Jennifer McCreight, Ph.D.
Biography
I am an Assistant Professor of Early Childhood and Literacy Education in the School of Teaching, Learning and Curriculum Studies, and have taught pre-service teachers for over a decade. This work has made clear there is such brilliance in our current and future K-12 educators! My scholarship is twofold. First, I research the powerful synergies that occur when young students and families are invited to bring their whole linguistic and cultural selves to classroom learning experiences. Additionally, I study and write about what it looks like to support pre-service teachers in developing curriculum for their students that is responsive to and inclusive of each child's unique language assets. I am passionate about sharing what I learn with future and practicing teachers through professional development workshops and state/national academic conferences.
Publications
- McCreight, J. (2026). Home visits as culturally sustaining pedagogy: A first-grade classroom community learns from families' shared assets and challenges. Reading Horizons, 65(1). https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/reading_horizons/vol65/iss1/4
- Monobe, G., McCreight, J., & Viton, B. (2026). Justice-centered teacher preparation in third space afterschool programs. Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, 47(2), 517-534. https://doi.org/10.1080/10901027.2026.2635522
- McCreight, J., & Galeza, A. (2026). Family dialogue journals in a linguistically diverse elementary classroom create a third space for connection and learning. Language Arts, 103(5), 305-316. https://doi.org/10.58680/la20261035305
- McCreight, J., Galeza, A., & Knapp, S. (2026, May 1). “I like black olives. What’s your favorite food?”: Authentic composition and a pedagogy of curiosity... Writers Who Care. https://writerswhocare.wordpress.com/2026/05/01
- McCreight, J. (2025). "It’s Our Job to Normalize It": Incorporating a Translanguaging Pedagogy into Pre-Service Teacher Preparation. International Journal of Multicultural Education, 27(1), 143-162. https://doi.org/10.18251/ijme.v27i1.4837
Awards/Achievements
- 2026 NCTE Language Arts Distinguished Article award (with Abbey Galeza) - "Family dialogue journals in a linguistically diverse elementary classroom create a third space for connection and learning"
