Early Interventions in Reading Level 1, Challenge Stories

About the Author

Patricia Mathes

The Texas Instruments Endowed Chair of Reading and Director of the Institute for Reading Research at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. A former classroom and reading teacher who received her Ph.D. in 1992 from Peabody College of Vanderbilt University in Education and Human Development, Dr. Mathes has served on the faculties of Developmental Pediatrics at the University of Texas—Houston Medical School, the College of Education at Florida State University, and Peabody College for Teachers at Vanderbilt University.

• Since 1991, Patricia has been conducting large-scale classroom-based reading intervention research with funding from multiple sources, including the U.S. Office of Education, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, and the National Science Foundation, as well as state agencies.
• Author of numerous articles, chapters, books, and curricular materials related to learning and reading disabilities, accommodating academic diversity, and best practices for struggling readers.
• Serves on the editorial boards of several scholarly journals and provides nationwide teacher and staff development focused on translating research into practice.
• Awards and recognition include:
  • The Interpretive Scholarship Award from the American Educational Research Association in 2002
  • The Distinguished Early Career Researcher award from the Council for Exceptional Children in 2001

Joseph Torgesen

The Robert M. Gagne Professor of Psychology and Education at Florida State University and also the Director of the Florida Center for Reading Research, Dr. Torgesen received his Ph.D. in Developmental and Clinical Psychology from the University of Michigan in 1976. For the past 15 years, Dr. Torgesen's work has focused specifically in the area of reading and reading interventions.

• Co-published with Dr. Richard Wagner a series of longitudinal studies tracking the influence of phonological language abilities on the development of reading skills in a sample of 250 children, from which grew the Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processes and the Test of Word Reading Efficiency, tests widely used in the diagnosis of reading difficulties in children aged 6 and up.
• With support from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, recent work has focused on programmatic studies of methods to prevent reading disabilities in young children and to remediate reading difficulties in older children.
• Research has demonstrated the feasibility of preventing the emergence of reading problems through the timely application of appropriately focused early interventions.
• Serves on the editorial boards of six research journals, on the professional advisory board for the National Center for Learning Disabilities, as chairman of the Scientific Advisory board of the Haan Foundation for Children, and on the scientific advisory board for the International Dyslexia Association.
• Other recent service includes the Commission on the Study of Children with Developmental Delays for the state of Florida and the Learning Disabilities Planning Group, Office of Special Education Programs, U.S. Office of Education.
• Awards and recognitions include:
  • The Samuel A. Kirk Award for exemplary research publication from the Division of Learning Disabilities of the Council for Exceptional Children (received twice)
  • The Distinguished Research Career Award from the American Educational Research Association
  • The Sylvia O. Richardson Award for service to individuals with learning disabilities and dyslexia from the Florida Branch of the International Dyslexia Association
  • Gave the T. R. Miles lecture on dyslexia at the Bangor Dyslexia Conference in Wales in July 2003
  • Recently delivered the Samuel T. Orton Lecture at meetings of the International Dyslexia Association