For the past few months, I’ve been working as a substitute teacher at a local high school. When I started this temporary work, I didn’t expect it to mean that much to me. Going to a new classroom almost every day of work makes getting established with the students a challenge, and they tend not to see you as a person. However, I was lucky enough to find a situation in which I would be covering for a teacher who was out for the remainder of the year, so I would be a substitute in the same classroom for about three months. A great opportunity for me, the money is good, the 5-minute walk to work was easy, and the work wasn’t too intense.
At the start, it was like my other substitute experiences, they see you as a replacement for the teacher they’ve spent the greater part of the year getting to know. But over time, you get to know each other. You get to know their names, their personalities, and how to talk to them. And eventually, they get to know you. A mutual respect is established, especially in the case of the more autonomous older students. Even though I’m only a substitute, with no teaching credential to allow me to teach subject material to the, I’ve found there is always a way to be of help. With the freshman, it was teaching them methods of problem solving, encouraging critical thinking. With the seniors, it was offering what advice I could for their future ventures into higher education or into workforce. When you listen, and see them all for the individuals they are, you can always find a way to be there for them.
This experience has been so fun I’ve been giving some thought to pursuing teaching as a career. Whether this is a byproduct of the difficult hiring market in the tech sector, or if it’s something that I actually would want to do long term. That’ll take some more thought. Maybe later in life, after I finish my work in tech.
Lastly, it’s been remarkable the connections you make, even in the professional setting of a classroom. Of course the focus is on their learning, but it’s the moments in between that are worth remembering. Learning their humor, laughing together, supporting vulnerable moments as they navigate life. Those are the things that impacted me the most. Even in this short time, witness their growth is always magnificent.
I’m not sure if I’ll be a teacher in the next academic year, in many ways I hope that it won’t be necessary should I find work as an engineer. But in other ways, it wouldn’t be so bad. Supporting and helping students be the greatest they can is a noble cause to pursue. Regardless of where I am at that point, I’ll always be grateful for this experience of the past few months. I hope I was able to make a positive impact in some of their lives, and I hope they understand the positive impact that they made in mine. It’s been a blast.