About

Gail E. Lovette, Ph.D., is an experienced reading specialist, school leader, and teacher. She is currently an Assistant Professor at the UVA School of Education and Human Development, where she serves as the Program Director for the Ed.D. in Curriculum & Instruction. During the 2021-2022 school year, Lovette served as an elementary reading specialist in a Title 1 public school in Charlottesville, Virginia. From 2016-2021, she was an Assistant Professor and Research Faculty at the University of Virginia, where she served as the Director of Turnaround Projects, leading partnerships funded through federal School Improvement Grants between the department of Curriculum, Instruction, and Special Education at UVA and several priority elementary schools across Virginia. Her work focused on building instructional and leadership capacity in literacy and numeracy development, improving school and classroom climate, and developing collaborative leadership structures to sustainably increase student achievement. Lovette was also core faculty on the Supporting Transformative Autism grant from 2018-2021. Before moving to Charlottesville in 2010, she was a teacher and administrator for over a decade in Title 1 public schools in Virginia and holds current Virginia licensure as a K-12 school administrator, Reading Specialist, ESOL teacher, and K-6 elementary teacher. Her educational background includes a Ph.D. from the University of Virginia, an M.A. from The George Washington University, and a B.S. from the State University of New York College at Geneseo.

Research topics

• Computer Science
• Psychology
• Sociology
• Mathematics
• Art history
• Library science
• Theology
• Pedagogy
• Philosophy
• Psychiatry
• Art
• Social psychology
• Management
• Statistics
• Medicine
• Mathematics education
• Medical education

Selected publications

• The Impact of Instructional Guidance on Science Learning in Second-Grade Classrooms

  The Elementary School Journal · 2026-04-13

  article

  The appropriate level of instructional guidance for students to acquire a deep understanding of the disciplinary core ideas, crosscutting concepts, and science and engineering practices outlined in the Next Generation Science Standards remains ambiguous. To shed light on this important topic, we tested two distinct science programs in a cluster randomized controlled trial involving 11 second-grade classrooms and 185 students. Holding constant content, dosage, and professional development, findings favored the program that provided greater levels of instructional guidance on all three science measures (g = 0.19, 0.21, 0.40). In addition, differential response analyses revealed that students with lower initial scores made significantly greater gains on a distal science measure in classrooms that implemented the program with more instructional guidance. Last, exploratory correlations between teacher-level instructional guidance and student outcomes suggested positive associations between guidance levels and outcome gains. Implications for designing and delivering science instruction to meet diverse student needs are discussed.

  PublisherDOI

• Inquiry‐Based Science Instruction for Students With Disabilities: A Systematic and Meta‐Analytic Review

  Science Education · 2025-10-25 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access

  ABSTRACT Developing scientific literacy is necessary for students with disabilities (SWD) as it supports the ability to create solutions to real‐world problems and understand current events, and it strengthens critical thinking, problem‐solving, and complex communication skills. The purpose of this systematic review and meta‐analysis was to evaluate extant literature on inquiry‐based science interventions for SWD in service of developing scientific practices. We identified 26 studies in 22 articles and 3 dissertations for inclusion in this review. Effect size (ES) estimates demonstrate significant positive effects in both group (ES = 0.79; CI [0.41, 1.17]) and single case design studies (ES = 2.76; CI [1.93, 3.60]). Overall findings suggest that inquiry‐based science instruction is effective in teaching SWD science content as well as developing proficiency in scientific practices and inquiry skills.

  PublisherDOI

• Caregiver ECHO: A Model for Delivering Virtual Behavior Management Education to Families of Children With Neurodevelopmental Disorders

  American Journal on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities · 2025-02-25

  article

  Children with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDD) are at high risk of challenging behavior, yet families experience consistent barriers to affordable parent education in behavior management. This study tested the efficacy of a caregiver-focused Extensions of Community Health Outcomes (ECHO) program in delivering behavior management education and support to caregivers of children with NDD. A pre-post design was used to evaluate impact on 30 caregivers' behavioral knowledge, self-efficacy in managing challenging behavior, empowerment, and negative emotional reactions to challenging behavior. Participation resulted in significant improvements across outcomes and high satisfaction. The Caregiver ECHO model offers advantages in that it emphasizes peer learning, active problem solving, and community building as core components of its approach while using low-cost methodologies.

  PublisherDOI

• Challenging Educational Inequities in Early STEM Instruction

  The Elementary School Journal · 2024-10-16 · 4 citations

  article

  It is urgent to ensure that science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education meets the needs of our nation’s increasingly diverse student population. This study examined whether a second-grade science program, Scientific Explorers, supported educational equity in STEM achievement for diverse student populations. Sociodemographic variables such as race and ethnicity, disability status, socioeconomic status, and gender were explored to determine their impact on student response variation within the program. Results of the moderator analysis indicated that students benefited equitably from the Scientific Explorers program, regardless of their sociodemographic identities, on three out of four science outcomes. Implications of the current study suggest early STEM programs that incorporate validated instructional design and delivery principles can serve as a viable mechanism to reduce sociodemographic achievement gaps in early elementary classrooms by empowering young females, building important science background and vocabulary knowledge, and offering students meaningful discourse and investigative practice opportunities.

  PublisherDOI

• Do Mathematics and Reading Skills Impact Student Science Outcomes?

  Journal of Learning Disabilities · 2024-07-26 · 2 citations

  articleOpen access

  Establishing validated science programs for students with or at risk for learning disabilities requires testing treatment effects and exploring differential response patterns. This study explored whether students’ initial mathematics and reading skills influenced their treatment response to a whole-class, second-grade science program called Scientific Explorers (Sci2). The original Sci2 study employed a cluster randomized controlled design and included 294 U.S. students from 18 second-grade classrooms. Differential effects of the program by initial mathematics and reading skill levels were not observed for an interactive science assessment and a distal science outcome measure. However, based on initial reading skill levels, moderation results were found on a science vocabulary measure, suggesting the effects of Sci2 were greatest for students with higher initial reading skills. Similar results were found using initial mathematics skill levels as a predictor of differential response such that students with higher mathematics skills reaped stronger treatment effects on the vocabulary measure. Further, we found initial mathematics skills also influenced outcomes on the proximal science content assessment, where students with higher initial mathematics skills led to higher outcomes. Overall, findings suggest Sci2 produced robust effects for all students ( g = 0.24–1.23), regardless of initial skill proficiencies. Implications for exploring differential response in science intervention research are discussed.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Caregiver ECHO: A Model for Delivering Virtual Behavior Management Education to Families of Children with Developmental Disabilities

  medRxiv · 2024-02-11

  preprintOpen access

  Abstract Children with developmental disabilities are at high risk of challenging behavior, yet their families experience consistent barriers to affordable parent education in behavior management. The present study tested the efficacy of a caregiver-focused Extensions of Community Health Outcomes program for delivering virtual parent education and support to familial caregivers of children with DD in behavior management. A pre-post quasi-experimental design was used to evaluate the effect of Caregiver ECHO on caregiver participants’ (n = 30) knowledge of behavior modification strategies, self-efficacy in managing challenging behavior, empowerment, and negative emotional reactions to challenging behavior. Participating in Caregiver ECHO resulted in significant increases in caregiver knowledge, self-efficacy, and empowerment, and significant reductions in certain negative emotional reactions to challenging behavior. The Caregiver ECHO model offers advantages over other parent education programs in that it emphasizes peer learning, active problem-solving, and community building as core components of its approach while using low-cost methodologies.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Methods and Strategies: Rubrics: Useful Beyond Assessments

  Science and Children · 2022 · 1 citations

  • Sociology
  • Computer Science
  • Library science

  Click to increase image sizeClick to decrease image size Additional informationNotes on contributorsSarah K. BensonSarah K. Benson (s.k.benson@bham.ac.uk) is an assistant professor at the University of Birmingham-Dubai. William J. Therrien is a professor, and Gail E. Lovette is an assistant professor, both at the University of Virginia, in Charlottesville, Virginia. Christian Doabler is an associate professor, and Maria Longhi is project director, both at the University of Texas in Austin, Texas.William J. TherrienSarah K. Benson (s.k.benson@bham.ac.uk) is an assistant professor at the University of Birmingham-Dubai. William J. Therrien is a professor, and Gail E. Lovette is an assistant professor, both at the University of Virginia, in Charlottesville, Virginia. Christian Doabler is an associate professor, and Maria Longhi is project director, both at the University of Texas in Austin, Texas.Gail E. LovetteSarah K. Benson (s.k.benson@bham.ac.uk) is an assistant professor at the University of Birmingham-Dubai. William J. Therrien is a professor, and Gail E. Lovette is an assistant professor, both at the University of Virginia, in Charlottesville, Virginia. Christian Doabler is an associate professor, and Maria Longhi is project director, both at the University of Texas in Austin, Texas.Christian DoablerSarah K. Benson (s.k.benson@bham.ac.uk) is an assistant professor at the University of Birmingham-Dubai. William J. Therrien is a professor, and Gail E. Lovette is an assistant professor, both at the University of Virginia, in Charlottesville, Virginia. Christian Doabler is an associate professor, and Maria Longhi is project director, both at the University of Texas in Austin, Texas.Maria LonghiSarah K. Benson (s.k.benson@bham.ac.uk) is an assistant professor at the University of Birmingham-Dubai. William J. Therrien is a professor, and Gail E. Lovette is an assistant professor, both at the University of Virginia, in Charlottesville, Virginia. Christian Doabler is an associate professor, and Maria Longhi is project director, both at the University of Texas in Austin, Texas.

  PublisherDOI

• Lead Exposure in Children: What Special Educators Need to Know

  Teaching Exceptional Children · 2021 · 2 citations

  • Psychology
  • Medical education
  • Pedagogy

  Journalists have reported large-scale lead poisoning affecting children in cities such as Flint, Michigan. Unfortunately, children’s exposure to lead is not isolated and occurs throughout the country in both urban and rural settings. The effects of lead exposure can cause children to develop disabilities, potentially requiring special education services to address their academic and behavioral difficulties. In this paper, we detail three areas where special education has a major role in addressing the lead crisis: special education identification; intervention; and advocacy, awareness, and prevention. For each area, we provide concrete suggestions for special educators to implement in order to ensure children exposed to lead receive the special education services they need.

  PublisherDOI

• Efficacy of a Second-Grade Science Program: Increasing Science Outcomes for All Students

  Remedial and Special Education · 2021 · 14 citations

  • Computer Science
  • Mathematics education
  • Psychology

  This study, which was reviewed through the Registered Report process, examined the initial efficacy of the Scientific Explorers program (Sci2) on second-grade students’ science achievement. Sci2 is grounded in the growing body of empirical research on science instruction, embedding principles of explicit instruction within a guided inquiry-based design framework. Eighteen second-grade classrooms were randomly assigned to treatment or control conditions. A cluster randomized controlled trial was employed, with 294 students nested within classrooms and classrooms nested within condition. The Sci2 program was implemented for a total of 10 lessons (5 hr) in treatment classrooms, whereas control classrooms provided business-as-usual science instruction. Overall treatment effects were observed on three of four science outcome measures. The reported effects were moderate to large, with effect sizes (Hedges’ g) ranging from 0.48 to 0.94. Moderation analyses indicated that science knowledge at pretest did not moderate Sci2’s effects. Implications for practice and research are discussed.

  PublisherDOI

• Reading Preparation of Principals: A Review of U.S. Initial Principal Licensure Requirements

  Libra · 2014-03-25

  reviewOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  Leadership is second only to classroom instruction in its impact on student achievement, but the fact that more than half of U.S. fourth and eighth graders are reading below proficient levels underscores the urgency of identifying the essential qualities of such leadership. Among these qualities is the principal’s knowledge of reading, which has a documented relationship to reading achievement. Accordingly, professional organizations are citing the need for principals with deep reading knowledge to effectively lead the significant school-wide literacy initiatives demanded by the implementation of the Common Core State Standards in nearly all states. This study describes the current status of reading knowledge requirements for initial educational administration licensure in 51 state education agencies (SEAs): 50 states and the District of Columbia. Using deductive content analysis, current published educational rules and regulations along with mandated assessment materials were analyzed for reading knowledge requirements for initial principal licensure in 51 SEAs. Of these, only four required varying degrees of reading knowledge for initial licensure for administrators: Illinois, Kentucky, Minnesota, and Missouri. None of the required examinations utilized in any of the 51 SEAs for initial principal licensure assessed reading knowledge. Implications of the disparity between the importance of a principal’s reading knowledge and the widespread failure to require it for licensure are discussed.

  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• William J. Therrien

  University of North Texas

  13 shared

• Maria A. Longhi

  The University of Texas at Austin

  12 shared

• Christian T. Doabler

  The University of Texas at Austin

  12 shared

• Jasmine Uy

  The University of Texas at Austin

  11 shared

• Sarah R. Powell

  Flinders University

  11 shared

• Anna‐Mária Fall

  The University of Texas at Austin

  11 shared

• Greg Roberts

  University of North Texas

  11 shared

• Megan Rojo

  University of North Texas

  10 shared