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Australian Catholic University (ACU) is offering one full-time PhD scholarship to undertake research investigating children's ability to match initial mispronunciations (e.g., "TONG-OO") to correct pronunciations (e.g., "tongue") as they learn to read new words that do not follow phonics pronunciations rules.
The successful candidate will work with Dr Signy Wegener on her Australian Research Council-funded DECRA project, 'Bridging the decoding-vocabulary gap during children's reading'. The project aims to discover how children adjust their initial mispronunciations as they learn to read irregular words. This ability is sometimes referred to as set for variability, or mispronunciation correction. The project will involve conducting experimental training studies within primary school settings. Ultimately, results of this project will shed light on how to improve the teaching of irregular word reading in Australian classrooms.
| Study mode | Full-time, internal, on-campus for up to 3.5 years. |
|---|---|
| Location | ACU North Sydney campus |
| Commencing | As soon as possible. |
| Supervisor | Dr Signy Wegener |
| Host | Australian Centre for the Advancement of Literacy |
| Applications close | Friday 7 February 2025, 11:59 PM AEDT |
The successful applicant will be awarded a scholarship package consisting of:
Domestic candidates
International candidates
The scholarship package is subject to satisfactory progress and full-time study mode. The scholarship conditions align with the ACU Research Training Program Scholarship Policy.
ACU develops innovative solutions to issues impacting human dignity and the common good.
Our interdisciplinary and collaborative research seeks to enable people to develop intellectually, spiritually, physically, socially and emotionally, to enable flourishing lives, foster thriving communities and build an ethical future.
Our research and enterprise activities embrace the full life cycle of research, from knowledge creation to its translation and application towards outcomes of social, cultural, environmental and economic benefit.
The Australian Centre for the Advancement of Literacy was established in 2023 with the twin aims of conducting world-leading research on how children learn to read and translating this research into effective teaching practices. In establishing the Australian Centre for the Advancement of Literacy, the Faculty of Education and Arts at Australian Catholic University sought to appoint both established and early career reading researchers of the highest calibre both domestically and internationally. This goal has been achieved. The Australian Centre for the Advancement of Literacy is now host to the largest number of high-calibre researchers working on questions related to reading acquisition in this country. Researchers in this team both generate and translate knowledge about evidence-informed literacy instruction and interventions across the school years. The Centre is developing a range of courses and graduate certificates, while also actively collaborating with schools across the education sector to ensure teachers have access to high-quality professional learning and co-designed classroom interventions based on the latest research.
1st in Australia for research quality (1)
One of the top 10 Catholic universities in the world (2)
In the top 15 universities globally and first in Australia for scientific impact across all disciplines (3)
In the top 100 young universities in the world (4)
To be considered for this scholarship, applicants must submit all documentation required for an application to the PhD program at ACU, as detailed in the How to Apply instructions, plus:
Eligibility
Essential requirements
Desirable skills
Applications close: Friday 7 February 2025, 11:59 PM AEDT
Interested candidates should contact Dr Signy Wegener before applying for the PhD program and scholarship.
(1) Times Higher Education 2025 World University Rankings. (2) Based on International Federation of Catholic Universities members ranked on Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2025. (3) 2024 CWTS Leiden Rankings. (4) Times Higher Education Young University Rankings 2024.