For children with dyslexia, learning to read can be a struggle. It’s hard not to let discouragement and frustration win out as vulnerable readers strive to unlock the mystery of letters and words.

Yet research shows that these children are highly creative. The focus of John McNamara’s upcoming work is to tap into this creativity to motivate vulnerable readers to continue learning.

The Department of Child and Youth Studies professor will build upon a literacy program he devised earlier for vulnerable readers called “Reading Rocks,” which teaches core literacy skills and requires children to graph and monitor their reading goals and results as a way of “showing them their own success,” says McNamara.

With his new Insight Grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), McNamara and his graduate student Hilary Scruton will be researching ways to tap into what studies show is a tendency for children with reading disabilities to over compensate with the right side of their brain – the “creativity” centre – instead of the “analytical” left side when they read.

“If our kids are thinking creatively or outside the box, we want to get them focused on that really early,” says McNamara.

McNamara is one of four Brock University researchers awarded Insight Grants under the latest round of SSHRC finding. The Insight Grants program provides funding for three to five years for research that accomplishes a number of goals, including: building knowledge and understanding; supporting new approaches to research; and providing training experiences for students. (http://www.sshrc-crsh.gc.ca/funding-financement/programs-programmes/insight_grants-subventions_savoir-eng.aspx)

Five additional researchers received Insight Development Grants, which support small-scale initiatives such as case studies, pilot projects and critical analysis of existing research. (http://www.sshrc-crsh.gc.ca/funding-financement/programs-programmes/insight_development_grants-subventions_de_developpement_savoir-eng.aspx)

Brock University received a total of $949,633 in this latest round of SSHRC grants.

In her research program, Labour Studies associate professor Kendra Coulter is exploring the concept of “humane jobs,” employment that benefits both people and animals.

“Currently, too many jobs mean lousy conditions for people, and even worse realities for animals,” she says. “This project will develop a new way to approach work, one underscored by respect for animals, people, and the environment.”

Coulter plans to interview people working with and/or caring for animals, as well as to analyze policies and programs in other countries to develop a theory of humane jobs, and to identify opportunities to create new areas of work.

“There are opportunities across sectors, including in health care, education, animal protection, social services, and agriculture, for rural and urban communities, and for women and men of different classes, skills, and educational levels,” says Coulter.

“Dr. Coulter’s exploration of how human and animal wellbeing can come together in the workplace and Dr. McNamara’s study of what motivates children with learning challenges to read are two of many examples of the innovative work our researchers are pursuing,” says Gary Libben, Brock’s Vice-President Research.

“Our researchers continue to expand the boundaries of society’s knowledge and understanding of a wide variety of issues, which leads to the improvement of the lives of many,” he says. “Our funding successes for SSHRC’s Insight Grant and Insight Development Grant programs further fuel our research intensiveness.”

This round’s Insight Grants, which cover three to five years, are:

* Theory of Mind Development in Emerging Adolescence, Sandra Bosacki
* Promoting Literacy, Self-regulation and Motivation in Vulnerable Readers, John McNamara
* Resisting Recognition: Transnational Oppositions to LGBT Inclusions in Canada and Great Britain, Catherine Nash
* The Effect of Synchronized Behaviour in Small Groups, Philip Sullivan.

This round’s Insight Development Grants, which cover two years, are:

* Fostering Humane Jobs: Conceptual and Policy Insights, Kendra Coulter
* Learning to Teach and Coach for Meaning, Tim Fletcher
* How do Social Enterprises Respond to Competitive Pressures While Maintaining the Integrity of their Social Purpose?, Wesley Helms
* Building Bayesian Updating Models and Testing for Biases: The Case of Sports Betting Markets, Kevin Mongeon
* Understanding the Contested Field of Sex Work, Trish Ruebottom.