Melissa Baralt

Degrees

Ph.D. Georgetown University, Applied Linguistics (awarded with distinction)

M.S. Georgetown University, Applied Linguistics

 B.A. University of Virginia, Spanish Linguistics

Areas of Expertise

• Bilingualism and second language acquisition
• Bilingual language development in children; bilingual pre-K curricula
• Classroom vs. online language learning and teaching
• Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT)
• Needs analysis, task design and task sequencing in language curricula design
• Language teacher training; teachers new to TBLT
• Minority student experiences in the foreign language classroom

Funding

FUNDED RESEARCH GRANTS: FEDERAL

Reading Bees: Adapting and testing a mobile app designed to empower families to read more interactively with children in distinct geographical and cultural contexts (G08LM014107), 2023-2026
Hutton, J. (Principal Investigator)
Baralt, M., Luma, M., Heineman, T. (Co-Investigator)
$450,000

An HSI-HBCU collaboration to create open access Spanish langauge curricula celebrating Blackness in Latin America, (P017A230050), 2023-2026
Baralt, M. (Principal Investigator)
Anya, U., Clemons, A., Gómez. D. (Co-Investigators)
U.S. Department of Education
$180,000

Promoting child language acquisition through a prevantative parenting program (R01HD102201), 2023-2024
Bagner, D. (Principal Investigator)
Baralt, M., Bickman, L., Coxe, S., Graziano, P., Griffith, S., Pettit, J. (Co-Investigators)
National Institutes of Health, Child Health and Human Development
$454,441

FIU Tabadul: Creating Language-Learning Community Through Virtual Reality, 2021-2023
Baralt, M. (Principal Investigator)
Boukerrou, L., Doscher, S. (Co-Investigators)
Steven’s Initiative
$543,439

Háblame Bebé: Improving health information access for low-income Hispanic children's early language environments (G08LM013183), 2019-2023
Baralt, M., Darcy Mahoney, A. (Co- Principal Investigators), Brito, N. (Co-Investigator)
National Institutes of Health, National Library of Medicine
$450,000

Improving Spanish- language teacher retention and success among Black Spanish-language learners: An HSI-HBCU collaboration (AC-264174-19), 2019-2023
Baralt, M. (Principal Investigator)
National Endowment for the Humanities
$100,000

Supporting Hispanic children’s early language environments and bilingualism through nurse home visiting, 2019-2021
Baralt, M., Darcy Mahoney, A., Brito, N., Larson, A. (Co- Principal Investigators)
Home Visiting Applied Research Collaborative grant (PI: Duggan, Johns Hopkins)
Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau
$25,000

Háblame Bebé: An app to promote bilingualism and promote developmental milestone tracking amongst Hispanic families. (Federal Challenge Winner), 2017
U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau
Baralt, M., Darcy Mahoney, A., Brito, N. (Co-Principal Investigators)
$75,000

Háblame Bebé: An app to promote bilingualism and promote developmental milestone tracking amongst Hispanic families. (PHASE 2 Winner and Funding), 2016
U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau
Baralt, M., Darcy Mahoney, A., Brito, N. (Co-Principal Investigators)
$25,000

Háblame Bebé: An app to promote bilingualism and promote developmental milestone tracking amongst Hispanic families. (PHASE 1 Winner and Funding), 2016
U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau
Baralt, M., Darcy Mahoney, A., Brito, N. (Co-Principal Investigators)
$10,000

Black enrollment in foreign language classes, 2015-2017
F. Mora (Principal Investigator)
U.S. Department of Education Title V
(Designated language teaching methodologist funds under MI-BRIDGE: minority
institutions building resources to ignite development and growth in education)
$9,000

Language teacher training in Minority-Serving Institutions, 2015-2017
F. Mora (Principal Investigator)
U.S. Department of Education Title V
(Designated language teaching methodologist funds under MI-BRIDGE: minority
institutions building resources to ignite development and growth in education)
$9,000

FUNDED RESEARCH GRANTS: STATE OR PRIVATE

Habla Conmigo, Daddy: A father-centered language intervention, 2024-2026
Ferjan-Ramírez, N. (Principal Investigator)
Baralt, M., Darcy Mahoney, A. (Co-Principal Investigators)
Krayns Children's Innovation Fund, Baptist Health
$200,000

Helping home visitors' coach Spanish-speaking at-risk mothers in early language environments and bilingualism, 2020-2022
Baralt, M., Darcy Mahoney, A. (Co-Principal Investigators)
Kranys Children’s Innovation Fund Grant, Baptist Health
$53,401.14

Use and maintenance of languages other than English among Coral Gables school children, 2019-2022
Baralt, M., Carter, P., Lynch, A. (Co-Principal Investigators)
Coral Gables Community Foundation Grant
$2,500

Háblame Bebé (Talk to Me Baby): Promoting bilingualism in low-income Hispanic children, 2017
Larson, A., Baralt, M., Scheffner Hammer, C. (Co-Principal Investigators)
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
$14,900

Bilingualism, executive function and cognitive development in preterm infants, 2014-2015
Baralt, M., Darcy Mahoney, A. (Co-Principal Investigators)
Kranys Children’s Innovation Fund Grant, Baptist Health 
$100,000

The benefits of bilingualism for children born premature, 2014
Baralt, M. (Principle Investigator)
Language Learning Small Research Grant
$10,000

FUNDED RESEARCH GRANTS: IN HOUSE

Community-engaged research for the creation of bilingual literacy supports for Haitian Parents and infants using a book and video in pediatric visits, 2021-2023
Baralt, M., Andre, N., & Leger, S. (Co-Principal Investigators)
Florida International University Research Opportunity Seed Fund
$30,000

FIU at the forefront of eye-tracking technology, software upgrade, 2022
Baralt, M., Morcillo-Gómez, J. (Co-Principal Investigators)
Florida International University Technology Enhancement Grant
$10,022

The design of an app for adults with hearing loss who have received cochlear implants and require listening training, 2021
Alfano, A., Baralt, M. (Co-Principal Investigators)
Florida International University
$2,000

A cross-discipline approach to the design of culturally-relevant parent training for children with language delay and behavior problems, 2017
Bagner, D., Baralt, M. (Co-Principal Investigators)
Florida International University
$2,000

FIU at the forefront of eye-tracking technology, 2017
Baralt, M., Morcillo-Gómez, J. (Co-Principal Investigators)
Florida International University Technology Enhancement Grant
$47,280

Applied psycholinguistics – Increasing Black student enrollment in Spanish language study, 2015
Broad Fellowship, Florida International University
$1000

Applied psycholinguistics – new methodologies for measuring task complexity, 2012
Broad Fellowship, Florida International University
$1000

Selected Publications

EDITED VOLUMES

2. Leow, R., Cerezo, L., Baralt, M. (Eds.). (2015). A psycholinguistic approach to technology and language learning. Boston: de Gruyter Mouton.

1. Baralt, M., Gilabert, R., & P. Robinson (Eds.) (2014). Task sequencing and instructed second language learning. London: Bloomsbury.

SELECT PEER-REVIEWED JOURNAL ARTICLES
(* indicates graduate student co-author; ** indicates undergraduate student author)

*Gillenson, C., Bagner, D., Darcy Mahoney, A., & Baralt, M. (in press). A preliminary study of executive functioning in preterm-born children: A bilingual advantage. Advances in Neonatal Care. 

Baralt, M., Doscher, S., Boukerrou, L., Bogosian, B., Elmeligi, W., Hdouch, Y., Istifan, J., Nemouch, A., Khachatryan, T., *Elsakka, N., **Arana, F., *Perez, G., **Cobos-Solis, J., *Mouchane, S., Vassigh, S. (2023). Virtual Tabadul: Creating language-learning community through virtual reality. Journal of International Students.

Baralt, M., Griffith, S., Hanson, K. L., André, N., Blair, L., & Bagner, D. M. (2022). How family needs informed an early literacy family reading program in multilingual and multicultural Miami-Dade County. The Journal of Early Childhood Literacy.

Ferjan Ramirez, N., Hippe, D., *Correa, L., *Andert, J., & Baralt, M. (2022). Habla conmigo daddy! Fathers’ language input in North American bilingual Latinx families. Infancy, 32, 301-23.

Larson, A., Baralt, M., Hokenson, J., Scheffner Hammer, C., Barrett, T., & DeVilbiss, N. (2022). A randomized controlled trial assessing the effectiveness of the Háblame Bebé mobile application with Spanish-speaking mothers experiencing economic hardship. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 25, 1-17.

Darcy Mahoney, A., Brito, N., Baralt, M., Buerlein, J., Patel, S., & Lu, M. (2021). Innovating maternal and child health: Incentive prizes to improve early childhood development. Maternal and Child Health Journal, 25, 1508-15.

*Becklenberg, A., Hires, K., Darcy Mahoney, A., Baralt, M., & Stapel-Wax, J. (2021). A training to promote early language interactions among refugee mothers who are speakers of languages other than English. Journal of Cultural Diversity, 28, 48-55.

Baralt, M., & Darcy Mahoney, A. (2020). Bilingualism and the executive function advantage in preterm-born children. Cognitive Development, 55, 100931.

Baralt, M., Darcy Mahoney, A., & Brito, N. (2020). Háblame Bebé: A phone application intervention to support Hispanic children’s early language environments and bilingualism. Child Language Teaching and Therapy, 36, 33-57.

*Heymann, P., *Heflin, B., Baralt, M., & Bagner, D. (2020). Infant-directed language following a brief behavioral parenting intervention: The importance of language quality. Infant Behavior and Development, Article 101419.

Anya, U., Baralt, M., Gómez, D., *Hechaverría, H., Hobbs, W., & **Robinson, A. (2020). Improving Spanish-language teacher retention and success among black Spanish-language learners: An HSI-HBCU collaboration. Commissioned paper for the Consortium of Latin American Studies Programs (CLASP).

Larson, A., Cycyk, L., Scheffner Hammer, C., Baralt, M., Uchikoshi, Y., *An, G., & Wood, C. (2020). A systemic review of language-focused interventions for young children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 50, 157-78.

Baralt, M., & *Morcillo Gómez, J. (2017). Task-Based Language Teaching online: A guide for teachers. Language Learning & Technology, 21, 28-43.

Darcy Mahoney, A., & Baralt, M. (2016). Bilingualism and executive inhibitory control in 4-and 5-year-old preterm born children: A pilot study. Advances in Neonatal Care, 16, E9.

Baralt, M., & *López-Bravo, M. (2016). Teaching Chinese as a foreign language: A classroom study on the timing of grammar around a task. Chinese as a Second Language Research, 5, 27-61.

Gurzynski-Weiss, L., & Baralt, M. (2015). Does type of modified output correspond to learner noticing of feedback? A closer look in face-to-face and computer-mediated task-based interaction. Applied Psycholinguistics, 36, 1393-420.

*Head, L., Baralt, M., & Darcy Mahoney, A. (2015). Bilingualism as a potential strategy to improve executive function in preterm infants: A review. Journal of Pediatric Health Care, 29, 126-36.   
Torr
Gurzynski-Weiss, L., & Baralt, M. (2014). Exploring learner perception and use of task-based interactional feedback in FTF and CMC modes. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 36, 1-37.

Cerezo, L., Baralt, M., Suh, B-R., & Leow, R. (2014). Does the medium really matter in L2 development? The validity of CALL research designs. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 27, 294-310.

Baralt, M. (2013). The impact of cognitive complexity on feedback efficacy during online versus face-to-face interactive tasks. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 35, 689-725.

Baralt, M., Pennestri, S., Selvanadin, M. (2011). Using Wordles to teach foreign language writing. Language Learning & Technology, 15, 12-22.

Baralt, M., & Gurzynski-Weiss, L. (2011). Comparing learners’ state anxiety during task-based interaction in computer-mediated and face-to-face communication. Language Teaching Research, 15, 201-29.


CHAPTERS IN EDITED VOLUMES 

Zalbidea, J., Gurzynski-Weiss, L, & Baralt, M. (in press). La enseñanza a través del enfoque por tareas. In C. Sanz, I. Taboada, and E. Serafini (Eds.), La enseñanza del español: Manual para la formación de profesores de español. New York: Wiley.

Sachs, R., Baralt, M., & Gurzynski-Weiss, L. (2023). Psycholinguistics for the language classroom. In A. Godfroid and H. Hopp (Eds.), Routledge handbook of second language acquisition and psycholinguistics (pp. 387-399). Abingdon: Routledge.

Baralt, M., Fei, W., Bu, Z., Chen, H., Morcillo Gómez, & Luan, X. (2021). The implementation of a Task-Based Spanish language program in Qingdao, China: A case study. In M. Ahmadian & M.H. Long (Eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Task-Based Language Teaching (pp. 135-150). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Torres, J., & Baralt, M. (2021). El aprendizaje del español como lengua de herencia a través del enfoque por tareas. In D. Pascual y Cabo & J. Torres (Eds.), Aproximaciones al estudio del español como lengua de herencia (pp. 81-96). Abingdon: Routledge.

Baralt, M. (2018). Becoming a task-based teacher educator: A case study. In M. Bygate, V. Samuda, & K. Van den Branden (Eds.), TBLT as a researched pedagogy. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.

Baralt, M., Gurzynski-Weiss, L., & Kim, Y. (2016). Engagement with the language: How examining learners’ affective and social engagement explains successful learner-generated attention to form. In M. Sato & S. Ballinger (Eds.), Peer interaction and L2 learning (pp. 209-239). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.

Baralt, M. (2015). Working memory capacity, cognitive complexity and L2 recasts in online language teaching. In Z. Wen, M. Borges Mota, & A. McNeill (Eds.), Working memory in second language acquisition and processing (pp. 248-269). Bristol: Multilingual Matters.

Baralt, M., & Leow, R. (2015). Uptake, task complexity, and L2 development in SLA: An online perspective. In Cerezo, L., Leow, R., & Baralt, M. (Eds.), A psycholinguistic approach to technology and language learning (pp. 201-222). Boston: de Gruyter.

Gurzynski-Weiss, L., Baralt, M., Al-Khalil, M., & Leow, R. (2015). The roles of type of feedback, type of linguistic item, and awareness in L2 development in computer-mediated communication. In Cerezo, L., Leow, R., & Baralt, M. (Eds.), A psycholinguistic approach to technology and language learning (pp. 151-170). Boston: de Gruyter.

Baralt., M. (2014). Task sequencing and task complexity in traditional versus online classes. In M. Baralt, R. Gilabert, & P. Robinson (Eds.), Task sequencing and instructed second language learning (pp. 95-122). London: Bloomsbury.

Baralt, M., Gilabert, R., & Robinson, P. (2014). An introduction to theory and research in task sequencing and instructed second language learning. In M. Baralt, R. Gilabert, & P. Robinson (Eds.), Task sequencing and instructed second language learning (pp. 1-34). London: Bloomsbury.

Baralt., M., *Harmath-de Lemos, S., & *Werfelli, S. (2014). Teachers' application of the Cognition Hypothesis when lesson planning: A case study. In M. Baralt, R. Gilabert, & P. Robinson (Eds.), Task sequencing and instructed second language learning (pp. 179-206). London: Bloomsbury.

Baralt, M. (2012). Coding qualitative data. In A. Mackey and S. Gass (Eds.), Research methods in second language acquisition: A practical guide (pp. 222-244). Malden: Wiley Blackwell. 

OTHER PUBLICATIONS OR PRODUCTS 
NEH-funded open access Spanish language curriculum centering Blackness in Latin America.  Task-based Spanish language curriculum for Black language learners: An open-access resource for teachers. Funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities. With Dr. Uju Anya, Dr. Aris Clemons, and Dr. Déborah Gómez. 

Baralt, M., Darcy Mahoney, A., Brito, N., & Larson, A. (2022). Nurse home visitors’ use of the Háblame Bebé app to support mother-child interactions in their home language during COVID. Federal brief to the HRSA-funded Home Visiting Applied Research Collaborative (HARC). 

Háblame Bebé. Free phone app for families. Apple store (iOS) and Google Play (Android). Funded by the NIH National Library of Medicine and HRSA.

Baralt, M., Darcy Mahoney, A., & Brito, N. (2017). Háblame Bebé is the first mobile application to promote Spanish-English bilingualism and track developmental milestones: Phase III Report to HRSA. HRSA Federal Challenge Phase III Reports.