The 1-Week Substitute Teacher Challenge

If you are a teacher, then you have undoubtedly heard this comment, or something like it, tossed around in passing:

“Oh, you’re a teacher? Must be nice…”

The implication being that “it must be nice” to have summers off and week-long vacations sprinkled in throughout the year.

Nevertheless, I used to feign ignorance when I heard the comment. “Interesting you say that. Tell me more,” I’d say. I’m sure, despite my controlled, cool exterior, I couldn’t mask my true feelings very well. Whomever I was talking to probably sensed the beast awakening within me.

And even if I did coax it out of that person, what good did it do? Not much. You can try all you want to explain that teaching is not like that at all. That, when those week-long “vacations” come along most of us collapse into bed, usually sick. Then we spend the rest of the week wrapping up all the loose ends in our outside lives that we put on hold while we were in the thick of teaching. Finally, as the next wave of school approaches, we begin preparing our curriculum and our minds so we can tread water for a little.

You could cite all the hours it takes to prepare and correct. You could bring up the countless emails, the paperwork, the report cards, the data entry and it probably just sounds like you’re complaining. I probably sound like I’m complaining now…

You could also try talking about the alarming rates of teacher burnout and how teachers are leaving the profession in droves. You might even ask, “if it’s so ‘nice’ why would so many people be leaving? And why would so few people be enrolling in courses to become teachers?”

But, ultimately, people aren’t going to understand until they experience it. And if I’m being honest, neither would I if I were in their shoes. The position just looks too good on paper. I wouldn’t be able to get past that vacation time!

The truth of the matter is that teaching got the best of me after 12 years. If you want to read about it, I wrote about The #1 Reason I Burnt Out Teaching, for your consideration.

So with that in mind, I’ve honestly lost the fire from my eyes when I hear that comment. I can personally guarantee you that there are plenty of other jobs that I have no clue about either. Maybe, I’d try those jobs and beg for my teaching career back?

But, I can also know the reverse to be true. There are plenty of people that would try teaching and drop to their knees pleading for there old jobs back as well.

So, let’s not try and make the tone of this challenge to be a Gotcha type of thing. If anyone out there is reading this and does decide to take on my challenge, I would applaud you for it. In return, I hope you would give an honest appraisal of the experience.

With the parameters set, let the games begin!

The 1-Week Substitute Teacher Challenge

The premise is simple. For any non-teacher to get a feel for the profession, they should become a substitute teacher at their local elementary school for 1 week (preferably with the same class for the whole week).

This originated from a place of spite. “If you want to say ‘must be nice’ you have to do this challenge first. Then we’ll see how ‘nice’ it is! Then we’ll see how quickly you rush back to your cubicle to check your fantasy scores and spend more effort trying to look busy than actually accomplishing work! That’ll show you!“

I was younger then and my world view wasn’t as developed necessarily. Also, all my friends were in starter positions and that’s how they described their jobs. I know now that is not everyone’s reality.

More importantly, I now issue the challenge so we can all come to a place of understanding. I think it would be valuable for as many members of society to see the actual inner-workings of a school. My guess is that it would be pretty eye-opening. I even suspect it might help get the ball rolling on some much needed change in the education system.

So, if a person were to take this challenge, I would be equal parts impressed and curious to hear their honest appraisal of the process.

Circling back (after having written the rest of the post), I’m more convinced than ever that this should be baked into our societal obligations like jury duty!

Parameters and Logistics of the Challenge

Obviously, with a name like “The 1-Week Substitute Teacher Challenge”, there’s little question on how long it would be. I chose one week, because I think it’s long enough to give a person a feel. Also, it’s at least logistically feasible. Unlikely as it may be to get someone to take this challenge, It’s not impossible.

I also mentioned that the challenge should take place in an elementary school. The reason I’ve chosen elementary is NOT because I think certain positions are easier than others. They all come with inherent challenges.

The reason I chose elementary is because it’s going to give you the most accurate feel for the job. I’ve substituted at all 3 levels and once you get into the upper-grades there is usually less of an emphasis on teaching as a substitute. Usually you give the assignment and the kids either do it or they don’t. If you think about it, it makes sense. There’s far less likelihood that a substitute is going to be able to teach today’s calculus lesson than the lesson on addition.

Though, in middle school, a substitute could get a serious run for their money trying to manage behaviors. Still, with an elementary position, you are the teacher and it’s your show. You are taking the kids through all the lessons and there is an expectation that they learn what you teach so they can build upon it the next day. That is why I chose elementary school as the setting.

As far as other logistics are concerned, you would probably have to fill out an application and have a cursory interview. The truth of the matter is that substitute teachers are a rare and dying breed. They are in short supply. With low pay and high degree of difficulty it’s no big mystery why. So, with that in mind, you should feel confident that you’ll get the job and find work rather easily.

Taking the Challenge

In theory, if you were to take this challenge on, you would be running the show, with your own classroom, for a week. Most likely, if my experience is any indicator, the teacher who you are covering for will have planned out the week for you.

This is a huge part of the job that’s already done for you. While we’re at it, you most likely wouldn’t have to do answer parent emails or enter data or any of the other mountains of extra work that teachers have to contend with daily.

Nevertheless, despite all of this, I still think there would be great insight and value in having to run the show for a week.

Here are some of the things that you would still have to do:

1. Prepare and administer mini-lessons.

2. Give small group instruction and ensure other students are on task.

3. Transition students between lessons.

4. Bring students to specials and lunches. Perform recess duty.

5. Correct student work and give feedback for the next day.

6. Answer the phone when it rings in the middle of a lesson. Take attendance/Lunch Count and all the logistical elements of daily teaching.

7. Manage behaviors and student dynamics. Hold students accountable for work.

8. Manage the barrage of questions ranging from “Can I go to the nurse/library/bathroom?” to “Can I use my laptop to do this/anything else that you didn’t explicitly mention but I want to do.”

And even though that is a fraction of the main teachers responsibilities (Not an exaggeration! Read my burnout post if you don’t believe me.) I really do think it would give you an honest gist of the job. At that point, I would be curious to hear your genuine opinion of it.

I have only one other condition! I suppose I’m a bit paranoid that someone will answer my aforementioned spiteful stance, with some spite of their own. “Teaching is a piece of cake,” type of thing…

Here’s my condition. If you get to Thursday of your week of teaching and your stance is that the job is easy, then I get to film a 45-minute lesson and observe you on Friday.

That seems fair to me. Teachers get observed all the time. A principal or superintendent can walk into our room at any moment. We also get filmed. So, forgive me for being a little dubious. I will just need to see the tape before I let you tell me “it must be nice.”

Then, if I see the tape and you are successfully leading the class through lessons, managing behaviors and distractions, correcting work and giving valuable feedback and all the other elements we spoke about, then I will tip my cap to you in earnest.

I’ll also encourage you to change careers and become a teacher. We’re dropping like flies and I’m no exception. It’s a noble profession and we would need you in the ranks!

Really though, there’s a more likely outcome that would take place…

The Likely Outcome of the 1-Week Teacher Substitute Challenge

Most likely, I think you’d be exhausted. I think you’d get home fried and decide to order take-out rather than cook. I suspect that your laundry would start to pile up for the week and you’d have a few more bottles of wine in the recycle bin.

Each day you’d wake up a little less eager and a little more fatigued. I think it would be a long week for you.

And honestly, it wouldn’t really be a fair fight. There’s so much that goes into a day of teaching, that you can only understand if you do it.

Like I said before, you can try and convince people but you’ll probably fail. It’s only when you are in the thick of it that it actually crystallizes. But that’s what makes this challenge so valuable!

There’ll be a moment when the small group that you’re running is talking about anything but the lesson and you look up to see that 4 kids are on their laptops even though there was no mention of laptops in your mini-lesson (which confused even you and you are quite certain nobody even bothered listening to).

Then, when the kid that has been tapping you on the shoulder asking to go to the bathroom for the 3rd time makes you realize that Tommy has been in the bathroom for 17 minutes but there’s not much you can do about it now.

Next, you look up from this scene to see a projectile fly across the class so you decide to get the situation back on track. You ask for everybody’s attention but only 3-5 students even look your way. Finally, after great effort, you get their attention (for the most part) and the phone rings.

You forgot to do attendance and what’s the lunch count?

Now you have to get their attention back, take lunch count and enter it into the computer along with the attendance. Meanwhile you’re just hoping the chaos behind you doesn’t escalate too much. While you’re entering attendance another kid taps you on the shoulder. You reluctantly look up to see a face you don’t recognize.

It turns out that it’s a student from the neighboring class asking you to keep the noise down.

Desperate, you start threatening to call parents. Finally, after dogged determination, you get everything back to a somewhat decent state. About then is when Tommy waltzes in from the bathroom complaining that “he doesn’t get it.” Just as you’re about to reprimand and ultimately explain the lesson, yet another kid taps you on the shoulder.

You are 7 minutes late for Art class.

Hurriedly, you herd everyone into a line (but really it’s a blob) and take the late and loud “walk of shame” down the hallway to Art class as the art teacher gives you a knowing look and a welcomed reprieve. You turn and plod back to the classroom.

You walk in and are shocked by the tornado that has hit your room. How can humans be so messy in so little time? Reeling, you begin to clean up but you’re also mindful that you have to get the next lesson better. At the same time, you look at the clock and are absolutely shocked to see that it’s not even 11 am. Worse yet, it’s only Monday. This is going to be a long week.

Also, you forgot to enter Tommy’s lunch…

To be Clear/Fair

I want to be clear about one point. The above scene I painted is NOT the likely experience of a seasoned teacher. They’ve probably experienced these sorts of scenes along the way and learned to navigate them.

Often times a teacher will find themselves realizing it is too late to change something about this year’s class but “next year this will be different”…

That scene is more likely what a person taking the substitute challenge would experience. It takes an unfathomable amount of know-how just to run day to day operations with 20+ students, and I don’t think the average person off the street would be very-well equipped to manage it all.

Also, in fairness, there is a “special treatment” that is reserved for a substitute teacher. It’s often as if children can smell blood in the air.

Because I have been a substitute before I try extra hard to ensure that my class is extra diligent and respectful to them. That being said, it doesn’t always work out.

On the flip side of the coin, the substitute teacher is spared all of the other responsibilities that a teacher has to take on. We talked about these earlier (data entry, emails, teacher accountability measures, seating charts, bulletin boards, field trips… the list goes on and on).

After a few days of subbing, I do suspect the person might be more empathic of the idea that once the final bell rings, a teacher’s job is anything but done for the day.

The idea of going home completely shattered and opening up and inbox to see “27 unread messages” and knowing that there is work to correct and lessons to plan (and much more) might resonate a bit more for the person undergoing this challenge.

Politicians, Administrators, and Decision Makers

I said before that I think that every citizen should have a civic duty, like jury duty, to be a substitute teach for a week… I know that this would never happen and there’s good reasons why it shouldn’t happen. Really though, it’s more of a thought experiment to prove a point and open people’s eyes to the harsh realities of the profession.

Continuing on in this vein, I think all politicians and decision makers should have to teach for at least one year before they are allowed to vote/make decisions on education. Maybe then, coming from a position of understanding (albeit cursory), teachers wouldn’t be so slammed with extraneous measures that seriously detract from their ability to teach, and drive them out of the profession.

Taking it a step further, while simultaneously wanting to avoid contentiousness, I think administration should be required to teach a minimum of 5 years.

To be clear, I wouldn’t touch their job with a 10-foot pole. It looks even more daunting than mine. That probably explains why there is a principal carousel happening across the land. Principals, vice principals and folks in other leadership positions (like superintendent) are jumping from district to district at a break-neck pace.

I’m sure they also wouldn’t mind my idea to have politicians and policy makers be required to teach for a year. Then, they wouldn’t have to enforce these ridiculous measures being imposed on teachers that negatively impact teachers, students, and school cultures as a whole.

But if I may, far too many times I am regaled with a tale from a supervisor of how they did this or that so well back when they were a teacher (usually when they are critiquing me after their mandatory observations ). Later on, I come to find out that they only taught for 2 years. Almost by definition this probably means they weren’t nearly as good as they suspect they were… Furthermore, I suspect they were using their teaching position as a way to fast track their upper management career. As a result, they probably didn’t give their teaching what it requires.

And before I go further, I also want to note that I have had many dedicated amazing leaders as well. I respect them and do not want to paint an unfair portrait. That being said, I think teachers would greatly benefit from administrators that have made a serious go of teaching before looking to lead.

Coaching/Birthday Parties

Just the other weekend we took our son to a park to meet up with some of his friends. On the baseball field two guys were running t-ball practice. It was obvious to me (but not in a condescending way) as I was watching these guys admirably try to teach these kids about t-ball, that they probably weren’t teachers.

There were kids swinging bats haphazardly as others chased balls around the field. The coaches were running to and fro putting out little fires and preventing potential disasters.

It’s what I imagine herding cats across the great plains might look like.

But, it also occurred to me that these guys might be getting a very small taste of the teaching profession. Also, I respect that they would volunteer their time to teach a group of kids about a new, complex game.

And if you asked these coaches honestly if practice went as they had envisioned, they would probably concede that it had not. And if you asked them if all the kids learned everything they need about tee-ball, they’d also tell you that this was not the case.

The reality is that the kids are all coming in with different background understandings of baseball. One kid’s parent played baseball/softball in college while a different kids parent had barely even heard of the sport. This is true for everything in teaching as well. It’s just one small part of the equation.

A similar thing can be said about birthday parties for younger kids. I’ve been to some that are well-run and some that are complete chaos. At the end of it, the hosts usually collapse in a stupor into the couch, as they look around dazed at the disastrous state of their home. Cleaning up, there’s a “next year we’ll…” type conversation that usually ensues.

And if they are brave enough to try it again, you can bet there are going to be “more organized activities,” or that they’ll plan to “have the party outside in a park so the kids can run around.”

This too is a micro-dose of just one aspect of the teaching profession. And once you have experienced these, or better yet, you’ve taken the 1-Week Substitute Teacher Challenge, you are much more likely to enjoy a real treat.

Observing the Master Teacher

There are certain teachers that are absolute masters.

I am a good teacher, but I’ll never claim to be a master. Every once in a while I have great moments and get a taste. But for the master, this is an every day experience.

If you have survived my 1-week Substitute Teacher Challenge, you are MUCH more likely to appreciate the master teacher at work.

To truly get an appreciation, ideally the master teacher would come back in and resume teaching the group of kids you just taught for the week.

What you will witness will astound you. Without seeing it with your own eyes, you would swear it wasn’t even possible.

It is like going to a concert and sitting in the front row while I a master guitarist flies up and down the fretboard with one hand and impossibly finger-picks each note to perfection with the other.

It’s an art form and a true pleasure to watch.

There is calmness, joy, enthusiasm, organization, improvisation, laughter leadership, and so much more.

When the kids calmly walk to their seats and eagerly set to their individualized work, there is a hum that every teacher strives for that fills the room.

Personally, I could watch it all day as if I were watching my favorite movie. You too will appreciate it all the more once you have had your crack at teaching.

And it is then that you will realize that this master needs to be given the trust and the freedom to do what they deem is best for their students. It is clear that they are deeply invested in each member of this classroom and will only do what they feel is in their best interests.

It is then that you will realize the tragedy taking place throughout education. That these masters are being forced to leave before they want to or seeking greener pastures is criminal. Or, equally as bad, the idea that future masters are calling it quits before they can realize their true calling is a true shame.

According to some surface research, nearly 50% of teachers quit within the first five years. Yikes!

So now we have experienced teachers being driven from the profession, far fewer people entering the field, and far more quitting within 5 years once they do enter?

How’s that for data? Put that in your spreadsheet why don’t you?

Sigh…

In Summary

There is no arguing the importance of education as a foundational piece of a healthy society.

As it stands now, far too many teachers are leaving the field, and part of that reason, I posit, is because there is a complete underestimation of what the profession actually entails.

Enter the 1-Week Substitute Teacher Challenge!

Originally it was devised as a prerequisite for any person that wanted to say “must be nice” when talking about being a teacher and referencing all the vacation time.

Over time, it has evolved into a measure for citizens to gain understanding of all that a teacher endures in the name of educating the future

Make the 1-week substitute teacher challenge mandatory, like jury duty. Then, for anyone directly influencing education, give them even more stringent parameters that need to be met.

Once people get a true sense of the job, they will be far more supportive of the concept that education needs to be put back in the hands of the experts.

Education needs to be put back in the hands of the teachers.

Thank you, as always for reading. Reach out and contact me with other questions. And while you are at it, be sure to subscribe (right margin and “contact me” page). As I write this post, I’m relatively new (3 months) to the game but am chugging along with no end in sight. Subscribe and get the content hand-delivered (or at least emailed) right to you inbox. Thanks again and be well!