Ioulia Kovelman, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Associate

Office: 46-4037D

Telephone: (617) 258-8221

Email: ioulia@mit.edu

Profile

I am developmental cognitive neuroscientist, interested in language and reading development and developmental learning disabilities. I received my Ph.D. from Dartmouth College, where I completed my dissertation work in bilingual language, reading, and cognitive development under the supervision of Dr. Laura-Ann Petitto. I am now working with Dr. Gabrieli on projects of typical and atypical reading and language development in children, using behavioral and imaging methods (fMRI).

Publications

Kovelman, I., Shalinsky, M. S.,  Berens, M. S., & Petitto L. A. (2008). Shining new light on the brain’s “Bilingual Signature:” A functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy investigation of semantic processing. NeuroImage, 39(3), 1457-1471

Kovelman, I., Baker, S. A., & Petitto, L.A. (2008). Bilingual and monolingual brains compared using fMRI: Is there a neurological signature of bilingualism? Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 20(1), 1-17

Kovelman, I., Baker, S.A., & Petitto, L.A. (2008). Age of bilingual language exposure as a new window into bilingual reading development. Bilingualism: Language & Cognition, 11(2),203–223

Kovelman, I., Shalinsky, M.H., White, K., Berens, M., Schmitt, S., Palmer L., & Petitto, L.A. (in press). Dual language use in sign-speech bimodal bilinguals using fNIRS Brain-Imaging. Brain & Language

Kovelman, I., Shalinsky, Berens, M., M.H., White, K., & Petitto, L.A. (submitted). New fNIRS brain imaging investigation of lexical repetition in sign-speech bimodal bilinguals & methods of fNIRS imaging

Berens, M. S., Kovelman, I., Grammacy, R., & Petitto, L.A. (submitted).  Impact of early childhood exposure to Arts on dancers’ general cognitive abilities

Berens, M. S., Kovelman, I., & Petitto, L.A. (submitted).  Learning to read in two languages: simultaneous versus sequential exposure to literacy

Norton, E. S., Kovelman, I., & Petitto, L. A. (2007). Are there separate neural systems for spelling? New insights into the role of rules and memory in spelling from fMRI. International Journal of Mind, Brain, and Education, 1(1), 44-59

Petitto, L. A., & Kovelman, I. (2003). The Bilingual Paradox: How signing-speaking bilingual children help us resolve it and teach us about the brain’s mechanisms underlying all language acquisition. Learning Language, 8, 5-18. Translation into French (2004). Le paradoxe du bilinguisme, Double langue maternelle. Revue Imaginaire et Inconscient, 14

Selected Manuscripts in Preparation

Neural basis of auditory phonological processing in typical reading and developmental dyslexia.

Neural correlates of the developing phonological awareness ability in auditory and visual modalities in young children with and without dyslexia

How the adult brain processes grammatical errors that are typical and atypical of childhood language acquisition.

A new look at phonological working memory: how the brain remembers new words.

Selected Conference Presentations

Kovelman, I., Shalinsky, M.H., White, K., Berens, M., Schmitt, S., & Petitto, L.A. (2008). The bilingual brain: New insights from neuroimaging studies of language switching in bilingual adults processing signed and spoken languages. Cognitive Neuroscience Society Annual Meeting, San Francisco

White, K. S., Kovelman, I., Shalinksy, M. H., McKenney, D., & Petitto, L. A. (2008). The neural basis of phonetic processing as seen through the new light of fNIRS. Cognitive Neuroscience Society Annual Meeting, San Francisco

Gaab, N., Kovelman, I., Christodoulou, J. A., Liberman, D.A., Weinberg, A., Hostetter, M.K., Norton, E., Reisner, S. , Triantafyllou, C., Gabrieli, J.D.E.  (2007). Learning to read changes the developing brain: Comparing phonological and semantic processing between prereaders and readers

Kovelman, I. Berens, M. S. & Petitto L. A. (2006) Teaching reading to young bilinguals: Is Whole Word or Phonics the answer? Language Acquisition and Bilingualism conference, Toronto, Canada

Kovelman, I. Baker, S. A., Petitto, L. A. (2005). Age of bilingual language exposure as a new window into bilingual reading development. Society for Research in Child Development, Atlanta, GA

Kovelman I., & Petitto, L. A. (May 2003). Stages of language development in bilingual children exposed to their other language at different ages. International Symposium on Bilingualism, Phoenix, AZ

Kovelman, I. & Petitto, L. A. (2002). Bilingual babies’ maturation and linguistic milestones as a function of their age of first exposure to two languages. 32nd annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, Orlando, FL