Vita in pdf format (updated September, 2010)

Education

A.A.S. (2009) San Juan College, Farmington, New Mexico
Veterinary Technology
Ph.D. (1985) University of California, Santa Barbara
"Text relations and prose comprehension"
M.A. (1980) University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana
"Training generalized strategies in retarded children"
B.A.(Hon.) (1977) Kenyon College, Gambier, Ohio
"Language acquisition beyond the critical period"

 

Academic Appointments

2004 - Professor of Psychology, University of Alberta
1993-2004 Associate Professor of Psychology, University of Alberta
1992-1993 Sessional Instructor, Department of Psychology, University of Alberta
1987-1992 SSHRC Canada Research Fellow, Department of Psychology and Developmental Disabilities Centre, University of Alberta
1983-1987 Post Doctoral Fellow, Developmental Disabilities Centre, University of Alberta

 

Administrative Positions

2006 - 2007 Honors Advisor, Department of Psychology, University of Alberta
2005 - 2008 Faculty Associate, University Teaching Services, University of Alberta
1999 - 2003 Associate Chair, Undergraduate Programs, Department of Psychology, University of Alberta
1998 - 1999 Undergraduate Program Coordinator, Department of Psychology, University of Alberta
1993 - 2004 Honors Advisor, Department of Psychology, University of Alberta

 

Current Major Committees and University Experiences

2010 - pres. Co-Chair, Teaching, Learning, and Technology Subcommittee on Social Media
2007 - 2010 Committee on the Learning Environment Subcommittee on Teaching, Research, and Discovery Learning
2006 - 2010 University Coordinator for the Carnegie Academy for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Undergraduate Research Institutional Leadership Program
2008 - 2008 Faculty of Science, Information Technology Committee
2004 - pres. Faculty-based ICT Committee, Academic Information Communication Technologies
2004 - 2010 General Faculties Council Academic Standards Committee

 

Honours and Awards

2010 University of Alberta Rutherford Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching
2003 Faculty of Arts Undergraduate Teaching Award, University of Alberta
1994 Department of Psychology Teaching Award, University of Alberta
1977 Humanitarian Award, Kenyon College
1977 Psychology Award, Kenyon College

 

Teaching (Last 5 years)

An Sc 496 Research on the Human Animal Bond
Psyco 104 Basic Psychological Principles
Science 100 Integrated Science
Psyco 423 Advanced Topics in Development: Children and the Web

 

Graduate Student Supervision

2010 - pres. Jamal Saleh
2009 - pres. Kristen Welker
2005 - 2009 Peggy McFall
2000 - 2007 Jason Daniels
2000 - 2005 Bonnie Sadler Takach
2000 - 2006 Lauren Figueredo
1998 - 2004 Trudy Kwong
1995 - 2000 Dorothy Steffler

 

Research Interests

Critical Appraisal and the Web
Instructional Technology
Spelling

Integration of Teaching and Research

Human Animal Bond

 

Grants and Funding (Last 5 years)

2003 - 2007 Canadian Institutes for Health Research, Strategic Grant—Knowledge Translation Strategies for Health Research
“Strategies for Critically Appraising Children's Health Web Resources” (PI, with Gay Bisanz, Jeff Bisanz, Department of Psychology, Terry Klassen, Pediatrics, Bonnie Sadler Takach, Art and Design, and Laurie Schnirer, Canadian University Partnership)
2002-2006 Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, Operating
“Phonological Development and Children's Spelling.”
2002 - 2006 Alberta Learning, Curriculum Redevelopment Fund,
“The Great Canadian Psychology Web Site” (PI, with 8 other post secondary institutions and ACCESS Network)
2001-2005 Networks of Centres of Excellence, Canadian Language and Literacy Network,
“Measuring, Modeling, and Maximizing the Spoken Language Intelligibility and Spelling Strategies of Children with Dysarthria” (Co-Applicant, Megan Hodge, Speech Pathology and Audiology, Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, Terrance Neery, Linguistics, Faculty of Arts)

 

Recent Representative Publications

Varnhagen, C.K., McFall, G.P., Pugh, N., Routledge, L., Sumida-MacDonald, H., & Kwong, T. E. (2010). lol: New language and spelling in instant messaging. Reading and Writing 23, 719-733. pdf

Varnhagen, C.K. (2009). Correction of a canine left-to-right shunting patent ductus arteriosus with an Amplatz canine ductal occluder. Veterinary Technician, 30(10), 32-34, 36-37.pdf

Varnhagen, C.K., McFall, G.P., Figueredo, L., Sadler Takach, B., Daniels, J., & Cuthbertson, H. (2009). Spelling and the Web. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 30, 454-462.pdf

Varnhagen, C.K., & Wright, D.L. (2008). Learning characteristics of distance education and on campus veterinary technology students. Journal of Veterinary Medical Education, 35, 449-455.pdf

Figueredo, L., & Varnhagen, C.K. (2006). Spelling and grammar checkers: Are they intrusive? British Journal of Educational Technology, 31, 721-732.

Varnhagen, C.K. (2007). Children and the Web. In J. Gackenbach (Ed.), Psychology and the Internet, 2nd Ed.(pp. 25-42). New York: Academic Press

Kwong, T. E., & Varnhagen, C. K. (2005). Strategy development and learning to spell new words: Generalization of a process. Developmental Psychology, 41, 148-159.

Varnhagen, C.K. (2002). Making sense of Psychology on the Web . New York : NY: Worth Publishers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Department of Psychology – University of Alberta