Research Interests and Expertise

Dr. Phil Capin’s primary research interest is to identify effective practices for improving reading outcomes among children, particularly bilingual students and children with or at risk for learning disabilities. Dr. Capin currently serves as co-principal investigator for three grants funded by the Institute of Education Sciences or the National Institutes of Health focused on improving reading outcomes, including two projects focused on bilingual learners.

Selected Research Projects and Grants

  • Center for the Success of English Learners (CSEL), Institute of Education Sciences, $10,000,000, 2020–2025
  • Texas Center for Learning Disabilities, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, $11,000,000, 2016–2022
  • Improving Reading and Reducing Anxiety Among Students With Reading Difficulties, $3,000,000, 2017–2022
  • Supporting Knowledge in Language and Literacy (SKILL), $3,300,000, 2017–2022

Boards, Committees, and Associations

  • Member: Council for Exceptional Children, International Dyslexia Association, Learning Disabilities Association, Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness
  • Review Board: Annals of Dyslexia, Reading Research Quarterly, Educational Psychology Review, Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, Reading and Writing: An Interdisciplinary Journal, American Educational Research Journal, Exceptional Children, Journal of Learning Disabilities, Learning Disability Quarterly, Journal of Special Education, Learning Disabilities Research and Practice

Representative Publications

  • Capin, P., Roberts, G., Clemens, N., & Vaughn, S. (in press). When treatment adherence matters: Interactions among treatment adherence, instructional quality, and student characteristics on reading outcomes. Reading Research Quarterly.
  • Capin, P., Cho, E., Miciak, J., Roberts, G., & Vaughn, S. (2021). Examining the reading and cognitive profiles of students with significant reading comprehension difficulties: A latent class analysis. Learning Disabilities Quarterly. Advance online publication.
  • Capin, P., Stevens, E. A., Stewart, A. A., Swanson, E., & Vaughn, S. (2021). Examining vocabulary, reading comprehension, and content knowledge instruction during fourth grade social studies teaching. Reading and Writing. Advance online publication.
  • Hall, C., Capin, P., Vaughn, S., Gillam, S. L., Gillam, R. B., Fall, A.-M., Roberts, G., & Dille, J. T. (2021). Narrative instruction in elementary classrooms: An observation study. Elementary School Journal. Advance online publication.
  • Capin, P., Hall, C., & Vaughn, S. (2020). Best practices in the assessment and treatment of language-based reading and writing disabilities among English language learners. Perspectives on Language and Literacy, 46(2), 26–31.
  • Vaughn, S., Capin, P., Scammacca, N., Roberts, G., Cirino, P., & Fletcher, J. M. (2020). The critical role of word reading as a predictor of response to intervention. Journal of Learning Disabilities. Advance online publication.
  • Cho, E., Capin, P., Roberts, G., Roberts, G., & Vaughn, S. (2019). Examining sources and mechanisms of reading comprehension difficulties: Comparing English learners and non-English learners within the simple view of reading. Journal of Educational Psychology, 111(6), 982–1000.
  • Capin, P., Walker, M. A., Vaughn, S., & Wanzek, J. (2018) Treatment fidelity in reading intervention research: A synthesis of the literature. Educational Psychology Review, 30(3), 885–919.
  • Capin, P., & Vaughn, S. (2017). Improving reading and social studies learning for secondary students with reading disabilities. Teaching Exceptional Children, 49, 249–261.