Faculty and Project Leaders

Danielle McNamara

Danielle S. McNamara, Professor, Department of Psychology, Arizona State University

As director of the Science of Learning and Educational Technology (SoLET) Lab, McNamara develops educational technologies and conducts research to better understand cognitive processes of comprehension, learning, comprehension strategies, text coherence, and individual differences.She and her team have developed a number of educational technologies (e.g., iSTART, iSTART-ME, Coh-Metrix, and Writing-Pal). She is particularly interested in how the effects of such tools interact with individual differences and can be optimized for individual learners.

Contact: [email protected]


Postdoctoral Research Fellows

Mitchell Shortt, Postdoctoral Scholar, Department of Psychology, Arizona State University

Mitchell Shortt received his PhD in Educational Studies specializing in Learning Technologies from The Ohio State University in 2022. His research interests include online student behaviors, game-based learning, and computer-assisted language learning, as well as diversity, equity, and inclusion in education.

Contact: [email protected]


Andrew Potter, Postdoctoral Scholar, Department of Psychology, Arizona State University

Andrew Potter received his Ph.D. in literacy from the University of Delaware in 2022. His research interests include writing instruction and development, integrated reading and writing instruction, assessment, and using technology to improve literacy outcomes, particularly for students who are at-risk.

Contact: [email protected]


Michelle Banawan, Postdoctoral Scholar, Department of Psychology, Arizona State University

Michele Banawan received her PhD in computer science from the Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines in 2017. Her research interests include machine learning, educational data mining/learning analytics and artificial intelligence in education.

Contact: [email protected]


Tracy Arner, Postdoctoral Scholar, Department of Psychology, Arizona State University

Tracy Arner received her PhD in educational psychology from Kent State University in 2020. Her research interests include reading comprehension, instructional design, technology-enhanced instruction, game-based learning, and misconceptions. 

Contact: [email protected]

Former Research Scholars

Jianmin Dai

Jianmin Dai, Assistant Research Professor, Institute for the Science of Teaching and Learning, Arizona State University

Contact: [email protected]


Ying Fang, Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science, Central China Normal University

Contact: [email protected]


Tong Li, Assistant Professor of Emerging Media, Design, and Development, Ball State University

Contact: [email protected]


Reese Butterfuss, Research Scientist, Human Resources Research Organization (HumRRO)