Jenny Malave-Battles

My experience in Springfield College’s Summer Learn & Earn Program gave me an opportunity to connect what I am learning in the classroom with meaningful, hands-on experience as an educator. I am currently pursuing my master’s degree in Elementary Education at Springfield College, with plans to continue growing as a teacher and advocate for students with diverse learning needs.

As part of the Summer Learn & Earn Program, I participated in professional development focused on literacy instruction. During our professional development week, we explored culturally responsive literacy practices, structured literacy, and ways to better understand and support the individual strengths of our students. We learned from educators and literacy professionals and had opportunities to think deeply about how effective literacy instruction can be both explicit and responsive to students’ identities, experiences, and needs. One of the most meaningful parts of the training was learning how literacy instruction can combine research-based practices with culturally responsive teaching. This connected directly to what I have been learning through my graduate coursework and helped me see how these ideas can come together in an actual classroom.

The best part of being a LIT was having the opportunity to build relationships with students while providing targeted literacy support. This experience allowed me to practice what I have been learning in my graduate program and helped me better understand how important it is to meet students where they are and build from their strengths.

For me, Summer Learn & Earn was much more than a summer job. It was an opportunity to grow professionally, learn from other educators, and gain experiences that will continue to shape the teacher I want to become. I would encourage prospective education students to take advantage of opportunities outside the traditional classroom. Springfield College provides experiences that allow you to learn by doing, develop relationships with students, and discover what kind of educator you want to be.

This experience reminded me that teaching is not simply about delivering a lesson, it is about believing in students, recognizing their strengths, and helping them see themselves as successful learners.

Sophia Dow

I am a student in the Early Childhood Education program at Springfield College. This summer, I had the opportunity to participate in the Summer Learn & Earn Program and serve as a Literacy Intervention Teacher (LIT) in East Longmeadow (Mass.) Public Schools for rising first graders. This experience allowed me to connect what I have been learning in my Education classes to real classroom experiences and gave me a better understanding of what literacy instruction looks like in practice.

As part of the program, I received professional development focused on culturally responsive pedagogy and structured literacy. We explored the Science of Reading and learned about the importance of providing students with explicit and intentional literacy instruction. I learned strategies for teaching phonics in a clear and engaging way, as well as ways to incorporate students’ backgrounds, interests, and experiences into literacy instruction. One of the most meaningful parts of the training was learning how structured literacy and culturally responsive teaching can work together. Although I had learned about both approaches in my college courses, seeing how they could be combined in a classroom helped me understand their importance on a deeper level.

The best part of this experience was getting to know the students and seeing their growth, engagement, and excitement about learning. It also helped me become more confident in my teaching and gave me a better understanding of the kind of teacher I want to be. As an Early Childhood Education major, this experience will continue to influence how I approach literacy instruction and my future classroom.

I would encourage prospective Education students to take advantage of opportunities outside of the classroom. Experiences like Summer Learn & Earn provide opportunities to work directly with students, learn from experienced educators, and put what you learn in college into practice. For me, this experience was an important step in preparing for my future as an educator and I am grateful for the opportunity to continue learning beyond the college classroom.