What does a Substitute Teacher do?
A Substitute Teacher seamlessly continues with the daily routine of students by following existing lesson plans and schedules. It’s important that they provide students with a safe and ordered classroom environment where learning can continue despite the absence of the full-time Teacher. A Substitute Teacher may also need to help out with extra duties, such as bus, lunch or detention duty.
Substitute Teacher skills and qualifications
To ensure that students have a positive and meaningful learning experience, Substitute Teachers must have effective teaching practices. These include the ability to strike a balance between providing a fun learning experience and maintaining the necessary authority to ensure that learning can actually take place. A successful Substitute Teacher candidate will have various prerequisite skills and qualifications, these can include:
- Flexibility, as the job necessitates different environments and challenges
- Excellent interpersonal skills to effectively work with new team members, parents and students on a constant basis
- Excellent listening skills to gauge the needs and requirements of colleagues coworkers and students
- Great verbal communication skills in order to effectively teach and guide students
- Basic IT skills in order to work with the necessary software, be it spreadsheets or word processing applications
- Strong emotional intelligence to cope with students and ever-changing work environments
Substitute Teacher experience requirements
Generally, Substitute Teachers need previous teaching experience within the last three to five years. Candidates may need to show a strong understanding of the U.K. curriculum and proven ability to teach, plan and prepare lessons in line with the standards of the Office for Standards, Children’s Services and Skills in Education (Ofsted). Those who are applying for posts at the primary school level may need experience working within the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework.
Substitute Teacher educations and training requirements
Substitute Teachers in the U.K. typically need to have Qualified Teacher Status (QTS), especially if they want to teach in state schools. Although there’s no legal requirement for Substitute Teachers who work at private schools to have QTS, they normally have this qualification as well. Candidates can either obtain QTS by completing a degree in education or through a School Direct program, where they’ll receive training while working as an unsalaried or salaried unqualified teacher, depending on previous experience and level of training. Some Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) qualifications also provide QTS.
Substitute Teacher salary expectations
According to Indeed Salaries, the average salary of a Substitute Teacher is £127 per day. Salaries will differ, depending on variables like the location and position.
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