Chenyi Zhang
Associate Professor - Program Coordinator of ECEE Doctoral program Early Childhood and Elementary Education- Education
Purdue University, 2013
University of Missouri - Columbia, 2008
Anhui Polytechnic University, China 2005
- Specializations
Children's early literacy development
In-service teachers' professional development
Early intervention study
Quantitative research method
- Biography
Chenyi Zhang’s research projects examine contextual, cognitive and emotional factors that contribute to children’s early literacy development and early childhood educators’ professional development. He is also an early interventionist designing and evaluating classroom-based literacy intervention programs for young children’s literacy development and professional learning program for educators’ effective teaching practices.
He maintains international collaborations with scholars from Asian countries (e.g., China and Japan) investigating cross-cultural differences in early literacy development and literacy teaching. Currently, Zhang is examining the development of young children’s interest in enacting writing behaviors and cultural differences in teachers’ writing instruction (China vs. the US.). He is also leading a research team investigating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on young children’s and parents’ stress.
He is a board member of the Association for Reading and Writing in Asia. He was a National Academy of Education/Spencer Research Foundation Post-doctoral Fellow from 2016 to 2018. Zhang has received a variety of research funding support for his early literacy and intervention research projects, including Spencer Research Foundation, Rollins Center for Language and Literacy and National Hazard Center.
Zhang received a Ph.D. in Human Development and Family Studies with a specialization in developmental studies in 2013 from Purdue University and an M.S degree in Human Development and Family Studies from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 2008.
- Publications
Zhang, C., Qiu, W., Li, H., Li, J., Zhang, L., Li, X., & Li, J. (2021). “Parental Stress and Home Activities for Young Children during the Stay-at-home Quarantine Time in China.” Early Education and Development, 32, 843-862.
Zhang, C., & Qiu, W. (2020). “Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on parental stress and young children’s development during physical distancing” (Report No. QR 312). Natural Hazard Center.
Zhang, C., & Quinn, M. (2020). “Preschool children’s interest in early writing activities and perceptions of writing experience.” Elementary School Journal, 121, 52-74
Zhang, C., & Quinn, M. (in press). “Preschool Children’s Interest in Early Writing Activities and Perceptions of Writing Experience.” Elementary School Journal.
Zhang, C., Bingham, E. G, Zhang, X*, Purpura D., Schmitt S., & Yang, F. (2019). “Untangling Chinese preschoolers’ early writing development: associations among early reading, executive functioning, and early writing skills.” Reading and Writing. doi:10.1007/s11145-019-10006-3
Zhang, C., & Dobbs-Oates, J. (2019). “The relations between American children’s Head Start experience and pre-academic skills: A comparison with children from a community group.” Journal of Research in Childhood Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/02568543.2019.1649769
Zhang, C., & Bingham, G. (2019). “Promoting high-leverage writing instruction through early childhood classrooms daily routine: A professional development model of early writing skills.” Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 49, 138-151.
Kung, M., Schmitt, S. A., Zhang, C., Yang, F., Whiteman, S. D., & Purpura, D. J. (2019). “The role of mathematical language in mathematics development in China and the US.” International Journal of Educational Research, 95,131-142.
Zhang, C., & Cook, C. (2019). “A reflective professional development intervention model of early writing instruction.” Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, 40, 177-196.
Schmitt, S., Korucu, I., Purpura, D., Whiteman, S., Zhang, C., & Yang, F. (2018). “Exploring cross-cultural variations in the development of executive function for preschoolers from
low and high socioeconomic families.” International Journal of Behavioral Development, 43, 212-220. doi:10.1177/0165025418785469
Zhang, C., & Quinn, M.* (2018). “Promoting early writing skills through Morning Meeting Routines: Guidelines for best practices.” Early Childhood Education Journal, 46, 547-556. doi:10.1007/s10643-017-0886-2
Davis, A. N., Rudy, D., Chang, S., & Zhang, C. (2017). “Chinese and European American undergraduates’ perceptions of maternal warmth and negativity as predictors of self-esteem and life satisfaction.” Cross-cultural Research, 52, 192-212.
Zhang, C., Bingham, G., & Quinn, M.* (2017). “The associations among preschool children’s growth in early reading, executive function, and invented spelling skills.” Reading and Writing, 30, 1705-1728. doi:10.1007/s11145-017-9746-0
Zhang, C., Diamond, K., & Powell, D. (2017). “Do children learn letter knowledge from name-writing: Examining the relation between children’s writing skills and letter knowledge.” Early Child Development and Care, 189, 747-762. doi:10.1080/03004430.2017.1343311
Zhang, C., Diamond. K., & Powell, D. (2015). “Examining the content of Head Start teachers’ literacy instruction within two activity contexts during large-group circle time.” Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 29, 323-337.
Zhang, C., Hur, J., Diamond, K. E., & Powell, D. (2015). “Classroom writing environments and children’s early writing skills: An observational study in Head Start classrooms.” Early Childhood Education Journal, 43, 307-315.
Morrison, J., Storey, P., & Zhang, C. (2015). “Accessible family involvement in early childhood programs.” Dimensions of Early Childhood, 43, 33-38. Reprinted from 2011, Vol. 39, pp. 21-26).