Sub-Par: the problem with substitute teachers

No one likes to be away from their classes and/or students, especially in mathematics. Many courses must maintain a stringent and rigorous schedule in order for all of the content to be covered….and a substitute teacher just isn’t reliable enough to handle that task.

It’s okay, I can say that…I’m a sub now, so it’s fine.

Really though. Now that I’m floating around school to school, regularly interacting with heaps of new teachers, students, admin, and other subs… I’ve learned that my fears and hesitations have not been completely irrational. Subs are pretty bad teachers. Of course this doesn’t include every sub teacher out there, but damn…it includes the majority.

The problem with subs is they assume ZERO responsibility for the education/future learning of the students. They’ve got the mentality that they are able to slip into a classroom, take attendance, make sure no one kills anyone, and then slip out with a paycheck. I mean…unless you want to spend the rest of your “teaching” career being a substitute teacher, this mentality needs to change. I see far too many fellow substitutes rock up into a classroom, throw their feet up onto the teacher’s desk, and sit there for the hour.

In my mind, all I can think is, “Aren’t you absolutely terrified that the Principal is going to walk through those doors and see you like that?!”

To each their own, I guess. Though I suppose that’s maybe where a divide takes place. These sub-par subs have learned exactly the minimum amount of work required to continue collecting pay…nothing more. These folks are perfectly happy wallowing in this mediocrity, as they aren’t looking for an advancement/promotion to full-time/contract teaching.

The problem is, it’s these kind of subs that are ruining it for the rest of us. It’s these kind of subs that made it hard for me to be away from my classes when I was teaching full-time. As hard as you may try, you’ll eventually need to take a day or two off…and when you do…I’ll feel your pain. Even though you hope and pray for a sub competent enough to take over your class, you assume they aren’t…and plan accordingly.

Work day.

I can count the days I’ve been away (as a full-time teacher) in one hand. It would be 3-4 days off in almost 3 years…and those days were forced upon me (aren’t PD days just the best?). Of those days off, all of them were left to my sub as a work day. Even though this caused me to feel the pinch, time-wise, I just couldn’t bring myself to leave an actual lesson for my sub to deliver. I just didn’t trust them. This is the state of mind of a vast majority of teachers. They have zero faith in the sub, all because of the observed behaviours of the “sub-pars”.

Teachers are willing to, essentially, lose a day because of the fear that their class may actually benefit from NOT being taught by a sub. Yikes. That’s gotta change. Right now.

Enough about those dud-subs…they are dumb. This one is for you amazing subs out there. The ones fighting for a job. The ones who actually care about how they look in front of students, staff, and administration. We need to be the shining light for the teachers who want to leave a lesson with the sub so they aren’t set-back a day or two. We need to make the most of our limited opportunities to be in front of a classroom full of students.

One thing I do every chance I get is teach a mini-lesson…even if it’s just a work day. I’ll grab the attention of the class and either review the current material they are working on, or better yet, show them a new method of working on whatever they may be working on. This is just an opportunity to show the students that you do, in fact, know your stuff, and that you can bring more than just a pretty face to the classroom. You mean business. Maybe even more than the regular teacher. Daily, I will have multiple students tell me, “You should be our actual teacher”… DAILY.

I make the most of my chances. I stand and command the class as if it were my own class. That’s what’s missing with substitutes. There is no command. Students see this. If you stand sheepish, barely trying to assert yourself as the captain of the ship, you are not memorable. If you get up and hit the ground running with your expectations, a plan for the day, and an assertive/commanding demeanour…you are memorable. The students will talk about you, and they will be saying nothing but good things. Not only will they talk amongst themselves, but they will tell their regular teacher about you. From there, the teacher tells other teachers, and eventually, the Principal hears about you.

This is a real thing.

I know a lot of this may sound like a big, arrogant rant about how I do things, and why the way others do things is wrong…but it’s also the truth. I’m not an arrogant person, I’m simply very confident in my abilities in the classroom, and this confidence has translated to a lot of success.

Find what makes you confident as a teacher, and turn that into classroom control. Even if it’s just confidence in your specific subject area, that can be translated into a strong presence in front of a class of students.

You got dis. I believe in you. You're all Rock-stars and Legends and I love you.​