Dr. Speciale’s research and teaching bring critical and decolonial perspectives to the fields of comparative and international education, language and education policy, and literacy studies. Her work examines the discursive connections between language, literacy, and citizenship, with a focus on how students and educators interpret and navigate policy frameworks and broader sociopolitical discourses.  

Her prior research was a multi-sited ethnographic study of two private bilingual schools (secular French-English and Islamic French-Arabic) in Dakar, Senegal. It explored how youth and educators engaged with language and literacy practices shaped by colonial histories, religious traditions, and discourses of global citizenship. Her current project investigates how competing approaches to language and literacy, particularly Science of Reading policies and the International Baccalaureate framework, shape classroom practices and ideas of learning, language, and citizenship in U.S. public schools. 

As an educator, Dr. Speciale is dedicated to supporting students in developing their own theoretical and analytical toolbox to take meaningful action in their communities. She holds a Ph.D. in Educational Policy Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, an M.A. in International Education from The George Washington University, and a B.A. in Linguistics from Boston University.