how do you guys feel about substitute teachers?

Question

what do you like/dislike about having to deal with them?

Answer 1

Being a substitute teacher can be easy in some places and hard in others. I have worked as a substitute teacher, I have had substitute teachers work in my classroom, and as a student I had the occasional substitute teacher.

Substitute teacher is hard. They are the "new" person in the room and don't know anyone's name and even the best substitute teachers have a hard time with some classes (several of my own students continue to be hard on substitute teachers despite carrots and sticks).

I like substitute teachers who can handle the kids without having to yell, get admin to help, or threaten, cajole, or browbeat students. Good subs learn that it is kind of like surfing: ride the wave without getting crashed on the rocks. I do like having substitute teachers follow my plans and leave me notes about how their day went.

Answer 2

I have a hard time deciding what lesson plans to actually leave a substitute. If I know who the substitute is, I can usually leave normal plans and feel confident that they'll be carried out relatively well. If I don't know the sub, however, then I don't leave anything remotely complex. It'd just be more work for me when I got back trying to undo whatever that sub did. There are some truly incompetent subs in my district who have no business being around children. If something unexpected comes up and you're stuck with one of those subs, it's almost as if the day was wasted. The thing I can't stand the most are subs who seem to have a condescending attitude towards my teaching style. One time my school got a sub for me that was a retired teacher. She wrote all kinds of things on my plans that had some tone to them without knowing the reasons behind why I wrote what I did (for instance, I didn't know who the sub was going to be and didn't leave anything complicated). There are also those subs who basically bribe the kids all day with candy and activity books. The kids obviously LOVE the sub and wonder why I don't bribe them with candy. It's hard to tell if they're doing it so you'll call them again or if they're just trying to prove they can be more fun than the teacher. I know that sounds stupid, but the lengths some subs go to in that respect is baffling. It's not a job that pays well, so why would you waste your money on candy?

There are some subs though that I wouldn't trade for the world. They're reliable, intelligent, and very nice. They make it a lot easier to "let go" of my class when I MUST be out.

Answer 3

I think it should be mandatory that every teacher has to subsitute teach for 6 mos before getting a contract, just to get a taste of the colorful world of a day in the life of a sub. Many have never done it and went straight into their own classrooms, hence a rude bias is formed towards subs for not being "them."
To those teachers who dislike subs...
Keep in mind that many of them are enrolled in teaching programs themselves and still learning, are perhaps retirees, newbies seeking teaching jobs, or in the profession for some reason or another. Don't be so ungrateful... if you don't want a sub, then don't miss school and quit whining. Classroom management or progress on a lesson can be a reflection of YOUR abilities (or inabilities for that matter) to set expectations with your class when a guest teacher comes in. Don't be so quick to blame if things go wrong. Keep in mind that just as you may talk about subs... Many subs also talk to each other and know of the teachers and schools that are "problematic."
Substitute teaching can be difficult. Again, it depends on the administration, the teacher's expectations, and the planning.

Some helpful hints for the whiners...
1) Give subs plans that they can follow ON THE FLY... remember, you aren't there, and they aren't a clone of you... you get it? USE A PLAN THAT A SUB CAN FOLLOW.
2) Have filler material available in case the students finish the sub plan early.
3) Have a seating chart ready.
4) Have a list of helpful students and disruptive students that may need interventions.
5) Bathroom/Locker/Media Center Pass Policies. We're not there to guess on those policies, nor chase down another teacher to ask them how you run your room.
5) Contact numbers in case the administration is needed.

Finally, if you don't want subs in your room, then don't be absent, but they are doing YOU a service. Your district works hard to find YOU subs.

Answer 4

I've been a substitute teacher, and I had plenty of education in teaching methods. Regardless of whether you have been trained in classroom discipline procedures, it's a rough job. You're going to a different room every day. You don't know the students' names. You don't know who has special needs and/or what the special needs are. (Special needs children are agony for a sub because we ALWAYS disrupt their routines, and that is hard on them.) You don't know who will lie to you about what is "normal routine" and what isn't. You're lucky if there's a classroom aide to give you a head's up.

The older grades expect that subs are not going to do anything, so when you try to follow the teacher's plan, they are not very willing to cooperate. Also, not every teacher leaves much of a plan, so you could have too much time for students to completely goof off. I have had students throw spit balls at me when my back was turned, and I could never figure out who threw them. I've had really disrespectful kids who hate me because I come there to work, and they think it's a play day.

If the resident teacher gets upset because the classroom was not orderly in his/her absence, it's not always cut and dry that the sub was a louse. Sometimes it's the classroom that thinks the sub is nothing more than fresh meat to chew up and savor. Be lenient on the subs. Yes, some are better than others. It is not an easy job, and I wouldn't go back to it unless I didn't have other options. Those who stick with it can be the reason you can go to a conference or heal up at home.

Answer 5

A substitute's job is much easier than a teacher's job. If a sub has a bad day, he or she don't have to come back to the school again. I do not like when subs are called "THE SUB" and not by their name. All subs are different. Some subs fall for every game the students play and the sub can't do anything with them. I do not like when the sub is to friendly with the students. Yes. There are subs who are not as much older as the students. Subs should follow the teachers' lesson plans and only change the plans when the teacher does not leave plans that are not effective for the class. I do not like when the sub doesn't leave a note when I am out. I leave specific plans for my sub and I expect them to be followed.

Answer 6

I am very thankful for our school's substitutes. They are truly lifesavers (in a since).

Likes: There are days that I can not go to work and have to have a sub. They can be very resourceful.

Dislikes: Some subs here are too soft on the classes. Some subs do not make the students do the work that I leave.

I teach high school chemistry and physics.

Answer 7

I'm a teacher, and I find them useless. Generally, they have no experience and little education. They cannot follow simple instructions. I was once a substitute and worked hard to do the best job. Today, subs just show up to get paid and sit all day. I prefer to go to work sick.

Answer 8

I was a substitute teacher for a year. I learned there are good subs and bad subs.
A good sub does the plans the teacher leaves, and controls the students.

I hate when I'm absent and my fellow teachers tell me how horrible my kids were. Why doesn't the sub control them? Keep them in their seat, even if they don't do the work, keep them in their seats.

Answer 9

I always enjoy that we have nothing to do, but if it's a class where I really like my teacher - which is two of classes, out of six - I'm upset not to get to see that teacher that day.
I always feel sorry for substitues, though, because the kids are so unruly, at least they are in my high school.

Answer 10

Whoa there, gradual down. Don't be too harsh on your self. It sounds too me that you just want to make matters proper once more and express regret. The final factor you wish to do is punish your self much more by way of now not going to tuition. The pleasant factor to do is to visit magnificence the following day and express regret to the category. If you wait too lengthy, then your classmates will unfold the phrase much more.