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Biography

   Dr. Valerie Bambha is a postdoctoral research fellow at the Children's Learning Institute in the Department of Pediatrics. She is originally from Virginia and received her bachelor's degree in Psychological Science with a minor in Linguistics from William & Mary in 2019. She completed her PhD in Developmental Psychology at Cornell University in 2023 under the direction of Dr. Marianella Casasola. During her graduate studies, she developed an interest in leveraging playful learning to improve educational outcomes for children, an area she is excited to explore further at UT. (https://www.linkedin.com/in/valerie-bambha)

Education

PhD, Cornell University, 2023

BS, William & Mary, 2019

Advisor

Research Description

   Dr. Bambha's research has two main lines of inquiry: (1) considering how different domains of development (e.g., cognitive, motor, social) interact to support children's learning, and (2) applying findings about the multidimensionality of development to create playful, engaging, and accessible interventions that can serve all children. Her work looks closely at the physical materials, linguistic input, and social contexts that adults provide children during play and how those factors can be manipulated to best support child needs.

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5790-1334 https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5790-1334