Individual Listing

SPROUL HALL
University of California
Riverside, CA 92521

O'Connor, Rollanda

Professor

Graduate School of Education

Graduate School of Education


Biography

Current Grants:

PI, BRIDGES: Building Reading Interventions Designed for General Education Subjects, supported by the U.S. Department of Education, IES, 2012-2015, $1,375,258. In collaboration with Riverside Unified School District teachers, we are developing intervention strategies for 8th grade poor readers that support reading development interfaced with U.S. History content.

PI, Leading Excellence for Academic Positions in Special Education, supported by the U.S. Department of Education, OSEP Leadership H325D110015, 2012-2016, $1,238,983. This doctoral training grant supports five full-time doctoral students in special education annually.

PI, Precision in Response to Intervention Models: Variations of Measurement, Instruction, Student Language, and Age, supported by the U.S. Department of Education, IES, 2007-2011, $1,935,065.

PI, Special Education Faculty for California and the Nation, supported by the U.S. Department of Education, OSEP Leadership, 2007-2011, $797,896.

Former Institution

University of Pittsburgh, 1993-2004

Degrees

Ph.D. Education, Special Education and Reading 1992

University of Washington

M.Ed. Special Education, High Incidence Disabilities 1978

University of Washington

B.A. English & Library Science 1971

University of Washington

Awards

Early Career Research Award (2002), Division of Research, Council for Exceptional Children
Phi Delta Kappa Outstanding Dissertation Award (1993)
Student Research Award (1992), Special Education SIG, American Educational Research Association


Research Area

O’Connor’s research is grounded in the growing consensus on the role of phonological awareness (i.e., the ability to manipulate the sounds in spoken words) in the acquisition of reading. Although compelling evidence prior to the 1990's suggested that very poor readers might profit from instruction in phonological manipulation skills, the knowledge base did not include information about how children in special education would fare with such instruction. Her early studies focused on whether and how improving phonological skills might lessen the severity of reading disability. Since that time she has continued to work in reading intervention and tackled issues of early identification of reading disability, professional development of teachers in research-based practices, effects of multiple layers of support to children over the first few years of schooling, instructional issues for older students with reading difficulties, and transfer and generalization of phonemic manipulation skills to reading words.

Publications

O’Connor, R.E., & Klingner, J.K. (2010). Poor responders in Responsiveness to Intervention Models. Theory into Practice, 49, 297-304.

O’Connor, R.E., Swanson, H.L., & Geraghty (2010). Improvement in reading rate under independent and difficult text levels: Influences on word and comprehension skills. Journal of Educational Psychology, 102, 1-19.

O’Connor, R.E., Bocian, K., Beebe-Frankenberger, M., & Linklater,D. (2010). Responsiveness of students with language difficulties to early intervention in reading. Journal of Special Education, 43, 220-235.

Linklater, D., O’Connor, R.E., & Palardy, G.P. (2009). Kindergarten literacy assessment of English only and English language learner students: Which measures are most predictive of reading skills? Journal of School Psychology, 47, 369-394.

Swanson, H.L., & O’Connor, R.E. (2009). The role of working memory and fluency training on reading comprehension in children who are dysfluent readers. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 42, 548-575.

O’Connor, R.E., White, A., & Swanson, H.L. (2007). Repeated reading versus continuous reading: Influences on reading fluency and comprehension. Exceptional Children, 74, 31-46.

O’Connor, R.E. (2007). Teaching word recognition: Strategies for students with learning difficulties. Guilford Press.

Vadasy, P.F., Wayne, S. K., O’Connor, R.E., Jenkins, J.R., Pool, K., Firebaugh, M., & Peyton, J. (2005). Sound Partners: A tutoring program in phonics-based early reading. Longmont, CO: Sopris West.

O’Connor, R.E., White, A., & Swanson, H.L. (in press). Repeated reading versus continuous reading: Influences on reading fluency and comprehension. Exceptional Children.

Paradise, J., Feldman, H., Campbell, T., Dollaghan, C., Rockette, H., O’Connor, R.E., & Pelham, W.E. (2007). Early or delayed insertion of tympanostomy tubes and developmental outcomes at nine to eleven years of age. New England Journal of Medicine, 356, 248-261.

Kame’enui, E., Fuchs, L., Francis, D.J., Good III, R.H., O’Connor, R.E., Simmons, D.C., Tindal, G., & Torgesen, T.K. (2006). The Adequacy of Tools for Assessing Reading competence in the Primary Grades: A Decision-Making Framework and Review of Prominently Used Tests. Educational Researcher, 35, 4, 3-11.

O’Connor, R.E., Harty, K., & Fulmer, D. (2005). Tiers of Intervention in Kindergarten Through Third Grade. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 38, 532-538.

O’Connor, R.E., Fulmer, D., Harty, K., & Bell, K. (2005). Layers of Reading Intervention in Kindergarten through Third Grade: Changes in Teaching and Child Outcomes. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 38, 440-455.

O’Connor, R.E. (2004). Revealing the hidden world of research. Journal of Learning Disabilities.

O’Connor, R.E., & Bell, K.M. (2004). Teaching students with reading disability to read words. In A. Stone, E. Silliman, B. Ehren, & K. Apel, (Eds.), Handbook of Language and Literacy: Development and Disorders. (pps. 479-496). New York: Guilford.

Jenkins, J. R., & O'Connor, R. (2003). Cooperative Learning for Students with Learning Disabilities: Evidence from Experiments, Observations, and Interviews. In L. Swanson, S. Graham, & K. Harris (Eds.), Handbook of Learning Disabilities (pps. 417-430). New York: Guilford.

Jenkins, J. R., & O'Connor, R. (2002). Early Identification and Intervention for Young Children with Reading/Learning Disabilities. In R. Bradley, L. Danielson, & D. Hallahan (Eds.), Identification of Learning Disabilities (pps. 99-149). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

O’Connor, R.E., Bell, K.M., Harty, K.R., Larkin, L.K., Sackor, S., & Zigmond, N. (2002). Teaching Reading to Poor Readers in the Intermediate Grades: A Comparison of Text Difficulty. Journal of Educational Psychology, 94, 474-485.

Fuchs, D., Fuchs, L., Thompson, A., Al Otaiba, S., Yen, L., Yang, N., Braun, M., & O’Connor, R. E. (2002). Preliminary evidence on the importance of reading programs for kindergartners with disabilities in mainstream classrooms. Exceptional Children.

Fuchs, D., Fuchs, L., Thompson, A., Al Otaiba, S., Yen, L., Yang, N., Braun, M., & O’Connor, R. E. (2001). Is reading important in reading-readiness programs? A randomized field trial with teachers as program implementers. Journal of Educational Psychology, 93, 251-267.

O'Connor, R.E. & Padeliadu, S. (2000). Blending versus whole word approaches in first grade remedial reading: Short-term and delayed effects on reading and spelling words. Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 13, 159-182.

Qi, S. X., & O’Connor, R.E. (2000). A comparison of two phonological training procedures in kindergarten classrooms. Journal of Educational Research, 93, 226-233.

O’Connor, R.E. (2000). Increasing the Intensity of Intervention in Kindergarten and First Grade. Learning Disabilities Research and Practice, 15, 43-54.
O’Connor, R.E. (1999). Teachers learning Ladders to Literacy. Learning Disabilities Research and Practice, 14, 203-214.

O’Connor, R.E., & Jenkins, J.R. (1999). The prediction of reading disabilities in kindergarten and first grade. Scientific Studies of Reading, 3, 159-197.

O'Connor, R.E., Notari-Syverson, A., & Vadasy, P.F. (1998). Ladders to literacy: A kindergarten activity book. Paul Brookes.

O'Connor, R.E., Notari-Syverson, A., & Vadasy, P. (1998). First grade effects of teacher-led phonological activities in kindergarten for children with mild disabilities: A follow-up study. Learning Disabilities Research and Practice, 13, 43-52.

Vadasy, P. F., Jenkins, J. R., Antil, L. R., Wayne, S. K., & O'Connor, R. E. (1997). The effectiveness of one-to-one tutoring by community tutors for at-risk beginning readers. Learning Disability Quarterly, 20, 126-139.

Vadasy, P. F., Jenkins, J. R., Antil, L. R., Wayne, S. K., & O'Connor, R. E. (1997). Community-based early reading intervention for at-risk first graders. Learning Disabilities Research and Practice, 12, 29-39.

O'Connor, R. E., Notari-Syverson, A., & Vadasy, P. F. (1996). Ladders to literacy: The effects of teacher-led phonological activities for kindergarten children with and without disabilities. Exceptional Children, 63, 117-130.

O'Connor, R.E. & Jenkins, J.R. (1996). Cooperative learning as an inclusion strategy: A closer look. Exceptionality, 6, 29-51.

O'Connor, R.E. & Jenkins, J.R. (1996). Choosing individuals as the focus to study cooperative learning. Exceptionality, 6, 65-68.

O'Connor, R.E., & Jenkins, J.R. (1995). Improving the generalization of sound/symbol knowledge: Teaching spelling to kindergarten children with disabilities. Journal of Special Education, 29, 255-275.

O'Connor, R.E., Jenkins, J.R., & Slocum, T.A. (1995). Transfer among phonological tasks in kindergarten: Essential instructional content. Journal of Educational Psychology, 2, 202-217.

O'Connor, R.E. (1995). Elementary School Programs. In M. Reynolds, M. Wang, & H. Walberg (Eds.), Handbook of special and remedial education, 2nd edition. (pps. 61-106) New York: Pergamon.

O'Connor, R., & Jenkins, J. (1994). Cooperative learning as an inclusion strategy: The experience of children with disabilities. In Inclusion: Moving Beyond Our Fears, Bloomington, Indiana: The Center for Evaluation, Development and Research, pps. 123-138.

Jenkins, J. R., Jewell, M., Leicester, N., O'Connor, R., Jenkins, L., & Troutner, N. (1994). Accommodations for individual differences without classroom ability groups: An experiment in school restructuring. Exceptional Children, 60, 4, 344-358.

Slocum, T.A., O'Connor, R.E., & Jenkins, J.R. (1993). Transfer among phonological manipulation skills, Journal of Educational Psychology, 85, 4, 618-630.

O'Connor, R., Jenkins, J. R., Cole, K., & Mills, P. (1993). Two approaches to phonics instruction for children with disabilities: Does program design make a difference? Exceptional Children, 59(4), 312-323.

O'Connor, R., Jenkins, J. R., Slocum, T., & Leicester, N. (1993). Teaching phonological awareness to young children with disabilities. Exceptional Children, 59(6), 532-546.

Jenkins, J. R., & O'Connor, R.E. (1991). Implications of sameness analysis for curriculum developers and curriculum users. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 24(6), 361-363.