collaboration with school leaders, can strengthen the implementation of structured literacy and improve student outcomes. She is especially interested in teacher preparation and in collaborating with curriculum developers to align instructional materials to evidence-based practices. |
 | Jieun Park Jieun Park is a doctoral student and Graduate Assistant in the Literacy Studies Ph.D. program at Middle Tennessee State University. Before joining the program, she taught elementary and secondary students for six years in South Korea. Her research focuses on the language and cognitive skills that support reading comprehension, as well as effective strategies for students with reading difficulties. |
 | Aviva Coyne-Green Aviva Coyne-Green is a Ph.D. student of Literacy Studies at Middle Tennessee State University. She has worked in the field of education for 14 years. After receiving a B.S. in Elementary and Special Education and a M.P.P. in Education Policy from Vanderbilt University, she joined AIM Academy outside of Philadelphia, where she serves as the Lower School Curriculum and Instructional leader, a 5th grade teacher and Wilson Certified Instructor. In her leadership role, she supports faculty through coaching and professional development, oversees the development and implementation of curriculum in the Lower School and serves on the Lower School Leadership Team. She has been a broker for a variety of research collaborations at AIM with partners including The Florida Center for Reading Research at Florida State University, Middle Tennessee University, Haskins Laboratories and Michigan State University, exploring topics such as background knowledge, vocabulary, word reading automaticity, writing and the neuroscience of reading. Aviva also co-authored the Pathways to Proficient Writing course and facilitates both the writing and reading teacher training courses through the AIM Institute for Learning & Research. |
 | Molly Risley, M.A,, M.Ed, Molly Risley earned her B.A. in English, B.S. in Communication, and M.Ed in Curriculum and Instruction from Freed-Hardeman University and her M.A in Higher Education from the University of Mississippi. She is ABD, and her research examines practical strategies related to reading comprehension, such as teaching through the lens of disciplinary literacy and using AI-generated analogies to help readers access complex text. Molly is in the process of writing her dissertation. She has spoken at a number of state and regional education and reading research conferences on topics ranging from schema theory to interdisciplinary lesson planning. Molly currently serves as a middle grades guide at Community Montessori School in Jackson, Tennessee. |
 | Rebecca Loera, M.Ed. Rebecca Loera earned her B.S. in Interdisciplinary Studies with an Early Childhood-6th Grade Generalist Education certification and her M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction with a Reading Specialist certification from Texas A&M University. She is a doctoral student in Literacy Studies at Middle Tennessee State University. Her research interests include the effects of language development on reading and writing and bridging the gap between research and educator and leader practice. She has presented at a number of state and regional conferences on topics ranging from spelling and orthographic mapping to comprehension. She currently serves as a Structured Literacy Professional Learning Facilitator in Atlanta, GA. |
Select Publications
Dr. Amy Elleman
Adejumo, T.*, Schrodt, K., & Elleman, A. (2025). A national survey of teachers on early literacy: Assessing Nigerian reading teachers’ knowledge, perception and practices on reading instruction. Reading Psychology, 1-27.
Fields, R. S.*, Elleman, A. M., Oslund, E. L., Clark, L. B., & Olson, C*. (2023). Effects of adapted self-regulated strategy development for second language adolescents. Reading Psychology, 1-20.
Elleman, A.M., Steacy, L. M., Gilbert, J. K., Cho, E., Miller, A. C., Coyne-Green, A., Pritchard, P., Fields, R. S.*, Schaeffer, S., & Compton, D. L. (2022). Exploring the role of knowledge in predicting reading and listening comprehension in fifth grade students. Learning and Individual Differences, 98, 102182-102196.
Oslund, E. L., Elleman, A. M., & Wallace, K.* (2020). Factors related to data-based decision-making: Examining experience, professional development, and the mediating effect of confidence on teacher graph literacy. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 54, 243-255.
Elleman, A. M., Oslund, E. L., Griffin, N.*, & Meyers, K.* (2019). A review of middle school vocabulary interventions: Five research-based recommendations for practice. Language, Speech, and Hearing in Schools, 50, 477-492.
Schrodt, K.*, Elleman, A. M., FitzPatrick, E. R., Hasty, M. M., Kim, J. K., Tharp, T. J., & Rector, H. S. (2019). An examination of mindset instruction, self-regulation, and writer’s workshop on kindergartener’s writing performance and motivation: A mixed methods study. Reading & Writing Quarterly: Overcoming Learning Difficulties, 35, 427-444.
Elleman, A. M., & Oslund, E. L. (2019). Reading comprehension research: Implications for practice and policy. Policy Insights from the Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 6(1), 3-11.
Elleman, A. M. (2017). Examining the impact of inference instruction on the literal and inferential comprehension of skilled and less skilled readers: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Educational Psychology, 109(6), 761-781.
Elleman, A. M., Steacy, L. M., & Compton, D. L. (2017). Child and word predictors of vocabulary acquisition during text reading among struggling readers. Scientific Studies of Reading, 21(2), 133-145.
Fuchs, D., Hendricks, E., Walsh, M. E., Fuchs, L. S., Gilbert, J. K., Zhang T., W., Patton III, S., Davis-Perkins, N., Kim, W., Elleman, A. M., & Peng, P. (2018). Evaluating a multidimensional reading comprehension program and reconsidering the lowly reputation of tests of near‐transfer. Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 33(1), 11-23.
Elleman, A. M., Olinghouse, N. G., Gilbert, J., Compton, D. L., & Spencer, J. (2017). Developing content knowledge in struggling readers: An examination of differential comprehension instruction for younger and older elementary students. Elementary School Journal, 118(2), 232-256.
Elleman, A. M., & Compton, D.L. (2017). Beyond comprehension strategy instruction: What’s next? Language, Speech, and Hearing in Schools, 48, 84-91.
Barth, A. E., & Elleman, A. M. (2016). Evaluating the impact of a multi-strategy inference intervention for middle grade struggling readers. Language, Speech, and Hearing in Schools, 48, 31-41.
Steacy, L. M., Elleman, A. M., Compton, D. L., & Lovett, M. W.(2016). Exploring differential effects across two decoding treatments on item-level transfer in children with significant word reading difficulties. Scientific Studies of Reading, 20(4), 283-285.
Compton, D. L., Miller, A., Elleman, A. M., & Steacy, L. (2014). Have we forsaken reading theory in the name of quick fix interventions for children with reading disability? Scientific Studies of Reading, 18(1), 55-73.
Elleman, A. M., Compton, D. L., Fuchs, D., Fuchs, L., & Bouton, B. (2011). Exploring dynamic assessment as a means of identifying children at-risk of developing comprehension difficulties. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 44.348-357.
Lindo, E. J., & Elleman, A. M. (2010). Social validity’s presence in field-based reading interventions. Remedial and Special Education, 31, 489-499.
Elleman, A. M., Lindo, E. J., Morphy, P., & Compton, D. L. (2009). The impact of vocabulary instruction on passage-level comprehension of school-age children: A meta-analysis. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 2, 1-41.
Debs Pingitore
Park, J., Elleman, A., Magne, C., Pingitore, D.A., MacDonell, L. (2026). The Effects of Syntactic Skill Intervention on Passage and Sentence-Level Reading Comprehension in PreK-12 Students: A Meta-Analytic Review. [Manuscript in preparation.] Department of Literacy Studies, Middle Tennessee State University.
Pingitore, D. A., Elleman, A. M., Cao, Y., Park, J., & Senkow, A. (2026). Teaching Science Vocabulary: A Meta-Analysis of Effective Strategies for Adolescents.[Manuscript in preparation.] Department of Literacy Studies, Middle Tennessee State University.
Park, J., Elleman, A., MacDonald, B., Pingitore, D. A., Coyne-Green, A., Sweeney, S., Brill, L., & Loera, R. (2026). The Role of Verbal Reasoning in Comprehension Instruction for Listening Comprehension Among PreK–8 Students: A Meta-Analytic Review.
Presentations
Pingitore, D. A. & Elleman, A. M. (2024, February). Building Vocabulary to Improve Literacy in the Science Classroom: A Review of the Research. Presentation at the Literacy Research Conference, Murfreesboro, TN.
Pingitore, D. A. & Park, J. (2024, April). Effective Adolescent Literacy Strategies. Professional Development Presentation for Middle School Teachers, Murfreesboro, TN.
Pingitore, D. A. & Banda, S. (2024, May). TAP Literacy Training. Professional Development Presentation for High School Teachers, Murfreesboro, TN.
Pingitore, D. A. (2025, March). A Meta-Analysis of Science Vocabulary Interventions with Adolescent Students. Poster presentation at the Literacy Research Conference, Murfreesboro, TN.
Pingitore, D. A. (2025, March). A Meta-Analysis of Science Vocabulary Interventions with Adolescent Students. Poster presentation at the MTSU College of Education Scholars’ Day, Murfreesboro, TN.
Pingitore, D. A., Elleman, A. M., & Cao, Y. (2025, March). A Meta-Analysis of Science Vocabulary Interventions with Adolescent Students. Poster presentation at the MTSU Research and Creative Activity Exposition, Murfreesboro, TN.
Pingitore, D. A., Cao, Y., & Elleman, A. M. (2026, February). Boosting Science Success: A Meta-Analysis of Effective Vocabulary Strategies for Adolescents. Presentation at the Literacy Research Conference, Murfreesboro, TN.
Shauna Sweeney
Park, J., Elleman, A., MacDonald, B., Pingitore, D., Coyne-Green, A., Sweeney, S., Brill, L., Loera, R. (2026) The Role of Verbal Reasoning in Comprehension Instruction for Listening Comprehension Among PreK–8 Students: A Meta-Analytic Review
Currently projects:
Effects of the Encode to Decode Curriculum on Early Literacy Outcomes in Prekindergarten: A Quasi-Experimental Study
Writing Professional Development Meta-Analysis
Integrating Text Structure Instruction to Support Reading and Writing in Middle School Social Studies
Presentations
Literacy Research Conference, Middle Tennessee State University, February 2026, Mapping Words to Memory: Practical Phoneme-Mapping-Graphing Routines for K-5
Writing Professional Development, Rutherford County Schools, March 2025, SRSD in Action: Helping Writers Plan, Write, and Shine!
Literacy Research Conference, Middle Tennessee State University, March 2025, Effective professional Development for Literacy Educators: A Review of models and Outcomes
Amanda Freeman
Cao, Y., Freeman, A., Price, E. (2025). Teacher Language Use and Language and Literacy Outcomes: a meta-analysis of PK to 5th grade.[Manuscript in preparation]. Department of Literacy Studies, Middle Tennessee State University.
Presentations
Freeman, A., & Cao, Y. (2026, July). Classroom dialogue and literacy achievement: a meta-analysis of grades 4-12 [Spoken Paper Presentation]. Society for the Scientific Study of Reading Annual Conference, Rotterdam, Netherlands.
Freeman, A. (2025, February). A Narrative Review of Morphological Interventions on Literacy Outcomes for Language Minority Adolescents [Poster Presentation]. Middle Tennessee State University Literacy Research Conference, Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
Freeman, A. (2014, July 14–17). Leveling the field: Making close reading accessible for all learners [Conference session]. KIPP National School Summit, Houston, TX, United States.
Freeman, A. (2013, October). Close reading strategies for Special Populations [Conference session]. KIPP Special Needs Summit, Washington, DC, United States.
Brandi MacDonald
Park, J., Elleman, A., MacDonald, B., Pingitore, D. A., Coyne-Green, A., Sweeney, S., Brill, L., & Loera, R. (2026). The Role of Verbal Reasoning in Comprehension Instruction for Listening Comprehension Among PreK–8 Students: A Meta-Analytic Review.
Presentations
MacDonald, B. (2026, February). Reliability and Validity of a Sentence-Level High School Reading Comprehension Screener. MTSU Literacy Research Conference, Murfreesboro, TN.
MacDonald, B. (2025, November). Reliability and Validity of a Sentence-Level High School Reading Comprehension Screener. Mid-South Educational Research Association, New Orleans, LA.
MacDonald, B. (2025, March). The relationship between syntactic skills and reading comprehension: Research to practice. MTSU Literacy Research Conference, Murfreesboro TN.
Lisa Brill
Brill, L., Burch, J., Danilson, C., & Loera, R. (February 2026). Spelling as a Window: Using Student Errors to Unlock Literacy Growth. Symposium presentation at MTSU Literacy Conference, Murfreesboro, TN.
Jieun Park
Park, J., Elleman, A., Macdonald, B., Pingitore, Coyne-Green, A., Sweeney, S., Brill, L., Loera, R. (2026, July). The Role of Verbal Reasoning in Comprehension Instruction for Listening Comprehension Among PreK–8 Students: A Meta-Analytic Review [Poster presentation].Society for the Scientific Study of Reading (SSSR), Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
Pingitore, D., Cao, Y., Elleman, A., Park, J., & Senko, A. (2026, July). Science vocabulary interventions for adolescents: A meta-analysis [Poster presentation].Society for the Scientific Study of Reading (SSSR), Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
Park, J., Elleman, A., & Cao, Y. (2026, April). The role of executive functions in reading development: A longitudinal multilevel modeling approach [Poster presentation]. American Educational Research Association (AERA) Annual Meeting, Los Angeles, California, United States.
Park, J. (2026, February). Building Sentence Comprehension: Syntactic Instruction for Elementary Readers [Paper presentation].Literacy Research Conference, Murfreesboro, TN, United States
Elleman, A.,Park, J., Lindo, E., Grow, J., Oslund, E., Pingitore, D., & Shewalter, P. (2026, February). Revisiting Comprehension Strategy Instruction: Five Decades of Evidence and Implications for Students With and Without Reading Disabilities [Paper presentation]. Pacific-Coast Research Conference (PCRC), Long Beach, California, United States.
Park, J., Elleman, A., Magne, C., Pingitore, D., & MacDonell, L. (2025, July). The Effects of Syntactic Skill Intervention on Passage-level and Sentence-level comprehension in PreK-12 Students: A Meta-Analytic Review [Poster presentation].Society for the Scientific Study of Reading (SSSR), Calgary, Canada.
Park, J., & Elleman, A. (2025, March). Enhancing Reading Comprehension in K-12 Education: Exploring Sentence Structure and Text Complexity [Paper presentation].Literacy Research Conference, Murfreesboro, TN.
Park, J., Elleman, A., Magne, C., Pingitore, D., & MacDonnell, L. (2024, November). The Effects of Syntactic Skill Intervention on Reading Comprehension in PreK-12 Students: A Meta-Analytic Review [Paper presentation].The Mid-South Educational Research Association, Chattanooga, TN.
Park, J., & Pingitore, D. (2024, April). Effective Adolescent Literacy Strategies [Professional Development]. Christiana Middle School, Murfreesboro, TN.Park, J., & Elleman, A. (2024, January). Enhancing Reading Comprehension: Exploring Inference Measures and Reading Strategies [Paper presentation].Literacy Research Conference, Murfreesboro, TN.
Aviva Coyne-Green
Elleman, A. M., Steacy, L. M., Gilbert, J. K., Cho, E., Miller, A. C., Coyne-Green, A., Pritchard, P., Fields, R. S., Schaeffer, S., & Compton, D. L. (2022). Exploring the role of knowledge in predicting reading and listening comprehension in fifth grade students. Learning and Individual Differences, 98, 102182.
Landi, N., Kleinman, D., Agrawal, V., Ashton, G., Coyne-Green, A., Roberts, P., Blair, N., Russell, J., Stutzman, A., Scorrano, D., Frazier, N., Pugh, K., & Hoeft, F. (2022). Researcher-practitioner partnerships and in-school laboratories facilitate translational research in reading. Journal of Research in Reading, Vol 00 (Issue 00), pp 1-18.
Coyne-Green, A. & Ormandy, N. (2025). The power of sentence writing: 4 high-leverage instructional practices to incorporate across content areas. Education Week.
Landi, N., Ashton, G., Coyne-Green, A., Kleinman, D., Sarles-Whittlesey, H., Roberts, P., Blaire, N., Pugh, K. & Hoeft, F. (2019). What’s the promise of in-school neuroscience? Examiner published by The International Dyslexia Association, October 2019, 8(3).
Coyne-Green, A. & Pritchard, P. (2017). Building school-based practitioner-research partnerships: Examining design and implementation of a collaborative research study on student knowledge. Focus Newsletter published by The International Dyslexia Association – Pennsylvania Branch, pgs. 22, 26 – 27.
Presentations
Coyne-Green, A., Gierka M., Ormandy, N. & Zampitella, T. (2025, October). From screening to intervening: Supporting DLD students in an MTSS model. International Dyslexia Association Annual Conference.
Kellenberger, M., Patton Terry, N., Steacy, L., Landi, N., Compton, D. & Coyne-Green, A. (2025, October). Inside research-practice partnerships: Purpose, process, and impact from three ongoing partnerships. International Dyslexia Association Annual Conference.
Coyne-Green, A. & Zampitella, T. (2025, August). From research to practice: An implementation case study. The Big Sky Literacy Summit.
Coyne-Green, A. (2023, August). Putting knowledge into practice: Implementation and fidelity of evidence-based practices. The Big Sky Literacy Summit.
Coyne-Green, A. & Pritchard, P. (2016, October). Building school-based practitioner-research partnerships: Examining design and implementation of a collaborative research study on student knowledge. International Dyslexia Association Annual Conference.
Elleman, A. M., Compton, D. L. Steacy, L. M., Coyne-Green, A. & Pritchard, P. (2016, October). From the printing press to twitter: The role of knowledge transfer in text comprehension for students with learning differences. Paper presented at the 67th Annual Conference of the International Dyslexia Association, Orlando, Florida.
Rebecca Loera
Current Projects:
- The Role of Verbal Reasoning in Comprehension Instruction for Listening Comprehension Among PreK-8 Students: A Meta-Analytic Review
- Classroom Dialogue and Literacy Achievement: A Meta-Analysis of Grades 4-12
Contributions:
- Spelling as a Window: Using Student Errors to Unlock Literacy Growth at Middle Tennessee State University Literacy Research Conference, 2026
- Navigating Rough Waters: How Leaders Can Effectively Steer the Ship Towards Improved Student Outcomes, Wyoming Embracing Literacy Conference 2025
- Teach Them to Get It: Practical Tools to Promote Deeper Comprehension, Georgia LitLink 2025
- Orthographic Mapping: The Secret to Word Reading Success, Georgia LitLink 2024