PAEDIATRIC LANGUAGE, LEARNING, & SPEECH OUTCOMES LAB
LATEST NEWS
Stay up to date with what’s new in our lab! From exciting research milestones, recent events and team highlights, this is where you’ll find our latest updates. Check back often as there’s always something exciting happening!
The Latest from the PedLLS Lab
Take a look at what we’ve been up to!
NIH R01 Grant
Department of Speech-Language Pathology, University of Toronto
This fall, we are celebrating an extraordinary milestone for our department: Dr. Karla N. Washington has been awarded a prestigious NIH R01 Grant funded at over $2 million USD for the period 2025–2030.
Her project, Characterizing accuracy and variability in speech sound productions across bidialectal and bilingual preschoolers, investigates how children who are bidialectal or bilingual—such as speakers of African American English/Standard American English and Jamaican Creole/Jamaican English—develop speech.
By combining transcription-based accuracy measures with acoustic analyses, Dr. Washington’s research aims to reduce misdiagnosis and stigma while improving the accuracy of clinical assessments. Ultimately, this work will help ensure children receive the timely and appropriate support they need to thrive.
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ICPLA Conference
Patras, Greece
Dr. Kelly Farquharson Visits the PedLLS Lab
PedLLS Lab
This July, our lab jetted off to sunny Patras, Greece for the 2025 ICPLA conference! Adhirai Garibaldi tackled the challenges of analysing language samples in a morphologically complex South Asian language. Nicole Bazzocchi explored how computerized tools can be adapted for Caribbean-English speaking children. Ruochen Ning brought brain science into the mix with her presentation on using neuroimaging to study late talkers. From language samples to toddler brains, we were thrilled to share our work on the international stage!
This summer, our PedLLs lab had the privilege of hosting Dr. Kelly Farquharson, a speech-language pathologist, associate professor, and director of the Children’s Literacy and Speech Sound (CLaSS) Lab at Florida State University. Her research explores the cognitive, linguistic, orthographic, and environmental factors that shape how children with speech and language disorders develop literacy skills, with the goal of improving assessment and treatment practices for SLPs.
Summer Mentorship Program
Temerty Faculty of Medicine
Black Health Wellness Day
Durham Region
On July 9th, our lab had a blast participating in a showcase on speech-language pathology (SLP) for the Temerty Faculty of Medicine’s Summer Mentorship Program! With a special focus on child language, we explored everything from brain activation patterns to culturally responsive assessment of multilingual speakers. Students became language detectives, mapped brain regions involved in communication, and got a behind-the-scenes look at how research shapes real-world practice. We loved connecting with such curious and engaged future health professionals—and maybe even a few future SLPs!
Our wonderful lab member, Adi, was there to represent the PedLLS Lab. Here is what she had to say :
Happy to have represented the PedLLS lab and UofT at Durham Region's first Black Health Wellness Day! It was a wonderful community event fostering empowerment, connections, and access to valuable resources. Grateful to have been part of cconversations that promote health and well-being for all!