Professor PARK, Somin

• Early language and literacy development of preschool- and kindergarten- aged English monolingual and bilingual children
• Evidence-based practices for supporting early language and literacy development for both English monolingual- and emergent bilingual- children
• Teacher characteristics and experiences that support quality early language and literacy practices

Awards and Honors

• Honorable Mention for Graduate Student Award for Literacy Research Excellence Research in Reading and Literacy SIG, American Educational Research Association.

• Distinguished Dissertation Award. College of Education and Human Ecology. The Ohio State University

• Graduate School at The Ohio State University Alumni Grants for Graduate Research and Scholarship, The Ohio State University 

• College of Education and Human Ecology Carol J. Fisher Graduate Support Fund in Reading and Literacy in Early Childhood, The Ohio State University 
• College of Education and Human Ecology Laura G. Heichel Memorial Scholarship Fund in Teacher Education, The Ohio State University

Grants

• The University of Hong Kong Seed Fund for Basic Research for Resubmission of GRF/ECS Proposals ‘Multisensory instruction for Chinese-English emergent bilingual children’s literacy development: A pilot study of focused group interviews with early childhood teachers and preschool-aged children.’ (HK$22,600)

• The University of Hong Kong Seed Fund for Basic Research for New Staff. ‘Understanding early childhood teachers’ language and literacy classroom practices in Hong Kong’ (HK$150,000).

• The University of Hong Kong Faculty of Education Project-based Research Funding. ‘Emergent bilingual children’s English alphabet knowledge: Examining the developmental patterns and factors affecting children’s English alphabet development’ (HK$60,000)

• Alumni Grants for Graduate Research and Scholarship, Graduate School at The Ohio State University (US$1761)

• Multisensory instruction for Chinese-English emergent bilingual children's literacy development: A pilot study (2023)
• Content analysis of alphabet contents in YouTube for young children (2023)
• Investigating predicting factors and developmental patterns of alphabet knowledge of Chinese-English emergent bilingual children in Hong Kong (2023-2024)
• Understanding early childhood teachers' language and literacy classroom practices in Hong Kong: Developing a measure and understanding the current status (2023-2025)

Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles

• Park, S & Piasta, S.B. (2023). Are there developmental patterns in emergent bilingual children's English letter-name knowledge?.International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism. 1-14.
• Piasta, S.B., Bridges, M.S., Park, S., Nelson-Strouts, K., & Hikida, M. (2022). Teachers' content knowledge about oral language: Measure development and evidence of initial validity. Reading and Writing, 35(9), 2131-2153.
• Piasta, S.B., Park, S., Fitzgerald, L.R., & Libnoch, H.A. (2022). Young children's alphabet learning as a function of instruction and letter difficulty. Learning and Individual Difference, 93, 1-11.
• Piasta, S.B., Park, S., Farley, K.S., Justice, L.M., & O'Connell, A.A. (2020). Early childhood educators' knowledge about language and literacy: Associations with practice and children's learning. Dyslexia, 26(2), 137-152. 
• Piasta, S.B., Ramirez, P.S., Farlet, K.S., Justice, L.M., & Park, S. (2020). Exploring the nature of associations between educators' knowledge and their emergent literacy classroom practices. Reading and Writing, 33, 1399-1422.
• Park, S & Kim, M.S. (2019). Comparative study on type and function of gesture between Korean and Japanese children. Journal of Early Childhood Education (Korea), 39(6), 29-46.  

Internal Reports

• Park, S & Piasta, S.B. (2020). Summary of ABC pilot study results. Columbus, Ohio: Crane Center for Early Childhood Research and Policy, The Ohio State University. 
• Fitzgerald, L.R., Libnoch, H.A., Park, S., & Piasta, S.B. (2020). Best practices in alphabet instruction: Lessons (Version 2). Columbus, Ohio: Crane Center for Early Childhood Research and Policy, The Ohio State University. 

Selected Conference Presentations

• Kim, H., Park, S., Piasta, S. B., Cutler, L., Schachter, R. E., & Gabas, C. (2022, February). Differences in the linguistic environment between early childhood classrooms in which children exhibit higher versus lower language gains. Poster presented at the College of Education and Human Ecology Research Forum, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH. 
• Park, S., Nelson-Strouts, K., Piasta, S.B., Hikida, M., & Bridges, M.S. (2020, November). Developing a measure of preservice teachers' content knowledge of oral language. Poster presented at the 2020 Council on Research in Student Progress and Educational Excellence Conference, Columbus, OH. 

• Park, S., & Piasta, S.B. (2020, July). Do emergent bilingual children follow similar patterns in English letter-name knowledge as English-monolingual children?. Interactive poster presented at the 2020 Society for the Scientific Study of Reading conference, Newport Beach, CA (Canceled due to COVID-19).

• Park, S., Kim, S., & Piasta, S.B. (2020, April). Does initial skill level matter?: Understanding whether educator knowledge differentially predicts children’s emergent literacy learning. Poster presented at the 2020 American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (Canceled due to COVID-19).
• Johnson. T., Park, S., & Rodgers, E.M. (2020, April). Effects of teacher professional development on young students’ literacy outcomes: A literature review. Poster presented at the 2020 American Educational Research Association Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (Canceled due to COVID-19).
• Park, S. & Piasta, S.B. (2020, February). Understanding whether emergent bilingual children follow similar trends in letter name knowledge to English-monolingual children. Paper presented at the 2020 Edward F. Hayes Graduate Research Forum, Columbus, OH.
• Park, S., Johnson. T., & Rodgers, E.M. (2020, February). Effects of teacher professional development on young students’ literacy outcomes. Poster presented at the College of Education and Human Ecology Student Research Forum, Columbus, OH.
• Park, S., Pahanish, D., Shook, B.D., & Piasta, S.B. (2019, February). Preliminary evidence from a pilot study to teach alphabet knowledge. Poster presented at the College of Education and Human Ecology Student Research Forum, Columbus, OH.
• Park, S. & Kim, M.S. (2018, July). Comparative study on type and function of gesture among Korean and Japanese children. Interactive paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study for Reading, Brighton, UK.
• Piasta, S.B., Park, S., Farley, K.S., Justice, L.M., & O’Connell, A.A. (2018, July). Associations between early childhood educators’ knowledge and children’s emergent literacy outcomes. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Reading, Brighton, UK.

• Editorial Board Member, Journal of Life-span Studies 
• Invited Special Lecturer, Research Institute for Human Life Sciences, Sungkyunkwan University, Seoul, South Korea
• Reviewer
  • Journal for the Study of Education and Development; Journal of Children and Media; Journal of Research in Reading; International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism; International Journal of Education and Research; TESOL Journal
  • Conference Proposal Reviewer, American Educational Research Association