Shuang Quan, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Education

Director of Artificial Intelligence and Literacy Education Lab

Dr. Shuang Quan is an Assistant Professor of Education at Juniata College and the Director of the Artificial Intelligence and Literacy Education (AILE) Lab. She received her Ph.D. in Innovation in Curriculum and Instruction from Fordham University’s Graduate School of Education, with a professional background in Literacy Education and Early Childhood Education. Through the AILE Lab, Dr. Quan leads interdisciplinary research examining how emerging technologies, particularly AI-powered conversational learning systems, can support children’s literacy, language, cognitive, and social-emotional development across diverse learning environments. As a Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD) Early Career Scholar and an Early Research Innovation Network (ERIN) Fellow at Columbia University, Dr. Quan’s research has been supported by competitive grants and recognized through peer-reviewed publications and presentations at national and international conferences.

Dr. Shuang Quan is also committed to preparing future educators for AI-enhanced classrooms. Drawing on her 10 years of experience as an elementary school teacher, she develops curriculum and learning experiences that help preservice teachers build AI literacy, understand responsible AI practices, and integrate emerging technologies to create meaningful learning experiences in contemporary classrooms.

Artificial Intelligence and Literacy Education (AILE) Lab

Launched in December 2024, the AILE Lab investigates how artificial intelligence can transform children’s literacy learning. Bringing together talented student researchers from Education and Computer Science, the AILE Lab collaboratively designs, develops, and implements AI-powered tools that support the language and cognitive development of young children from diverse linguistic and socioeconomic backgrounds.

Early Literacy Development

Developing innovative approaches to support language and literacy development in early childhood education settings.

Educator Preparation

Preparing future educators to integrate AI technologies effectively and ethically in their teaching practice.

Artificial Intelligence and Literacy Education Lab Team Members

AILE team members facilitated the Language & AI Panel at the EAP 30th Anniversary Celebration, held at the Statton Learning Center at Juniata, April 2025.

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Honors & Awards

2026 - Early Career Research Scholar, Society of Research in Child Development (SRCD)
2026 - Henry H.’57 and Joan R. Gibbel Award for Teaching Excellence, Juniata College
2025-2026 - Education Research Innovation Network (ERIN) Research Fellow, Digital Future Institute, Teachers College, Columbia University

Grants & Funding

2026-2027 $7,500 PI - Small Grants Program for Early Career Scholars, Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD). Project: Leveraging Conversational AI in Supporting Children’s Home Literacy Learning
2025-2027 $10,000 PI - Innovative Educational Initiatives (IEI) Grant, Juniata College. Project: Preparing the Future Teachers: AI in Literacy Education Lab (AILE) as An Innovative Educational Initiative (IEI) in the Teacher Preparation Program
2025-2026 $2,000 Fellowship grant awarded by Education Research Innovation Network (ERIN) program at Digital Future Institute, Teacher College, Columbia University
2026 $2,500 PI - Summer Research Award, Juniata College. Project: Different Strengths, Different Roles: Comparing AI and Caregivers in Home Literacy Instruction
2025 $2,500 PI - Summer Research Award, Juniata College. Project: Exploring Children’s ChatGPT Conversations: Content, Interaction, and Learning Potential in Home Environments

Publications

Conversational AI In Children’s Home Literacy Learning: Effectiveness, Advantages, Challenges, And Family Perception

Quan, S., Tu-Shea, X., Ding, Y., Du, Y., Zheng, Q., Gerdich, E. L. (2026). Computers & Education: Artificial Intelligence, 100549. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.caeai.2026.100549

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Impacts Of Traditional, Digital, And AI-Integrated Home Literacy Environments On Children’s Literacy Skills In The Age Of AI

Quan, S., Ding, Y., Zhang, C., George-Puskar, A. (2025). Early Education and Development, 37(3), 529-547. https://doi.org/10.1080/10409289.2025.2573078

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“Because It Was On The Computer!” Young Children’s Perceived Humanness Of Conversational AI

Quan, S. (2026). In Proceedings of the 25th Interaction Design and Children Conference (IDC ’26). ACM, New York, NY, USA, 6 pages. https://doi.org/10.1145/3773077.3812134

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Parents, Children, And ChatGPT In Home Environments: The Conversation Content And The Interaction Mode

Quan, S., Du, Y., & Lyu, Y. (2025). In Proceedings of the Extended Abstracts of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1-6). https://doi.org/10.1145/3706599.3719969

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Young Children And ChatGPT: Parents’ Use Of ChatGPT In Parenting

Quan, S., Du, Y., & Ding, Y. (2024). Extended Abstracts of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1-7). https://doi.org/10.1145/3613905.3650880

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A Citizen Science Approach Towards Parents-Administered Remote Language Assessment For Bilingual Mandarin-English Children: An Evaluation Of In-Person And Telehealth Settings

Du, Y., Tang, Y., Fong, K., Liu, Y., Wang, D., Tu-Shea, X., Liu, Y., Zheng, Q., Quan, S., Xiong, J., Sheng, L. (2026). Frontiers in Education. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2025.1696031

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Training School Psychologists With A Specialization In The Early Childhood Population

Ding, Y., Quan, S., Liu, R.-D., Liu, H.-P., Chevalier, R., & Zhang. C. (Under Review). School Psychology International.

Under Review

Google Scholar Research Gate

Conference Presentations

Title	Conference
Implementing Structured Literacy in Home Literacy Learning through Conversational AI.	LRA 2026, Honolulu, Hawaiʻi.
AI vs. Parent: Supporting Early Literacy at Home Through Conversational Agents	AERA 2026, Los Angeles, CA
Training of School Psychology Students Through an Interdisciplinary Approach	NASP 2026, Chicago, IL
Examining Parental Behaviors Across Languages During a Telehealth Mandarin-English Receptive Language Screener (MERLS)	ASHA 2025, Washington, D.C.
Understanding Parent-Child Interaction to Enhance Bilingual Young Children's Online Language Assessment Experience	AECT 2025, Las Vegas, NV
Parents, Children, and ChatGPT in Home Environments: the Conversation Content and the Interaction Mode	CHI 2025, Yokohama, Japan
Home Literacy in the Digital Age: Impacts of Literacy-Related Digital Activities (LRDAs) on Children's Literacy Skills	AERA 2025, Denver, CO
Young Children and ChatGPT: Parents' Use of ChatGPT in Parenting	CHI 2024, Honolulu, HI
The Digital Evolution in Home Literacy: Assessing Effects on Children's Literacy Development in Post-Pandemic Era	AERA 2024, Philadelphia, PA
AI for Training Future Clinicians: A Quick Lesson on ChatGPT and Voice Assistive Technology	CSHA 2024, San Francisco, CA
Preschool Transition Practices for Children with IEPs in NYC	CEC 2023, Louisville, KY

Services

Year	Role	Organization/Journal
2026-	Editorial Board Member	Early Education and Development
2026	Invited Discussant	American Educational Research Association (AERA)
2026-	Reviewer	ACM Interaction Design and Children (IDC)
2025-	Reviewer	Computer-Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing (CSCW)
2025-	Reviewer	Child Development Perspectives
2025-	Reviewer	ACM CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing
2025-	Reviewer	Literacy Research Association (LRA)
2025-	Reviewer	American Educational Research Association (AERA)
2025-	Reviewer	Future in Educational Research
2024-	Reviewer	Behavioral Sciences
2023-	Reviewer	European Journal of Education
2021-2023	Editorial Assistant	Early Childhood Education Journal

Course Teaching

Year	Role	Course
2026-	Instructor	ED507 Science of Reading
2026-	Instructor	ED397 AI in Education Research
2024-	Instructor	ED120 Child Development
2024-	Instructor	ED 312 Language and The Developing Brain
2024-	Instructor	ED411 Reading Difficulties
2024-	Instructor	ED240 Intro to Students with Exceptionalities

Professional Associations

Member of American Educational Research Association (AERA)
Member of Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD)
Member of Association of Computing and Machinery (ACM)
Member of Literacy Research Association (LRA)
Member of Pennsylvania Association of College and Teacher Educators (PAC-TE)
Member of Interaction Design and Children (IDC)