Dr. John A. McCracken graduated from Moody Bible Institute in 1975 with a degree in Christian Education, and from Miami University with a Bachelor's degree in Elementary Education in 1978 and a Master's degree in Language Arts in 1984. He taught elementary school for 20 years; eight years in the United States and twelve years at Seoul Foreign School in Seoul, South Korea. In 2001, he earned his doctoral degree in Children's Literature from The Ohio State University.

INTERESTS

A profound hindrance to beginning readers is lack of early experience with books. Some children come to school having many experiences with books. Others come with little or no familiarity. It is crucial that caregivers mediate these literary events early and often for the children to develop and progress appropriately. Therefore, Dr. McCracken is studying the effect of a home library, parent involvement, and support on the reading development of children both in the USA and in China.