Rate My Professor Tamara Reads

Tamara Reads serves as an Associate Lecturer in Literacy and Literature Education within the School of Education at Curtin University, part of the Faculty of Humanities. She possesses a Master of Education in Teacher Librarianship, a Graduate Diploma in Education (Secondary), and a Bachelor of Arts (Honours), and is currently pursuing her Doctor of Philosophy in Education at the same institution. Her doctoral research specifically examines the impact of Premier’s Reading Challenge programs on student reading engagement, reading for pleasure, and literacy achievement. Prior to her academic role at Curtin, Reads accumulated over 20 years of experience in secondary education in New South Wales. From 2006 to 2017, she worked at Evans High School in Blacktown as an English teacher (Years 7-12), relieving Head Teacher English, Year Advisor, and ultimately Teacher Librarian from 2014. In this capacity, she transformed the school library into an innovative space by establishing a Senior Study Room, the Library Warriors Program, a makerspace, Quick Reads and Graphics collections, and student-centered activities such as Breakfast Club, KnitWits, Puzzle Time, and Homework Hub. She also developed the Evans Festival of Stories, a Researching and Referencing Handbook, and led professional development sessions on topics including Web 2.0 tools, Google Apps for Education, Oliver library software, and project-based learning. Subsequently, from 2018 to 2021, she held the position of NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge Officer, followed by NSW Premier’s Programs Officer (Reading and Spelling) until her relocation to Perth in late 2022.

Reads' academic interests center on reading for pleasure, student literacy achievement, the role of school libraries and teachers in cultivating reading habits, and integrating land-as-teacher approaches in English education, emphasizing the power of stories to connect and empower communities. Her notable publications include 'The Impact of Reading Challenge Programs on Student Reading for Pleasure and Literacy Achievement' published in 2023 in the International Journal of Young Literacies, 'Joining with Land-as-Teacher Approaches in English Education' in Changing English in 2025, and 'Teachers and Readers: Community, Agency and Joy' co-authored with Sally Murphy in 2025. In recognition of her research, she was awarded the 2023 WAIER Fogarty Foundation Postgraduate Student Prize for her project on reading challenge programs. Additionally, Reads contributes to the Curtin University Humanities Faculty Graduate Studies Committee since 2023 and teaches courses in literacy and literature for young adults and children, as well as oral language in English education.