Why Does Everyone Hate Substitute Teachers?

Do you know what the minimum requirement to be a substitute teacher in most U.S. states is? It's a bachelor's degree. One might think that because of this fact, it would be safe to assume that a person working as a substitute teacher is not a child but, rather, an adult person, who ought to be spoken to with some degree of politeness or the mutual respect that one would give a colleague. However, when you work as a substitute teacher, you often find that this respect is not offered to you at all.

Instead of being treated like someone who holds a degree in a certain subject, or multiple subjects, I was often treated as someone who had no particular expertise in anything because I wasn't a certified teacher. I would constantly have teachers assume that I needed help with my class without even asking what my degree is in, or what experience I have in child care or education. I am fortunate to be someone who has worked with young people of all ages for over a decade and I chose to substitute directly after undergrad while considering a career in teaching. But what about those substitutes who don't have my same experience? They are left out in the wind, to figure out classroom management all by themselves, for as little as $70 a day, depending on the district.

As a substitute, I was talked down to by teachers and administrators regularly. Upon occasion, I was even made to do non-classroom-related errands whenever I was perceived as having any amount of free time. I've been given demands without as little as a “good morning,” or a query as to what my name is. Substitutes are often placed in random classes and given poor instructions or none at all. I have been left to wander school hallways searching for a classroom because I wasn't given proper direction. Subs are often left without assignments to give to students or they are forced to hand students busywork that students immediately identify as busywork, thus refusing to complete it (rightfully so, if we're being honest). One of the worst things for a substitute is to have nothing to do for an idle class, it is grounds for absolute chaos, even for someone who has the best classroom management skills.

So many substitutes have their classroom management skills called into question because of a rowdy class. Subs are blamed by teachers and administration for the conduct of students. However, teachers often do not have any protocol as to how their students should conduct themselves whilst in that teacher’s absence, and they don't discuss any disciplinary actions that will be taken if students are given a bad review by the substitute. Many teachers do not understand that it is incredibly difficult for substitutes to establish classroom rules for an unfamiliar class in just one period. Therefore, we cannot be blamed for the conduct of the students. If proper classroom norms are established at the beginning of the year, then classrooms wouldn’t descend into total anarchy in the presence of a substitute. I have worked in schools without even enough time for a proper lunch break, all while over-hearing teachers insult substitutes, with claims that we are out of our element and lazy.

Even the most minute things make the job more difficult. For instance, bathroom breaks are a struggle. I never had access to the staff bathroom - even as a long-term sub. Staff bathrooms are usually locked, presumably to keep students out. I suppose teachers would hate for the staff bathroom to look as unsanitary as the bathrooms that students are forced to use (I'll discuss that in another post). I often had to wait long periods of time or look around for a teacher who was on their prep-period to come and unlock the door for me - ignoring said teacher’s sighs and eye rolls at having to inconvenience themselves. The same thing went for my attempts at trying to enter the locked teachers' lounge to warm up my lunch in the microwave. At one point, I actually started deciding whether or not to work at certain schools depending on what I knew their bathroom situation to be.

I loved garnering relationships with young people through substitute teaching. Many would think that substitutes have a hard time dealing with students, but it is often teachers and administrators that make the job difficult. Substitute teachers are essential to education and should be treated with respect. They should be given proper directions, decent pay, and assistance from school districts, rather than treated as disposable.

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Me and some of my 1st graders when I was a long-term sub :)