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Susan B. Neuman
Former Asst. Secretary, Secondary & Elementary Education
Susan B. Neuman
Former Asst. Secretary, Secondary & Elementary Education
Biography
Susan B. Neuman is a Professor of Teaching and Learning at New York University specializing in childhood education and early literacy development. Previously, she has been a Professor at the University of Michigan and has served as the U.S. Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education.
In her role as Assistant Secretary, she established the Early Reading First program, the Early Childhood Educator Professional Development Program and was responsible for all activities in Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Act. She has served on the IRA Board of Directors (2001-2003), and other numerous boards of non-profit organizations, and served as Co-editor of Reading Research Quarterly (2011-2018), ILA flagship research journal.
Her research and teaching interests include early childhood policy, curriculum, and early reading instruction, prek-grade 3 for children who live in poverty. Neuman has received two life-time achievement awards for research in literacy development, and is a member of the Reading Hall of Fame, and a Fellow of the American Educational Research Association.
She has written over 100 articles, and authored and edited 12 books. Her newest edited by Cabell, Neuman & Patton-Terry is the Handbook of the Science of Early Literacy (2023) published by Guilford Press, with an additional handbook, authored by Neuman and Kuhn on the Handbook of the Science of Literacy: Grades 3-8.
Speech Topics
Literacy Learning in Everyday Spaces
Neighborhood institutions like the laundromat, hair salon, barbershop and grocery stores can be vital places for literacy activities in a community. Neuman has conducted extensive research in these everyday spaces and describes how communities may be an important resource for literacy activities.
Children need knowledge-building opportunities to become successful readers and thinkers. Neuman describes how schools and communities can give children rich opportunities to build background knowledge essential for comprehension.
Is Screen Time a Bad Thing?
Neuman describes the research, and highlights how young children are learning from media.
Children Achieving: Closing the Gap by Starting Early
Experts may be uncertain about many issues, but there is widespread agreement that children who reach kindergarten with certain characteristics – an interest in books, a fondness for conversation, a curiosity about the world – are more likely to thrive in school and lead productive, happy lives. There's been an explosion of knowledge over the last few years about how young children develop, namely how early experiences set the stage for success in learning to read and write. Highlighting the most recent trends and practices in early literacy learning, Neuman shares how we can ensure that all children achieve successfully by “starting early.”
Educating the Other America
In this presentation, Neuman focuses on the significant disparities in children's achievement by income group. She argues that we need more targeted interventions that focus on three qualities:
- Providing additional print resources to children
- Including greater attention to oral language and vocabulary in our programs
- Building relationships with parents
Nurturing Knowledge: Building a Foundation for School Success by Linking Early Literacy to Math, Science, Art and Social Studies
YouTube: From Virtual Worlds to Digital Classrooms
Developmentally Appropriate Practices & Standards
Enhancing Professional Development
Testimonials
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