District 75’s first Visiting International Teacher is bringing a new cultural perspective to the classroom, while learning plenty from her students, too.

Just a few weeks into her first school year in Mundelein, Cristina Barroso is still getting used to some of the differences between teaching in Spain and teaching in the United States.

The school day moves at a different pace. Her fifth-graders sometimes use Spanish words differently than she would back home. And every once in a while, after years of teaching in Catalan, a classroom instruction comes out in Catalan before she realizes it.

Her students at Mechanics Grove Elementary School have taken it all in stride.

“They understand that I come from another country,” Barroso said. “They’ve been very helpful.”

And as Barroso introduces her students to the language, traditions and culture of Spain, they are introducing her to life and learning in Mundelein.

“We teach each other, basically,” she said.

A new opportunity for District 75

Barroso is District 75’s first educator hired through the Illinois State Board of Education’s Visiting International Teacher Program, which lets educators from other countries teach in Illinois schools while participating in a cultural and educational exchange.

For District 75, the program offered both a new way to recruit bilingual educators and an opportunity to build on the multicultural learning already happening through the district’s two-way dual-language program.

Assistant Superintendent Jamie DiCarlo said bringing in an educator from another Spanish-speaking country gives students a chance to experience the diversity that exists even among people who share a language. She hopes the experience also sparks students’ curiosity about other countries, languages, and cultures.

Barroso grew up in Catalonia in northeastern Spain, about an hour from Barcelona. Before coming to Mundelein, she spent three years teaching students ranging from young children to adults, including English, Spanish, and Catalan.

Bringing Spain into the classroom

Now, Barroso is finding ways to bring that background into her fifth-grade classroom.

Sometimes a book or vocabulary word leads to a conversation about how Spanish is spoken differently in Spain. Recently, she introduced her students to the Spanish tradition of the siesta, which generated plenty of interest among her fifth-graders.

Those conversations help students see that sharing a language doesn't necessarily mean sharing the same traditions or culture.

“I teach them how we do it in Spain, but they also teach me how they do it here,” Barroso said. “I give, and they give.”

A team effort

Bringing District 75’s first international teacher to Mundelein required a team effort. DiCarlo, Gabrielle Devlin, Director of Multilingual Teaching and Learning, and Tina Routledge from Human Resources worked together to help bring the program to District 75 and welcome Barroso to the district. At Mechanics Grove, Janet Mathe serves as Barroso’s mentor, and Barroso credits her fifth-grade colleagues and other staff members with helping her adjust to a new school system and community.

“Everyone’s been very helpful,” she said.

DiCarlo said the district hopes this first experience can pave the way for additional international educators in the future. And for Barroso, just a few weeks into what she calls an “exciting new chapter,” the value of the experience is already clear.

“It’s beneficial for everyone,” Barroso said. “We teach each other.”