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Having taught school myself and having a wife who still does brings this home to a point. Substitute teachers are a necessary evil. I do not know how it works where you live but I do know that it is real problem here. There are never enough to fill the need. This is something that in many instances is a self-inflicted wound by the school system. Substitutes are not paid enough- they are usually thrown into a classroom - any classroom, with no advance warning or preparation. Teachers who require substitutes most often, are usually those who are least prepared and often leave nothing for the substitute to use other than their own creativity. Substitute teaching is a lot like debate - you better be quick on your feet. I know that the people who were most dependable in our school district usually reach a point of total frustration. Many of them have seen substituting as a way to get a foot into a system hoping that it will eventually turn into a full time job - this normally doesn't seem to work out and eventually the person who at one time was a desirable substitute loses interest and either quits or gets a little more mediocre each day. Many of those who take jobs as a substitue are not qualified to be left in a room with a classroom of kids - this one quite obviously was not.
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Life isn't always a bowl of cherries, sometimes it's more like a jar of Jalapenos --- what you say or do today might burn your ass tomorrow!!!
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