Substitute teachers are either a godsend, an anxiety-inducing threat or completely useless, depending on the role they take on. Will students have to “be quiet” and do their work “silently,” or play Clash Royale with their friends, because “our teacher lets us?” 

Substitute teachers have always been an aspect of education, but their inconsistency in properly enforcing school and classroom guidelines asks an important question: Do we really need subs? 

As technological resources infiltrate education, the role of substitutes has become more obsolete. Instead of a substitute truly substituting for a teacher by educating students with a lesson plan, they now typically receive a note to instruct students to find the Canvas assignment posted by absent teachers. Then, students are usually expected to work independently, in silence, while the substitute teacher is reduced to little more than a babysitter.

There are, as always, certain exceptions. Substitutes who were formerly career educators, such as retired math teacher Mrs. Shannon Fischer, have positively contributed to the learning experience through their exemplary instruction when substituting in classes of their former department. For example, foreign language substitutes who are either fluent or native speakers have enriched the classroom with their knowledge.

At the same time, students have observed a declining quality in substitute teacher capabilities and experience. Subs have been reported to enforce overly strict and unnecessary rules, overstep their boundaries and teach lessons from outside of the designated curriculum, or simply watch chaos unfold, imposing no true authority. For example, with the implementation of Central’s “All In” phone policy, various substitute teachers have not held back on aggressively enforcing this rule.

However, unruly students are also to blame for a potentially substandard classroom environment in the absence of their teachers. Students see substitute teachers as an opportunity to act out, procrastinate classwork and even skip or get called out of class. The lack of respect for substitute teachers forces them to enforce excess rules on students to maintain order. 

Similarly, when substitute teachers are viewed as anything less than a content expert, students are inclined to disrespect them. Students, of course, are never entitled to act this way regardless of who the sub is.

The disrespectful reaction of students who are at the mercy of a particularly authoritarian substitute isn’t warranted. Students shouldn’t overreact to simple rule changes, such as enforcing phone jail for one day. Once their teacher returns, students should express any concerns about a substitute with their teacher, who can address those issues if warranted. 

The fact is, inconsistencies and confusion surrounding substitute teacher days could simply be eliminated, at least at the high school level. Instead of having a substitute teacher reduced to babysit a group of teenagers, it would be far more efficient if students were given “blended days” when their teacher was absent, or sent to the Little Theatre for a quiet study hall under the supervision of adults in the building. Give high school students the initiative to learn independently and follow expectations that they are already familiar with, and as an extra incentive, no substitute will have to contend with “our teacher usually lets us” at eight in the morning.