In case you didn’t know, our podcast Teachers’ Lounge is also on the radio! We’ve got all the interviews with Illinois teachers and education stories you love -- along with exclusive segments -- in a monthly, hour-long show on WNIJ.
On this episode, it’s my conversation with Caio Gomes!
This year, he’s our “classroom correspondent” -- the teacher we interview every month of the school year on the radio show to trace a school year in their life.
Gomes teaches English as a Second Language at Clinton Rosette Middle School in DeKalb. He's Brazilian and came to the U.S. to teach a few years ago. Now, he’s helping other international teachers maneuver that process with his company Teacher Journey USA.
“Even to figure out if my teacher certification from my home country is valid -- how to do that? How to get a job, how to find schools, even to know how much money should I bring in? All of these things are just not talked about anywhere,” said Gomes. “Many people from many countries don't realize that there is a clear path to teaching America, that America needs teachers, and they want qualified workers.”
We also get into why he became a teacher in the first place, his mom’s commitment to get him through English school, connecting with his students through soccer, and the day-to-day of teaching English as a Second Language.
Also, John Gelasi! He’s the director of music at Stillman Valley High School, where he recently won the Rockford Symphony Orchestra’s Outstanding Music Educator Award.
We had a fantastic, wide-ranging conversation about why school bands can be so important to students figuring out how to express themselves.
“Even today, kids tell me ‘The only reason I was able to get up and go to school this morning is because I knew I had band today,’” he said.
Later on, we talk about how hard learning music is and how to keep students excited even when they’re frustrated by not being really good right away in our instant gratification era.
If you’ve never listened before, our show is based on an idea -- we’ve all had teachers in our lives who shaped who we are. And we want to hear about the teachers who inspired you. Every educator we have on Teachers’ Lounge, whether teacher, coach, counselor, or professor, is nominated by our listeners.
So, tell us about the person who comes to your mind. Shoot us an email and nominate an educator at teacherslounge@niu.edu and they could be on the show!
Don’t worry – the podcast hasn’t gone anywhere. You can still catch episodes every other Friday on WNIJ.org or wherever you get podcasts.
