Bobbi Ciriza Houtchens

H.S. ELL Teacher | San Bernadino, CA

Bobbi Houtchens is an ELL educator with more than 40 years of experience teaching secondary ESL and English. Bobbi served as a teaching ambassador fellow at the U.S. Department of Education during 2009-2010. In this interview, she discusses ideas for engaging reluctant readers and writers, as well as other strategies for setting high expectations for adolescent ELLs.

The full transcript of Bobbi's interview and her biography are available below. In addition, we have featured a number of Bobbi's articles on Colorín Colorado.

Bobbi also wrote the following article for the National Writing Project:

Biography

Bobbi Ciriza Houtchens has 40 years of experience teaching secondary ESL and English. In her retirement, Bobbi is still working in classrooms mentoring and coaching teachers who work with English learners and urban students. Bobbi has taken an active role in shaping education policy at the local and national levels. Her passion is inspiring reforms that benefit ELLs and culturally diverse students in particular and all students who have traditionally been marginalized by current systems and practices. Bobbi served as a teaching ambassador fellow at the U.S. Department of Education during 2009-2010, providing a classroom teacher's perspective to developing national policy and practices regarding culturally diverse English learners, Latino and urban students, gang intervention, and teacher preparation, evaluation, and development. She is also an active member of NEA's English Learner Advocacy Cadre. In addition to her mentoring, policy, and advocacy work, she creates and delivers professional development in California and across the nation.