My Child Can’t Read: A Heartland Crisis

We begin Season 4 not with policy — but with harm.

This episode centers the children and families who have borne the greatest cost of reading failure. Before we examine systems, infrastructure, and preparation, we must confront what literacy breakdown actually feels like in homes and classrooms.

Reading failure is not neutral. And it is not rare.

• Jamie Beck – Kans...

 Next season on My Child Can’t Read: A Heartland Crisis… we’re widening the lens.

For the past three seasons, we’ve told the stories of parents, teachers, and children fighting for the right to read — often inside systems that weren’t built to help them.

We listened to the pain. We traced the history. We followed the science.

And along the way, something became clear.

This isn’t just a personal crisis.

It’s a systemic one.

So now...

In this special bonus episode, Jesica Glover sits down with Dr. Joyce S. Pickering — a globally respected leader in literacy, learning differences, teacher training, and multisensory instruction. With more than fifty years devoted to helping children with language-based learning differences, Dr. Pickering’s wisdom offers a rare, grounding perspective in the midst of America’s literacy reform movement.

Through deeply personal storie...

In rural Kansas, access to reading specialists, dyslexia services, and evidence-based literacy instruction can be limited — or completely unavailable. When schools say “wait and see,” families are often left navigating the system alone.

In this episode, we tell the story of what happens when the system says no — and communities rise.

You’ll hear how parents, teachers, and local advocates organize, train, and create solutions from t...

In this episode of My Child Can’t Read: A Heartland Crisis, we explore how dyslexia language finally entered Kansas law, the advocacy and relationships behind that change, and the reality that recognition alone does not fix instruction, traini...

Even when families and teachers advocate for struggling readers, systemic blind spots in Special Education can lead to misdiagnosis, mislabeling, and emotional harm. In this episode, we examine how children with dyslexia are frequently misidentified as having behavioral or attention issues, the consequences of delayed intervention, and how parents and teachers can navigate the system to ensure children receive the instruction and s...

In this episode, we explore the essential role parents play in advocating for their children’s right to read. From early concerns to navigating school systems and special education processes, families and experts share how informed advocacy transforms fear and confusion into clarity and action.

Through parent stories, advocacy experts, and research voices, this episode shows how policy on paper only becomes real support when parent...

 In this premiere episode of Season 3, Teacher Voices: What We Were Never Taught, we explore the stories of teachers who were never taught how the brain actually learns to read. From decades of classroom experience to the challenges of supporting struggling readers, our guests reveal the gaps in teacher preparation and the deep impact on children, parents, and educators alike.

We connect these experiences to the neuroscience of rea...

In this special bonus episode of My Child Can’t Read: A Heartland Crisis, host Jesica Glover sits down with Tammy Kofford, whose 30-year journey from classroom confusion to literacy transformation captures the heart of our bonus title: When the Teacher Gets It, Literacy is Unlocked for Everyone.

Tammy’s story begins in the era of whole language, where teachers were told that reading would come “naturally.” It wasn’t unt...

Mississippi has gone from near the bottom to top 10 in the nation for fourth-grade reading — and other states are following its lead. In this episode, we explore the blueprint behind Mississippi’s success: statewide alignment, sustained professional learning, intensive coaching, strategic assessment, and university partnerships. We also look at what Kansas can learn from these models and the actions parents, ...

Show Notes:

What actually happens in the brain when a child learns to read?

In this episode, host Jesica Glover explores the neuroscience behind reading — uncovering why the Science of Reading works from a biological standpoint and how understanding the brain’s reading circuitry can transform how we teach.

You’ll hear from experts, educators, and Kansas leaders who explain what decades of research have revealed about decoding, comp...

Show notes:  What happens when a school doesn’t just talk about the Science of Reading — but builds everything around it? In this episode, Jesica takes listeners inside the Phillips Fundamental Learning Center in Wichita, Kansas — a place where reading science meets compassion and children who once struggled to read are now thriving. Through powerful stories from parents, assessors, teachers, and leaders, we explore what’s possible...

Show Notes

If we know how children learn to read, why are so many schools still getting it wrong? In this episode, Jesica dives into the science behind phonics, the pitfalls of whole language and balanced literacy, and the systemic barriers keeping effective reading instruction out of classrooms.

You’ll hear from reading researchers, school leaders, literacy specialists and parents who have seen firsthand the difference structured ...

Watching a child struggle to read can feel heartbreaking—and for parents and teachers, it’s easy to feel powerless. In this bonus episode of My Child Can’t Read: A Heartland Crisis, host Jesica Glover sits down with Tammi Hope, Director of Program Development at Phillips Fundamental Learning Center (PFLC), to hear how belief, the right tools, and a child-centered approach are transforming literacy education in Kansas. This episode ...

What if every child had access to the kind of instruction that transforms lives? 

In our Season 1 finale, we revisit the journey of Austin, once a struggling 6-year-old, now a thriving 17-year-old scoring in the top percentiles on the ACT. His story reminds us what’s possible when kids are finally taught to read with proven methods.

This episode takes a hard look at Kansas literacy outcomes, where only 28% of fourth graders are pro...

What if I told you it was never your fault?

Many teachers care deeply — so why do so many children still struggle to read?

In this eye-opening episode, we explore the myth of balanced literacy, the widespread training gaps in teacher preparation, and the emotional toll on students and families. We follow the powerful journey of Jeanine Phillips — a Kansas teacher and mom who discovered her own dyslexia in college and then fought ...