Content area
Full text
School leaders are increasingly interested in what attracts and detracts substitute teachers, so they can build stronger relationships and retain those on their substitute rolls.
In 1996 When class-size reduction was passed in Senate Bill 1777, districts reduced class sizes to 20:1 in one of the largest and most aggressive education programs to hit California. School districts found themselves needing to hire tens of thousands of additional teachers, the result of which nearly paralyzed the states schools. There simply weren't enough credentialed teachers available.
Ultimately, desperate districts relied on the ranks of substitute teachers who were often uncredentialed with minimal educational training. The booming economy a couple of years later further compounded the shortage, with teachers leaving for higher paid professions. Add to that the massive retirements of Baby Boomers in the last decade, and a trifecta of challenges encompassed the teaching shortage.
The recession of 2007 saw massive programmatic and budget cuts to public education. Staffing reductions were slightly mitigated by retirements, but layoffs were significant. Yet, we know much of what takes place in public education is cyclical. The booming economy of the last five years and new funding has resulted in the growth of programs and a need for teachers.
Substitute teachers are often the place where administrators go to fill teaching vacancies, and now statewide, a substitute teacher shortage exists. Substitute teachers have critically important roles in public education. In order to train teachers, hold in-school meetings or fill in for illnesses, substitute teachers are needed to cover classrooms. In an era of new standards and assessments, no time is more important to have an availability of substitutes.
Rise in the demand
By the time students complete their K-12 education, research shows they will have spent an average of one school year, or 8 percent of their schooling, with substitute teachers (Pardini, 2000). In highly impacted, low socio-economic schools, that number rises to about 13.5 percent of a student's tenure with a substitute (Gonzales, 2002). Recruitment and retention of substi- tute teachers is on the minds of human resources staff members in districts statewide.
The shortage and replacement of substitutes is costly for school districts, with a toll on school personnel who scramble to cover classes and reorganize assignments...