Bonnie J. F. Meyer’s research has impacted reading comprehension and provided theory and evidence for the importance of strategic use of text structures and words signaling five basic text structures. Her instrumental research and sustained applications have influenced numerous domains and promoted better comprehension of expository texts. Meyer, Brandt, and Bluth’s 1980 article about the text structure strategy with 9th-grade students was identified in the Reading Research Quarterly’s 50th anniversary edition as one of the five most highly cited articles from 1965 to 2014. Dr. Meyer’s instruction about the text structure strategy has improved everyday reading of expository and persuasive texts by younger and older readers. Context and readers have varied from content area reading in Grade 5 to medical decision-making. 

Recently, thousands of elementary and middle school students have learned how to better understand content area reading via Intelligent Tutoring of the Structure Strategy (ITSS; Meyer & Wijekumar). Dr. Meyer is a Fellow in the Society of Text & Discourse, AERA, the Association for Psychological Science, and three Divisions of the American Psychological Association. She served as President of APA Division 15: Educational Psychology (2016 - 2017). Dr. Meyer is Professor of Educational Psychology in the College of Education at The Pennsylvania State University.   

Thank You to the Reading Hall of Fame:

I am honored be inducted into the Reading Hall of Fame (2019). This is a highly distinguished, international group of leaders from the past and present who over time have made important contributions to reading. It is a particularly enjoyable honor for me because I remember the first decade of the Reading Hall of Fame as I began publishing as a graduate student and then assistant professor about the importance of the text structure for reading and understanding scientific articles. This research was the beginning of my strong interest in reading comprehension. Many members of the Reading Hall of Fame influenced my thinking and some became longtime friends. In my research I have clearly seen the enormous value of strong reading comprehension skills for learning in content domains by elementary school students to understanding medical information by older adults. It is a pleasure to join the Reading Hall of Fame members with their deep interests in reading. I am delighted to represent my reading research about strategic use of text structures to increase understanding of key ideas in reading materials organized with cause and effect, problems and their solutions, contrasted and compared issues, and other text structures.