About The Lab
The MELD Research Lab is housed within the MELD office and our work is directly embedded into the MELD Diploma program. In addition, our lab works in collaboration with the Centre for Advanced Research in Experimental and Applied Linguistics (ARiEAL) at McMaster University. The MELD Research Lab is one of the only research labs affiliated with an English-language bridging program. We specifically study second language learners of English who are enrolled in the MELD bridging program.
Our lab aims to (1) explore how second language speakers of English learn language and (2) assess the efficacy of the MELD Diploma program. The research that we conduct is used to inform both second language learning theory and the curricular development of MELD.
Our work is partly funded by the Insight Development Grant awarded by the Government of Canada’s Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.
Lab Members
Anna Moro, PhD - Director
Dr. Anna Moro is an Associate Professor in the Department of Linguistics and Languages and the Director of the McMaster English Language Development office. Her research interests include language contact, bilingualism, and second-language learning.
Daniel Schmidtke, PhD - Research Associate Dr. Schmidtke's Website
Dr. Daniel Schmidtke is a Research Associate in the Centre for Advanced Research in Experimental and Applied Linguistics (ARiEAL) at McMaster University. His current research interests include reading development, quantitative/corpus linguistics, morphology, and reproducible science. Outside of the lab, Dr. Schmidtke teaches several undergraduate courses, including Statistics for Language Research, Computers and Linguistic Analysis, the Art of Leadership, and Laboratory in Experimental Linguistics.
Stefania Kyriakidou
I am a third-year PhD student in the MELD Bilingualism lab in ARiEAL, supervised by Drs. Anna Moro and Daniel Schmidtke. Using eye-tracking technology, my thesis focuses on second language (L2) learning and reading development. By analyzing eye-movement measures, this work aims to provide insights into reading comprehension, orthographic processing, and language development in L2 English learners.
Joyce Zeng
My research investigates speech perception and production with a focus on how individuals process and produce language across diverse linguistic and multilingual contexts. My work employs experimental and behavioural methods to examine the cognitive mechanisms underlying spoken language.
Our Research
Our research focuses on investigating the factors that contribute to language learning and the long-term academic success of students enrolled in the MELD bridging program. We explore a number of facets of second language competency, including reading skill, reading habits, vocabulary knowledge, and phonological knowledge.
Using a variety of research tools, such as eye-tracking technology, clinical assessments of language skills, and statistical modeling, we track student progression starting from their entry to the MELD program and throughout their undergraduate studies.
Schmidtke, D., Lu, G., & Moro, A.L. (2025). EAL reading growth during and beyond an undergraduate transition program: a 4-year longitudinal eye-movement study. Reading and Writing.
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Schmidtke, D., Yamada, S., & Moro, A. L. (2024). Bridging to academic success: the impact of reading gains in an English bridging program on GPAs. Reading and Writing, 1-30.
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Schmidtke, D., Rahmanian, S., & Moro, A. L. (2024). Reading experience drives L2 reading speed development: a longitudinal study of EAL reading habits. In Frontiers in Education (Vol. 9, p. 1286132). Frontiers Media SA.
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Schmidtke, D., Rahmanian, S., & Moro, A. L. (2023). Tracking reading development in an English language university-level bridging program: evidence from eye-movements during passage reading. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 26(2), 356-370.
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Schmidtke, D., Rahmanian, S., & Moro, A. L. (2022). Morphological knowledge in English learner university students is sensitive to language statistics: A longitudinal study. Applied Psycholinguistics, 43(4), 889-919.
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Schmidtke, D., & Moro, A. L. (2021). Determinants of word‐reading development in English learner university students: A longitudinal eye movement study. Reading Research Quarterly, 56(4), 819-854.
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Schmidtke, D., Kyriakidou, S. & Moro, A.L. (2025) “Post-bridging program reading skills as predictors of academic performance in EAL students: A comparison of bridging program with direct entry students “. Talk. Thirty-Second Annual Meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Reading, Calgary, AB, Canada. July 19th.
Kyriakidou, S., Schmidtke, D., & Moro, A. L. (2025, June 18–20). Individual differences in sensitivity to grapheme-to-phoneme transparency in second language lexical processing: An eye-tracking study [Conference presentation]. Thirteenth international conference on the Mental Lexicon, Montréal, QC, Canada.
Schmidtke, D., Lu, G. & Moro, A.L. (2023) “Investigating the long-term effects of reading ability growth during L2 instruction on subsequent reading skill: a longitudinal eye-tracking study “. Poster. Meeting of the Psychonomic Society, San Francisco, CA, USA. November 18th.
Schmidtke, D., Rahmanian, S. & Moro, A.L. (2022) “Tracking reading development in an English language bridging program: Evidence from eye-movements during passage reading “. Talk. Twenty-Ninth Annual Meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Reading, Newport Beach, CA, USA. July 17th.
Schmidtke, D., Rahmanian, S. & Moro, A. (2021) “Reading experience drives L2 reading development: a longitudinal study of EAL reading habits “. Presentation. Words in the World International Conference, Online. November 19th.
Schmidtke, D., Rahmanian, S. & Moro, A. (2020). The role of language experience on morphological knowledge: a longitudinal study of written complex word production in second language learners. Online presentation. Meeting of the Psychonomic Society, November 19th.
Schmidtke, D., Rahmanian, S. & Moro, A. (2020). A head start in reading ability: The effect of early phonological awareness on change in ESL passage reading behaviour and reading habits. Online Presentation. Words in the World International Conference, October 16th.
Schmidtke, D. & Moro, A. (2020). Word reading development in EFL university students. Poster. New Orleans, LA. Meeting of the Psychonomic Society, November 15th.