Year One Data Interpretation of the Windward/Haskins Collaborative Research Study: Predicting Literacy Outcomes at The Windward School (P.L.O.W)

Developing a sustainable and successful research project takes many moving parts, such as study design, training, recruitment, scheduling, and analysis to strategically coalesce. Under the leadership of the principal investigator for the study, Dr. Nicole Landi, the efforts of Haskins Laboratory researchers, The Windward Institute team, and The Windward Research Leadership Team, Year 1 of the longitudinal study, Predicting Literacy Outcomes at The Windward School (P.L.O.W.) was successfully completed in May of 2020

Over the course of Year 1 of the study, student volunteers from The Windward School assumed the role of Junior Scientists as they engaged with the in-school research process and learned about their reading brain. Select Windward faculty members had the opportunity to receive Electroencephalogram (EEG) data collection training to support the research process.

This ground-breaking study was highlighted when Dr. Landi presented on the Windward/Haskins Collaborative Project at several regional and national conferences and co-published a paper “What’s the Promise of In-School Neuroscience?” in International Dyslexia Association’s The Examiner, Volume 8, Issue 3. The study also received widespread media attention from Education Week, The Journal News, the SeeHearSpeak podcast, and more.

Not without its challenges, data collection in the spring of 2020 highlighted the ingenuity and determination of the research team as well as the resilience and engagement of our Junior Scientists. An indelible timestamp in history, March of 2020 and the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. led the research team to reconfigure the study to an online assessment collection model. Despite pivoting to a virtual platform, we observed minimal data loss and limited attrition and were presented with new opportunities for exploration. These facets hold positive implications for this pioneering study.

In the fall of 2020, Year 2 data collection was completed virtually and P.L.O.W. study team member, Daniel Kleinman, PhD presented study data analysis at The Society for the Neurobiology of Language annual conference. Enjoy and engage with the study data here.

The Windward Institute and The Windward School look forward to the future successes of this research study. Our partnership with The Haskins Global Literacy Hub allows us to further collaborative dialogue with leading educational institutions to bridge the research and educational worlds. This supports a core pillar of The Windward Institute toward providing all students with language-based learning disabilities with their right to research-based instruction.