Professor Gail Gillon (Ngai Tahu iwi), founding Director of the UC Child Wellbeing Research Institute and an international leader in the area of children鈥檚 speech, language and early literacy development, is the winner of the UC 2020 Research Medal.
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Decades of work aimed at improving children鈥檚 learning success and wellbeing has earned Professor Gail Gillon the University of mini传媒鈥檚 (UC) highest research honour.听
Professor Gillon (Ngai Tahu iwi) is the winner of the UC 2020 Research Medal, awarded by the University Council in recognition of a sustained record of research excellence.
She is the Founding Director of the UC Child Wellbeing Research Institute and is an international leader in the area of children鈥檚 speech, language and early literacy development.
Learning to read and communicate well are fundamental skills for a child鈥檚 educational success. 听Professor Gillon says her focus is on effective and culturally responsive practices that help all children achieve in their literacy learning.
Her expertise is in understanding the relationship between spoken and written language development and the importance of phonological awareness (awareness of individual sounds, or phonemes, in words), to reading and spelling development.
Her successful intervention trials in phonological processing skills for children with dyslexia and children with speech difficulties have received international acclaim.
鈥淚鈥檝e always had a passion for ensuring all children experience early literacy success. Research that helps inform policies to reduce the current inequities that we know exist in our New Zealand education system is vitally important,鈥 Professor Gillon says.
Her team鈥檚 work is focused on the science of reading and translating research findings into practical ways that teachers, speech language therapists, reading specialists and wh膩nau can advance children鈥檚 literacy learning. 听
Their research has led to creation of the听Better Start Literacy Approach, a programme currently being implemented in a number of junior school classrooms around New Zealand.
Professor Gillon has also held significant leadership roles at UC and the award recognises her mentoring and support of many emerging researchers, colleagues and doctoral students. She has been a strong advocate for increasing M膩ori and Pasifika-led research.
She is also Deputy Director of the Better Start National Science Challenge E Tipu E Rea, a 10-year programme of research hosted by Auckland University which is focused on ensuring all young children have a successful start in life.
She says she feels proud and humbled to have been chosen for the award, knowing there are so many talented UC researchers.
鈥淚t鈥檚 an amazing recognition and I would like to gratefully acknowledge my talented research collaborators and practitioners that have supported my research endeavours.鈥
Professor Ian Wright, UC Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research), says Professor Gillon is internationally recognised and has achieved an excellent record of high quality research.
鈥淧rofessor Gillon is one of the outstanding scholars of her generation working on the early literacy and speech language domains of phonological awareness. Arguably, she is New Zealand鈥檚 most visible and reputed scholar in the early years鈥 language and literacy field, and continues to actively shape key debates and research direction within the discipline.鈥
- 听From 1 December the Child Wellbeing Research Institute is offering a free, online course through UCX called听.听This is an introductory level course for parents, educators and students interested in supporting children鈥檚 early reading.
