Substitute Teachers

Back view of a male teacher in classroom lecturing to elementary school students.
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Teaching Profession Substitute Teachers Would Like You to Stop Treating Them Like Babysitters
A research review found that substitute teachers get little respect and professional training.
Madeline Will, November 17, 2023
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6 min read
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Recruitment & Retention Whitepaper CHRO’s Guide for Building an Effective Substitute Teacher Program
This expert guide offers best practices in recruiting qualified substitutes, establishing a reliable pool, boosting fill rates, and optimizing your program.
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Tia Martin teaches a third-grade class at Ulis Elementary School in Henderson, Nev., on Sept. 10, 2015. Martin is a long-term substitute teacher who is taking an alternative route to licensure program to get a regular teaching license. After years of recession-related layoffs and hiring freezes, school systems in pockets across the United States are in urgent need of more qualified teachers and students, instead of meeting their new teacher on their first day of class, are finding a substitute.
Tia Martin teaches a third-grade class at Ulis Elementary School in Henderson, Nev., on Sept. 10, 2015. Martin is a long-term substitute teacher who is taking an alternative route to licensure program to get a regular teaching license. After years of recession-related layoffs and hiring freezes, school systems in pockets across the United States are in urgent need of more qualified teachers and students, instead of meeting their new teacher on their first day of class, are finding a substitute.
John Locher/AP
Recruitment & Retention What the Research Says How to Find (and Keep) Substitutes
Educators and leaders discuss ways to deepen the substitute labor pool amid staff shortages and absenteeism.
Sarah D. Sparks, September 1, 2023
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2 min read
Illustration of woman being rejected.
Denis Novikov / Getty
Teaching Profession Opinion Substitute Teachers Deserve More Respect
Last year I became a substitute teacher—and then I left. Here's what drove me out of the classroom.
Alanah Nichole Davis, February 23, 2023
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4 min read
Image of a teacher working with two elementary students.
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Recruitment & Retention States Are Making It Easier to Become Substitute Teachers
But some question whether that's a good idea.
Elizabeth Heubeck, February 9, 2023
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5 min read
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Shutterstock
Teaching Profession Opinion 11 Critical Issues Facing Educators in 2023
From health and safety to labor shortages, the coming year is rife with challenges for school leaders and teachers.
Peter DeWitt, December 4, 2022
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5 min read
Illustration of an empty classroom.
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Recruitment & Retention Q&A Could Educator Shortages Affect the Future Workforce? Here's What Business Leaders Think
Kelly Education, a school staffing agency, surveyed business leaders about their concerns.
Madeline Will, November 7, 2022
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5 min read
Conceptual illustration of district substitute being directed to a school in need
Vanessa Solis/Education Week and iStock/Getty
Recruitment & Retention Contractors Are Filling Staffing Gaps in Schools. Know the Benefits and the Drawbacks
Schools turn to private companies for help filling positions with no local job candidates. It can be costly, but some say it's a big help.
Mark Lieberman, June 29, 2022
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7 min read
Haines City Senior High School Principal Adam Lane greets seniors walking across campus on Friday, May 6, 2022 at Haines City Senior High School in Haines City, Fla.
Haines City Senior High School Principal Adam Lane greets seniors walking across campus at the school in Haines City, Fla.
Zack Wittman for Education Week
Recruitment & Retention How One Principal Has Dodged the Staffing Shortage
A high school principal in Polk County, Fla., has developed his own talent pipeline that helps avoid staffing issues.
Denisa R. Superville, May 13, 2022
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7 min read
Conceptual illustration of a new employee fitting into the workplace puzzle
Sergey Tarasov/iStock/Getty
Teaching Profession Opinion Short On Substitute Teachers? Here's Something States Can Do
Student teachers can make good substitutes, but the rules often don't allow them to step in, write two researchers.
Dan Goldhaber & Sydney Payne, May 13, 2022
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4 min read
Illustration of hands reaching for dollar signs that are falling from the sky.
DigitalVision/Vectors/Getty
Recruitment & Retention Districts Are Raising Wages to Fix Shortages. Is It Sustainable?
Staff shortages have pushed districts to increase pay. But some might have to cut programs or staff to make higher wages permanent.
Mark Lieberman, February 7, 2022
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11 min read
Image shows a teacher in a classroom.
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Teaching Profession What the Research Says High-Quality Substitute Teaching: What We Know Now
Research has a couple of suggestions on helping substitutes be effective.
Sarah D. Sparks, January 31, 2022
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4 min read
Craig McVay, superintendent of El Reno Public Schools in El Reno, Okla., pictured on Jan. 27, 2022.
Craig McVay, superintendent of El Reno Public Schools in El Reno, Okla., pictured on Jan. 27, 2022.
Brett Deering for Education Week
School & District Management In Their Own Words Awake at 2 A.M., Agonizing Over Life-and-Death Decisions: A Superintendent's Story
Daily, high-stakes judgment calls on COVID weigh heavy on a superintendent's mind.
Catherine Gewertz, January 31, 2022
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4 min read
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham speaks at a news conference in Santa Fe, N.M., on July 29, 2021. When New Mexico lawmakers meet on Jan. 18 to hash out the state budget, about half of the money will go to K-12 school programs.. Grisham and key legislative committees have agreed to increase spending on schools by around 12%, or around $3.8 billion.
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham speaks at a news conference in Santa Fe, N.M., on July 29, 2021. When New Mexico lawmakers meet on Jan. 18 to hash out the state budget, about half of the money will go to K-12 school programs.. Grisham and key legislative committees have agreed to increase spending on schools by around 12%, or around $3.8 billion.
Morgan Lee/AP
Recruitment & Retention Governor Substitutes at Elementary School Amid Chronic Staff Shortages
The omicron variant has ravaged New Mexico schools, leaving a wave of staff and student absences.
Jessica Pollard, The Santa Fe New Mexican, January 27, 2022
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3 min read
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