Matthew Burns
Endowed Professor | University of Florida
Gainesville, FL, UNITED STATES
Matthew Burns studies data-based decisions about instruction, the effects of interventions, and systems to best deliver them.
Biography
Matthew Burns is a prolific researcher but is dedicated to positively influencing practice in K-12 schools and mentoring the next generation of education leaders. As one of the leading researchers regarding the use of assessment data to determine individual or small-group interventions, Matthew works closely with schools to study and implement multitiered systems of support, intensive reading and math interventions, and systems to support students whose needs are not being met.
Areas of Expertise (5)
Identifying Learning Disabilities
Dyslexia
Reading Intervention
Reading Assessment
Multitiered Systems of Support
Media Appearances (3)
Students’ Reading Struggles Tied to Flawed Assessment. So Why Do Schools Use It?
KQED online
2023-12-11
The first thing Havah Kelley noticed was her son’s trouble with the alphabet. The San Francisco mom reviewed letters with him for hours at a time, reciting their names and tracing their shapes. But Kelley’s son couldn’t write most of them on his own. He reversed them or scrawled incoherent shapes. Halfway through his kindergarten year, his teacher said he still couldn’t recognize some letters on sight.
On Levels: A Candid Conversation with Guest Dr. Matt Burns
Reading Horizons radio
2023-08-23
Classroom teachers, families, reading coaches, and, most importantly, students have all experienced reading levels. In this compelling episode of Literacy Talks, special guest Dr. Matt Burns shares his research and insights and their application to literacy learning, extra support, and growth. It’s a candid and refreshing look at assessment, measurement, and the changes in how the profession can challenge the whole notion of reading levels.
How to Build Better Small-Group Reading Instruction
Education Week online
2022-09-16
Reading teachers have started the school year already in a crunch, with students’ reading skills at a 20-year low. As educators look for ways to help students gain ground academically, research suggests refining traditional classroom reading groups could help. As part of an Education Week webinar with educators Thursday, special education professor Matthew Burns talked about how to improve the effectiveness of small-group instruction.
Articles (3)
Effects of targeting reading interventions: Testing a skill-by-treatment interaction in an applied setting
Preventing School Failure: Alternative Education for Children and YouthMatthew K. Burns, et. al
2023-02-17
The current study compared the reading growth of (a) students who received targeted interventions, (b) students who received typical school interventions, and (c) students who were proficient readers at the study’s onset. The participants were 1,513 students in first through fifth grades who attended one of three treatment schools or one of three control schools.
Evaluating components of the active view of reading as intervention targets: Implications for social justice
School PsychologyMatthew K. Burns, et. al
2023-01-01
Inequality in reading outcomes is perhaps the single greatest social justice issue faced by school psychologists, and school psychologists need a better understanding of reading theory and its application to intervention to better combat the important issue. The present study examined the active view of reading (AVR; Duke & Cartwright, 2021), by computing effect sizes from 333 studies that were reported in 26 meta-analyses.
Decision Accuracy of Commonly Used Dyslexia Screeners Among Students Who Are Potentially at Risk for Reading Difficulties
Learning Disability QuarterlyMatthew K. Burns, et. al
2022-06-03
Students with dyslexia demonstrate reading difficulty in early literacy skills (e.g., phonemic awareness, word recognition, decoding), and administering screeners is a necessary step to implement effective intervention. There are several commonly used reading screeners, but the decision accuracy and predictive value between them varies.
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