NO SUBSTITUTION FOR SUBSTITUTE TEACHING EXPERIENCES: A CASE STUDY EXPLORING PERSPECTIVES OF NEW SUBSTITUTE TEACHERS

Substitute teachers organize the classroom and instruct students in the absence of the regular teacher. An expectation placed on substitute teachers is to ensure learning experiences continue (Duggleby & Badali, 2007); however, this charge may exceed the preparation. Three central research questions and four sub-questions guided this case study. The questions focused on initial experiences of new substitute teachers in a Kindergarten through twelfth grade public school, the factors they believed influenced their confidence for instruction and perceived strengths and weaknesses of the required training in a large urban public school system. This case study explored perspectives of 32 new substitute teachers. An online survey, semi-structured interviews, and artifact reviews captured data. Online tools organized data for coding and analysis to discover themes and answer research questions. Findings indicated that the initial experiences substitute teachers had while working were varied, significant and often had a direct impact on their own performance and perceptions of school community members. Lesson plans, student activities and classroom management contributed to a new substitute teacher’s success in the classroom. Opportunities to interact with school community members strengthened a sense of belonging. These feelings were reflected in their own confidence as a substitute teacher. Additional factors impacting confidence included a personal knowledge of subject areas being taught, consistency with job assignments and building relationships with students in the classroom. The required training for the new substitute teachers highlighted more strengths than weaknesses along with a few recommendations for improvement. Implications from this study can uncover, design and implement a pipeline to full-time teaching - experience as a substitute teacher. There are no substitutes for an optimistic, well-prepared, engaged substitute teacher. By understanding the perceptions of new substitute teachers, a new direction improving the work of this instructional position as a valuable school community member is justified.