I want to begin by saying that substitute teaching is a tough job. I have done it. It is very difficult to walk into a classroom and teach without knowing any of the teacher’s daily routines or methods of control. In addition, most students act out or get into more trouble when they have a substitute. So before I get started on this article, I want to say that I think substitutes in general are great and I thank them for the work they do for such little pay.
Now with that being said, I feel that some type of monitoring should be carried out to ensure that substitute teachers are doing their job properly. In my county, anyone interested in becoming a substitute teacher must take a course. The course only lasts for a few hours. After the course the person’s name is put on the substitute list. For safety reasons, each person on the list must be fingerprinted. A background check is also completed. Other than these checks, no follow-up to my knowledge ever takes place.
Not long before school ended, we had a substitute at our school in the computer lab. As usual, I took my nineteen kindergarten students to the lab. I reminded them about good behavior and set off on my way (it was my plan period). Another teacher had been concerned about the substitute earlier in the week. She suggested that I walk by and check in on my children.
I walked by the room and peeked in on my class. The children were a little restless but I was not that concerned about their behavior. However when I looked over at the teacher, she was sitting behind the desk knitting! I stayed on and watched for a while. She never saw me because she never looked up from her work.
I went back to get my students and the substitute was on her cell phone. She actually had the nerve to ask me to “hold on” while she finished her call. After her conversation on the phone, she proceeded to tell me how terrible the students acted and how they would not sit and work. Substitute teaching in kindergarten is not a sit down job. I myself did not expect them to sit and work without constant monitoring.
I feel that some system should be created to follow-up and perhaps even cancel the certification of substitute teachers who do not take their job seriously.
Substitute Teaching: A Real Learning Experience
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