During the times I’ve taught courses in university teacher-credentialing programs, I always liked my colleagues.

I also was surprised that almost all of them hadn’t actually taught a K-12 class in decades.

In today’s post, a university professor describes what he does to try to avoid that separation.

You also might be interested in a previous three-part series on credentialing programs.

‘What Are You Doing Here?’

Nathan A. Stevenson, Ph.D., is an associate professor of special education at Kent State University and a former elementary teacher in New York and Michigan:

“Whoa, what are you doing here?” That’s the reaction I usually get from teachers when I turn up as a sub on school professional development days. Most of the teachers I work with in local schools are used to seeing me as the one conducting the professional development, not the one covering their class while they spend the day learning about engagement strategies, new curriculum, technology, or what have you.

It is at this point that many teachers put aside the busy work they had ready and start going over the actual lesson they planned for themselves. I am, of course, delighted by this. It is great to know that teachers think I am well-versed in their content and curriculum but also have the skill to teach it to a group of students I have never met. This is a great responsibility and often intimidating. But it is also exactly what I signed up for.

The pressure of a tenure-track job at a major research university can be intense. Given the demands of research, teaching, and service, I was hesitant to take on anything new. But in 2021, shortly after submitting my file for tenure and promotion, I applied to be a substitute teacher in a local school district. It is easily one of the best decisions of my career.

When I began teaching courses at the college level more than 15 years ago, I committed to two key principles.

First, I am committed to ensuring every strategy, technique, and intervention is consistent with the best available scientific evidence. Teaching teachers to use methods with clear evidence of effectiveness gives them the best possible chance of success with their students.

Second, I am committed to never teaching students anything that I would not do myself. It is this second commitment that led me back into schools as a substitute teacher.

I don’t work as a substitute often, just a few days a year. I spread out the experience across elementary, secondary, and special education classrooms. Since the courses I teach most consistently cover all levels of education, it is important I diversify my subbing experiences as much as possible. I want to ensure I experience the very same challenges my students will encounter upon graduation.

Stepping back in the classroom has been extremely beneficial. First, subbing gives me an opportunity to keep my skills sharp. I rely heavily on modeling high-quality instruction in my teacher-preparation courses. By spending time as a substitute teacher, I have the opportunity to practice instructional and behavior-management strategies with real students in real schools.

Second, subbing helps keep “Ivory Tower Syndrome” at bay. Ivory Tower Syndrome is the kitschy term for when faculty members become disconnected from the realty of life beyond campus. Serving as a substitute teacher keeps me grounded in a way that cannot be achieved in any other way. I face the same challenges with disruptions and off-task behavior. I face the same pressures of time management, engagement, and differentiation. Though I only get a small taste of what it is like to face these issues day after day, I become more connected to the challenges teachers and students face in schools every day.

Finally, stepping back into the classroom allows me to build better relationships with students, teachers, and administrators, which pays dividends in myriad ways. Better relationships mean greater credibility among fellow educators and more successful recruiting for research. Most importantly, better relationships with local schools help to chip away at the proverbial research-to-practice gap.

So, how does working as a substitute teacher jibe with my job as a professor? My dean and school director have been endlessly supportive. They each recognize being the teacher-of-record a few days each year pays dividends in the quality of instruction my adult students receive in their teacher-preparation courses.

On the administrative side, I file an annual disclosure statement that describes my work as a substitute and details how I ensure the experience does not violate any of my contractual obligations to the university or create any conflicts of interest. The only stipulations are that I limit subbing to just a few days per year and that none of my days as a sub conflicts with my other professional responsibilities (teaching courses, conducting research, attending faculty meetings, etc.).

Reflecting on the experience of teaching K-12 students again after a nine-year hiatus, I encountered some obvious rusty spots. It took me a bit to get over my nervousness and rediscover my teacher presence. I had also forgotten how mentally challenging it is to maintain engaging instruction while monitoring students’ behavior, fielding calls from the office, pausing instruction for announcements, helping students that arrive late get up to speed, and doing a dozen other things at the same time.

It is easy to forget these practical issues that rarely, if ever, appear on a college syllabus. It is also easy to forget that although you have the freedom to give students a pass to use the restroom during class, you, the teacher, will need to wait until lunch.

I’ve taken these experiences working as a substitute and woven them into my courses. I am much more conscious about the limitations and nuance. I provide specific examples of my own failures and successes. I own my mistakes and model how to recover. I also make a concerted effort to show that being a great teacher takes a lot of practice.

I recognize stepping back into schools to work as a substitute teacher may not be feasible for many education faculty. There are issues of time, logistics, and contractual conditions that must be reconciled. It is also an intimidating and humbling experience in which titles and degrees mean nothing compared to your ability to keep students engaged and learning.

Nevertheless, I recommend anyone and everyone involved in teacher education spend time working as a substitute teacher. The experience and benefits across the profession are simply invaluable.

Thanks to Nathan for contributing his thoughts.

Consider contributing a question to be answered in a future post. You can send one to me at lferlazzo@epe.org. When you send it in, let me know if I can use your real name if it’s selected or if you’d prefer remaining anonymous and have a pseudonym in mind.

You can also contact me on X at @Larryferlazzo or on Bluesky at @larryferlazzo.bsky.social .

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