I am Spanish-English bilingual and biliterate, and a former third and fourth grade bilingual teacher from the Detroit Public Schools. I currently lead a research program that targets the literacy development of children from immigrant and bilingual homes, asking questions about how that development is informed by English oral language proficiency, heritage language skills, and classroom instruction. My research ranges from theoretical and cognitive conceptions of bilingualism and literacy development, to applied intervention work in urban classrooms focused on literacy outcomes among children who tend to be marginalized in U.S. schools.
The social and political environment of the United States in recent years has become increasingly hostile to immigrants, bilingualism, and to education more generally. Maybe as a result, mainstream educational research has tended to ignore the study of bilingualism and biliteracy, and I view my work as pushing the educational research community to thoughtfully consider the important role of home language and literacy maintenance in the lived experiences of immigrant and bilingual children.
Contact Information
email: proctoch@bc.edu
Curriculum Vitae
Teaching, Curriculum, and Society page
BC Doctoral Program Website
The social and political environment of the United States in recent years has become increasingly hostile to immigrants, bilingualism, and to education more generally. Maybe as a result, mainstream educational research has tended to ignore the study of bilingualism and biliteracy, and I view my work as pushing the educational research community to thoughtfully consider the important role of home language and literacy maintenance in the lived experiences of immigrant and bilingual children.
Contact Information
email: proctoch@bc.edu
Curriculum Vitae
Teaching, Curriculum, and Society page
BC Doctoral Program Website