Pamela Snow

Professor Pamela Snow is a Distinguished Professor of Cognitive Psychology at La Trobe University’s School of Education in Bendigo, Australia. She co-directs the Science of Language and Reading (SOLAR) Lab, focusing on language-to-literacy transitions, oral language skills in high-risk youth, and linguistic aspects of forensic interviews with minors. Her research spans over 200 publications and has been funded by the ARC Discovery/Linkage Programs and the Criminology Research Council. She is a registered psychologist with expertise in speech-language pathology and has advised government panels, including the 2017 National Year 1 Literacy and Numeracy Panel.

Education:

• PhD, La Trobe University
• Grad Cert Higher Education, Monash University
• Grad Dip Communication Disorders (Neuropsychology & Aphasia), Lincoln Institute
• Bachelor of Applied Science (Speech Pathology), Lincoln Institute

Research Interests: Language development, literacy education, child mental health, forensic linguistics, and evidence-based educational policy. Her work advocates for explicit teaching methods like cold-calling and challenges balanced literacy approaches.

Media & Recognition:

• 2024: Named one of Australia’s five most influential education figures by the Australian Financial Review
• 2020: Life Membership (Speech Pathology Australia)
• 2012: Fellow (Speech Pathology Australia)

Labs & Collaborations: SOLAR Lab conducts externally funded projects on literacy transitions, partnering with AERO. Her work bridges research, advocacy, and teacher training in early language and literacy.