Building Better Readers: Jennifer’s Story

My name is Jennifer Baskin, and my most recent teaching role was serving as a reading interventionist at Westcliffe Elementary in Greenville, SC. I have been teaching for fifteen years with many of those years spent as a reading interventionist and teaching kindergarten and first grade.

As a teacher, I understand the importance of building strong foundational reading skills with every student to ensure they become not only successful readers but also successful individuals in life.

Over the last few years, education has seen major shifts in how we should teach children to read. As a reading interventionist, I wanted a research-based understanding of how students learn to read and what strategies help them become successful readers. I knew that pursuing a Master of Education with a concentration in Literacy at Furman would give me the knowledge I needed to better serve my students.

From the moment I began my classes at Furman, I realized that obtaining a master’s in literacy was an excellent choice. The classes gave me the literacy knowledge I was seeking to ensure that I was able to effectively teach students how to become thriving readers and to help instill a love of reading with each student.

Not only were the content and hands-on practicum experiences of the classes informative, but the individualized support and guidance I received from the professors is what made the literacy program an excellent experience. Their expertise and encouragement helped me to clearly see how I can make a positive and meaningful impact on a student’s literacy journey.

Today, when I teach striving readers, I apply the knowledge I gained from the literacy program to determine the unique literacy needs of each student and create a strategic plan to address the reading needs of the student to support their reading growth.

My experience at Furman also helped me to become a literacy leader at my school. I was able to support other teachers in meeting the reading needs of their students, which allowed for greater confidence and success for both teachers and students.

For teachers who want the knowledge, experience, and confidence they need to become an educator that truly understands how to teach students to become successful readers, the literacy program at Furman is an excellent choice. The professional growth teachers gain in this program translates directly into the reading success of the students they teach.