Parents' Perceptions on the Pandemic's Impact on Children's Development

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, concerns about its impact on various aspects of children's development have been at the forefront of discussions among parents, educators, and researchers. A recent collaboration between researchers from the Ensuring Full Literacy team and The Canadian Children's Literacy Foundation (CCLF) sheds light on parents' perceptions of how the pandemic has influenced the language, literacy, and social skills of their preschool-aged children.

Established in 2017, CCLF aims to ensure that every child in Canada has the literacy skills necessary to thrive. The organization works to increase awareness of the significance of literacy skills through various programs and collaborations, recognizing that literacy is fundamental to academic success and lifelong learning.

This collaborative study, titled "The Impact of the Pandemic on Development: Parents’ Perceptions on Language and Literacy" was led by Dr. Emilie Courteau, a former Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) alongside Dr. Guillaume Loignon, Dr. Mélanie Dutemple, and Dr. Hélène Deacon, and in partnership with Nina Shukla, the director of the Early Words program at CCLF.

Through a mass survey, 253 parents of children ages 5 years and under were asked to rate the impact of various pandemic-related measures, such as mask-wearing and virtual learning, on their children's social, language, and literacy development. The study additionally explored whether parents’ perceptions differed depending on whether their children had diagnosed or suspected developmental difficulties.

Read the full article here.
 

Upcoming Event

2024 Ensuring Full Literacy SSHRC PG Annual Meeting

When:   May 14, 2024 - Trainee Event
              May 15 - 16, 2024 - Annual Meeting

Where: Room 4260
             6287 Alumni Crescent
             Life Sciences Centre
             Department of Psychology & Neuroscience
             Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS

Click here to view the program and find presentations and poster abstracts. The event is hybrid. Zoom links will be added to the program page when available.

For questions, please reach out the Nympha at ensuring.literacy@ubc.ca or to Cindy at cindy.hamon-hill@dal.ca.
 

Recent news

Dr. Janet Werker awarded the prestigious 2024 Benjamin Franklin Institute Medal

Congratulations to Dr. Janet Werker, University Killam Professor and Canada Research Chair in the Department of Psychology at the University of British Columbia, on being selected for the 2024 Benjamin Franklin Institute Medal in Computer and Cognitive Science! This highly esteemed award, presented by The Franklin Institute of Philadelphia, is a testament to Dr. Werker’s lifelong dedication and the far-reaching influence of her research in the field of language acquisition.

Dr. Werker received the award at the ceremony in Philadephia on April 18, 2024. 

Click here to read more about Dr. Werker's work and how it helps our understanding of typical and atypical human development.

Click here to read the UBC announcement.
 

EFL Announcements

Knowledge translation competitions

We’re excited to announce two brand new knowledge translation competitions for our next gen scholars! Our Blog Post Competition and Infographic Competition offer exciting opportunities for students, RAs, post-docs etc. to share your research and/or EFL partnership experiences while practicing your knowledge translation skills and diversifying your resume. PRIZES will be awarded for both competitions!

The deadline for submissions is May 31, 2024.

Click here for more information.

Research translation for knowledge mobilization

Our EFL group has seen remarkable studies, projects, and partnerships, and we're eager to extend the impact by sharing these outcomes with fellow researchers, organizations, parents, and teachers.In 2024, as we embark on the second half of our partnership, we are committed to enhancing our knowledge mobilization efforts. As part of our commitment to promoting widespread awareness and understanding of literacy in our multicultural and digital world, we invite you to work with us to share your research with our wider community.

Whether you have recently published a paper, completed a partnership or Mitacs project, or have noteworthy insights from your ongoing research or partnerships, we want to help you translate your work for a broader audience.

Leah Brainin, our Knowledge Mobilization Coordinator, will work directly with you to learn about your research, translate and tailor it for your desired audience, and with your feedback, write an engaging blog-style article to share on our website and social media pages. 

If at any point you are interested or have any questions, please email Leah at lbrainin@uwo.ca with “EFL” included in the subject line.

Thank you for considering this opportunity to expand the reach of your research and contribute to our collective mission. We look forward to hearing from many of you and working together to maximize our impact.
 

Contact Us!

If you have any EFL-related news or events that you would like to promote, please contact Nympha at ensuring.literacy@ubc.ca. 

If you have a great story idea, we also want to know about it! Contact Leah Brainin at lbrainin@uwo.ca.