Stepping in to teach

They are there when schools need them. During the 2020-2021 school year, Dallas ISD substitutes answered the call from schools to fill in for more than 100,000 teacher absences to make sure that students did not lose a day of learning.

“Substitutes are an integral part of the success of a student’s education,” said Shenise Tyler, substitutes manager for Dallas ISD in the Human Capital Management Division. “Although a substitute is only in a classroom for a short period of time, they are a teacher, and they make a difference in the lives of students.”

Without substitute teachers, absences due to illness or other unexpected circumstances could cause major complications: instruction is interrupted, classes are doubled up, and preparation periods are lost, Tyler said. Considering that the average student will spend an entire school year with a substitute teacher over the entirety of their K-12 learning journey, substitutes are important and valued members of the district.

“Without quality substitutes, teacher absences can have a domino effect that impacts the entire school,” Tyler said.

Of the more than 2,300 substitutes enrolled to cover teacher absences in Dallas ISD, about 37 percent are retired teachers. The others are qualified professionals who are interested in education and who believe it’s important that students have someone teaching in the classroom every day.

“Quality substitute teachers contribute to maintaining progress in the learning environment, which helps promote student achievement,” she said.

Substitutes who want to remain active during the 2021-2022 year should make sure they sign the Substitute Re-Enrollment form that was recently sent to their district email via DocuSign.