Robin Griffith, Ph.D.

Robin R. Griffith, Ph.D. is Professor of Literacy and Chair of the Department of Teaching and Learning Sciences in the College of Education at Texas Christian University. Her scholarship focuses on helping teachers make responsive instructional decisions that improve literacy learning for children.

Dr. Griffith's research examines teacher decision making during literacy instruction, the preparation and professional learning of literacy educators, and the ways children's literature can support reading comprehension, inferential thinking, and social-emotional learning. Her recent work also explores teacher residency programs, literacy coaching, and the development of effective literacy instruction through evidence-based teacher education.

She is the author of Teachers as Decision Makers: Responsive Guided Reading Instruction (Stenhouse, 2022) and has published extensively in leading literacy journals, including The Reading Teacher, Literacy, Theory Into Practice, and the Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education. Her work has been recognized with the TCU College of Education Dean's Teaching Award and the Dean's Research and Creativity Award. 

Before joining the faculty at TCU, Dr. Griffith taught in Texas public schools as an elementary teacher, served as an early literacy coach, and trained literacy coordinators through the Literacy Collaborative. She continues to partner with school districts to provide professional learning in literacy instruction, teacher development, and instructional coaching.

Education

Ph.D., Curriculum & Instruction
Texas Tech University
2006

M.Ed., Language and Literacy Education
Texas Tech University
1998

B.S., Human Development and Family Studies with concentration in Early Childhood Education
Texas Tech University
1994

Academic Areas

• Literacy
• Reading
• English/Language Arts

Research Areas

• Teacher Decision Making
• Thoughtfully Adaptive Teaching
• Early Literacy
• Professional Development of Pre-service and In-service Teachers

Professional Achievements

• Literacy Collaborative Trainer
• Reading Recovery Advocate

Selected Publications

Griffith, R. (2025). Inferring characters' feelings using illustrative and text evidence: How picture books support comprehension. Literacy.  https://doi.org/10.1111/lit.70012

Griffith, R., Davison, K., Kight, L., & Stanmore, I. (2024). Supporting emotional intelligence and inferential comprehension using character analysis in picturebooks. The Reading Teacher, 78(4), 236-242. doi:10.1002/trtr.2367. 

Smith, J.M. & Griffith, R. (2024). Making it Real: Applying Coursework to Fieldwork in a Teacher Residency Literacy Methods Course. Texas Association for Literacy Education Yearbook, 11, 10-19.

Griffith, R. & Smith, J.M. (2023). Another Fever Year?: Making sense of a pandemic with a historical graphic novel. Literacy. https://doi.org/10.1111/lit.12349

Bauml, M. Griffith, R., Kyzar, K, & Lacina, J. (2023). The 3C network: An anchor for effective field experiences in educator preparation programs. Young Children, 78(2), 82-89.

Griffith, R. (2022). Teachers as Decision Makers: Responsive Guided Reading Instruction. Stenhouse Publishers.

Morgan, D. N. Bates, C. C. & Griffith, R. (2022). Literacy Coaching for Instructional Change in Guided Reading: Navigating Form and Function Reading Horizons: A Journal of Literacy and Language Arts, 61(3), 1-23.

Lacina, J. & Griffith, R. (Eds.). (2020). Preparing Globally Minded Teachers. New York, NY: Routledge Publishers.

Davis, A., Griffith, R., & Bauml, M. (2019). How preservice teachers use learner knowledge for planning and in-the-moment teaching decisions during guided reading. Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, 40(2), 138-158.