A Day in the Life

So I had my first subbing gig at a high school.

I’ll cut to the chase, and then elaborate: it was interesting. It didn’t make me feel like that was my calling in life, but it didn’t completely turn me off. It was a day full of “uh huh… so that’s how it is.” So, I don’t have a groundbreaking answer for you. I do have a few anecdotes to share, which I will keep as general as possible to preserve the anonymity of those involved.

The Good

• The Faculty: I loved the faculty. It was great to talk to them and pick their brains about licensing, kids, teaching. It was a good group and I really enjoyed it. One of the teachers I spoke to had been doing it for a little over 10 years. I asked them if they had ever thought of leaving. The answer was yes. The reason they didn’t do it was because their college degree in English didn’t really lend itself for other professions. They would love to do freelance writing, but with going back to school to get a graduate degree, the wife, the kids, the house, it was hard to find the time. The reason they stayed: the kids. That was the most common answer: people who love teaching do it for the kids. I wondered then if I had the “for the kids” gene. In conclusion, I got the sense that the support system was palpable. That was really nice.
• Authority: I also enjoyed being in a position of authority. Granted, the kids didn’t really see it that way. That was evident when one of them handed in their assignment with a single sentence saying “The sub didn’t know what she was doing.” We’ll get to the level of immaturity in a second, but the GOOD part was being the authority in the room.
• Extracurricular Activities: as soon as I walked in I saw the poster for the upcoming school play. I got a warm and fuzzy feeling as it took me back to my high school days when I participated in plays and musicals. It was exhilarating. I would look forward to those dances, concerts, etc.
• Having a room: when all the kids were gone after the last class, I was all by myself in the classroom, and it was still 2:30pm! I was able to tidy up the classroom and write a report to the teacher in complete peace. I liked having my own “turf.” Sort of like having an office that you can decorate and spend as much time in as you’d like.

The Bad

• Unexpected Exercise: My legs hurt by the end of the day 🙂 I know, I’m a wimp. In my corporate job I do not stand longer than the line for the food court requires. There is a big difference between standing up and walking around. I walk some in my job: to the train, to the office from the train, to the bathroom, to the water fountain, to the food court, back from the food court. Walking doesn’t bother me, but standing up uses a whole different set of muscles.
• Wrong estimation of labor time: I completely overestimated the time it would take to complete the assignments left by the teacher. In both occasions (the two classes I subbed) there were 15-20 minutes left in the class where there was absolutely nothing to do. The kids could smell that what they were doing was not important enough, and they spread out. They would not stay in their seats. Pandemonium ensued, and my frustrations grew.
• Bathroom Duty: Sitting in front of the bathroom checking passes was probably the most unproductive task ever. Boring boring boring. Except when the kids give you crazy passes (read that story here).

The Ugly

• The Whining: Oh.My.God. 9th graders are supposed to have a certain level of maturity in high school, aren’t they? I could not believe the type of whining I was hearing; I’m not just talking about “complaining,” I am actually talking about baby-style whining in the tone a 5 year old would say “she took my toy!” Some were pretending not to understand the assignment, even after I went over and explained it to them 3 times. They kept whining at one another like babies. I was completely amazed at their display. How do you argue with someone who says they don’t want to do the assignment because they have had enough for the day? How do you make someone concentrate when they are clearly unable to do so? How do you get someone to stop talking completely? I was simply appalled, and could not even get them to reason.
• The Disrespectfulness: I am short by any standards, and it is always very likely that any person 12-years or older is taller than I am. At one point, a particularly tall student, made a remark about my height, completely undermining me in front of the whole class. I could not believe it! I gave her detention. She still wouldn’t own up to what she did, and all the students in the class martyrized her asking me what she did and telling me she didn’t do anything wrong. I just noticed a general theme of unaccountability for their own actions. One girl denied copying someone else’s work, when I was watching her do it with my own eyes. Kids just won’t own up to anything, will they?

Would I do it again? Yes, for sure. This was just a small taste of what teaching is like. Actually, it wasn’t really a teaching experience, as much as an immersion experience. I got to see what the environment is like, interact with those who live it every day, but I did not get the experience that teachers get: I did not get to practice constant consistency (in fact, I was a disrupting factor in the kids’ routine, by definition), I did not get to prepare lesson plans and make it fun for kids to learn. I was not really teaching. I was babysitting. I did not enjoy the babysitting aspect of it. I just wonder what it would be like to be there every day and have a rhythm.

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