Substitute Teaching and Professional Development
There is a high need for competent substitute teachers in school districts. However, there are various barriers experienced by these professionals when entering the education field. Professionally, substitute teachers are outsiders in the buildings they work in due to their status as day-to-day personnel, with little knowledge of the daily routines of students and faculty. Many substitute teachers also have no background experience in working in education, and are unfamiliar with teaching methods and best practices. This unfamiliarity also makes it difficult for substitute teachers to work with culturally and linguistically diverse student populations. To better serve students, it is necessary for substitute teachers to be included in professional development opportunities. Professional development has been routinely shown to have net positive effects on educators' teaching abilities. According to research from Lamar University, teacher efficacy is show...