Campus Connections: Substitute Teaching

Should all substitute teachers be certified?

NO
As our country proceeds into the new millennium, we continue to stress the importance of a quality education. For many, that means focusing solely on improving teaching quality, which overlooks the importance of improving substitute teacher quality as well. Some states, in an attempt to address the issue of quality subs, require their substitutes to be certified. But I believe that this isn’t necessarily the best solution.

Michigan doesn’t require substitute teachers to be certified, yet it has what I consider the ideal standards for substitute teachers: A person must have 90 credit hours before he or she may begin substituting.

Some may argue that circumventing certification is conducive to producing less qualified substitutes. But Michigan’s standard is high enough to produce quality subs, yet not so high that it discourages students from seeking out positions as substitutes.

If a state were to require certification in order to sub, that would add to the substitute shortage. Many students would begin searching for full-time teaching positions and only pick up a subbing job if nothing else were available. This would subject states to an even greater sub shortage––and not enough subs reduces teacher quality.

I enjoyed subbing because I was able to get into a classroom and really teach! My subbing experience has helped me see that teaching is definitely the career that I want to pursue. I have also spoken with college students who have had the opposite experience. They were education majors who changed their minds after subbing.

The subbing experience has been good for us, and it’s been good for the educational system in our state. Michigan’s standards for substitute teachers have helped to weed out people who do not have a passion for teaching. If someone had to wait to be certified to sub, it might be too late.

YES
Throughout the last three years, I’ve gained valuable teaching experience by observing local public school educators and volunteering in their classrooms. I’ve? also met numerous college students who had the opportunity to substitute teach while pursuing their education degrees. These experiences allowed me to have a better understanding of public education.

?In some states, to be a substitute teacher, an individual needs only a minimum of a high school diploma and/or a certain number of college credits. I find this absurd, because these people do not have the appropriate credentials and lack the experience and education to teach children.

A high-quality teacher understands children and knows how to assist with learning. A substitute teacher with minimal education, especially lacking college credits in education, is simply unqualified to teach. How can we put unqualified substitutes in charge of children? We cannot! Children are our future and we should provide them with the best education.

Public school students need substitute teachers who are current in the following teaching areas: they must know and follow the district’s goals and objectives; employ teaching strategies that are responsive to different learners, such as special education and gifted students; Implement proper classroom management techniques; and establish appropriate assessment tools to measure student development.

When substitute teachers have these attributes, then we will have substitute teachers who are qualified to teach in our public schools. I cannot emphasize enough that our public schools must not employ student teachers who are not education majors. Through my experiences observing in the public schools, I noticed unqualified substitute teachers who could not control their classrooms. Putting such unqualified adults in the classroom results in a poor education for our children and leaves a black mark on our profession.