Core Research Group
Dr Usha Goswami is Professor of Education, a Fellow of St John's College, Cambridge and the Director of the Centre for Neuroscience in Education. Prior to moving back to Cambridge in 2003, she was Professor of Cognitive Developmental Psychology at the Institute of Child Health, University College London for 6 years, and before that, she was University Lecturer in Experimental Psychology at the University of Cambridge, 1990-1997. She received her PhD in experimental psychology from the University of Oxford, her topic was reading and spelling by analogy. Her current research interests are the relations between phonology and reading across languages, the role of basic auditory processing in dyslexia and SLI, the perception of rhythm in developmental language disorders, the development of reasoning by analogy in children, and literacy in the deaf.
Dr Dénes Szücs is a lecturer in the Faculty of Education and an honorary research fellow at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. He received his PhD from Budapest in cognitive electrophysiology. His current research examines the cognitive electrophysiology of normal number processing and arithmetic disabilities (dyscalculia). One of his main interests is the role that the surface format of numbers plays in the processing of numerical information and in the development of number skills. For example, he is exploring whether congenitally blind people rely on similar brain areas in understanding numbers to sighted people. Another main interest is how the human brain interprets numerical errors. In these kinds of experiments subjects carry out simple addition and multiplication problems and then decide whether the supplied results are correct or incorrect. A characteristic brain response, the so-called arithmetic N400, appears in response to errors. A third interest is the neuronal basis of developmental arithmetic disability (dyscalculia). To study this, Denes is comparing the brain responses of arithmetically disabled and normal children.
Dr Martina Huss is a Research Associate on the MRC study Auditory Processing in Dyslexic Children: Behavioural and Neural Investigations. She received her PhD degree in 2004 from the Department of Experimental Psychology at the University of Cambridge. Subsequently, she worked as a postdoctoral researcher for the Medical Research Council in the Cognition & Brain Sciences Unit in Cambridge. Martina is interested in auditory perception and the cognitive neuroscience of language. Her current research focus is the influence of auditory processing in developmental dyslexia.
Natasha Mead is a Research Assistant (50%) on the MRC study Auditory Processing in Dyslexic Children: Behavioural and Neural Investigations. Her other role is EEG lab technician (50%). She received her BSc in Psychology from the Open University in December 2005 and spent 3 years assisting in tutoring 3 to 16-year olds in Maths and English.
Victoria Cheah is a Research Assistant on the EU STREP study 'Humans as Analogy-Makers'. She is also a part-time PhD student supervised by Professor Goswami. She received her MPhil in Psychology & Education from the Faculty of Education at the University of Cambridge in 2006. She completed her first degree in medical sciences at the University of Cambridge in 2001. She has worked in Singapore as a special needs teacher for children with intellectual disabilities, as well as in policy development for the special education sector. Vicky is interested in the development of analogical reasoning skills in young children. Her current research focuses on the role of cross-modal correspondences in children's analogical reasoning.
Fruzsina Soltesz is the Research Assistant on the new MRC project looking at dyscalculia. She has recently submitted her PhD (in electrophysiology and numerical cognition) to the Eötvös Loránd University of Sciences, Budapest, Hungary, where she received her MSc in cognitive psychology and electrophysiology. Her MSc thesis examined behavioural and electrophysiological measures of numerical processing in dyscalculic children. Prior to joining the Centre, Fruzsina worked in the Department of Psychophysiology, Research Institute for Psychology, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest. Fruzsina has worked alongside Dr Dénes Szücs examining how young children develop their representations of number (50%) and, prior to her current position, was the CNE's senior lab technician and part-time Research Assistant on the Analogy Project "Humans as Analogy Makers".
Sonia White is a Research Assistant on the Analogy study (see above). She is also completing her PhD on the development of number processing skills in young children. Prior to studying in Cambridge, Sonia completed a BEd (Hons I) and a BAppSci at Queensland University of Technology, Australia. Following the completion of these degrees she worked for three years as a mathematics and science teacher at an independent secondary college in Brisbane. She has a keen interest in applying the findings of her research to enhance mathematics pedagogies during foundation learning.
Dr Fiona Kyle has been awarded two post-doctoral grants by the Finnish Centre of Excellence to develop a novel remediation game based on rhyme and spelling in collaboration with Professor Goswami (2008-2009, 2009-2011). Professor Goswami is an expert advisor to the Finnish Centre. The game is currently being trialled in primary schools with at-risk 6- and 7-year-old English children. These grants are part of a larger Finnish initiative "Graphogame", with a number of European and African partners.
Dr Gabor Stefanics is a post-doctoral researcher at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. In October 2009 he was granted 6 months leave from his post to work at the Centre for Neuroscience in Education on the EU Analogy project, Humans as Analogy Makers. Dr Stefanics is an expert in time-frequency EEG analysis.
Nichola Daily is Secretary to Professor Usha Goswami on the MRC study Auditory Processing in Dyslexic Children. Prior to joining the Centre for Neuroscience in Education in 2005, Nichola worked on a number of research projects including the TLRP's Learning How to Learn project with Prof. Mary James, the Assessment Reform Group's "Assessment Systems for the Future" with Prof. Wynne Harlen, and the ESRC's Consulting Pupils about Teaching and Learning directed by Prof. Jean Rudduck.