Todd Risley

Todd Risley was an influential American psychologist known for his research in language development and early childhood education. He is best known for his work on the "30 million word gap," which highlighted the disparity in words spoken to children from different socioeconomic backgrounds. Risley's studies showed that children who hear more words in their early years tend to have better language skills and academic success. His work emphasized the importance of early verbal interactions for cognitive development, advocating for ways to support language-rich environments, especially for children from disadvantaged backgrounds.