Substitute Teaching: Back to School

This is the time of the year when decisions need to be made - shall I stay with this unsatisfying path of substitute teaching, or shall I give it up; happily retire, find a different activity that may not bring money but peace of mind, or maybe find a way to help a student completely lost on the way to graduation...

Sadly, substitute teaching has nothing much to do with teaching. In most cases, substitute teaching is not more than a glorified babysitting, especially in middle and high schools.

I randomly move between the attitude of a teacher who is trying to capture any teaching moment to enhance the horizons of the uninformed, uninterested, young crowed, and the attitude of ‘leave me alone…’ feeling that my role is so useless in trying to educate a bunch of screen-addicted youngsters that just don’t care.

Kids will be kids! That’s true enough, and talking to my school-days’ friends, we were not that much different. The difference is in the system. There were boundaries and consequences, and parents that thought that education is important, and teachers too…

Why do I go back, then, to substitute teaching?

First, I still want to work. My last long-term assignment convinced me (one more time!) that full time teaching is just impossible! Being a substitute teacher keeps me close to the profession but with the option to back up any time it gets too crazy.

Second, I enjoy returning to the same schools, watching the changes, see people that I know, meet new people, hear stories, and know that at the end of the day I can leave the problems behind and go back to the serenity of my own home…

The heartbeat of a school is the cafeteria. I always go there when I work. Unhappy schools have gloomy cafeterias with very few, isolated, customers. Lively cafeteria hints of supportive staff members finding relief in each other’s company. There is nothing like commiserating with colleagues at lunch. To me this is a happy school.

Having experienced both sides of the employment circumstances; being a full-time teacher as well as a daily substitute, gives me some sensitivity and insight to what I hear and see, and it adds to my understanding as an outside observer.

Watching and writing about it is another reason why I am still doing it…