Schools and districts routinely recruit, retain, and support highly qualified teachers to ensure that students receive the best learning opportunities. However, even if one's school employs highly qualified full-time teachers, it is important to acknowledge that substitute teachers also have a significant impact on the education of students. One…

Principals can make the substitute teacher's job easier by following four guidelines: (1) provide a worskshop for potential substitutes; (2) provide a handbook on basic school information for substitutes; (3) provide a guided tour of the building; and (4) systematize a procedure for evaluating and placing substitutes. (MD)

A survey of the district's elementary principals and teachers and of the substitutes working at two elementary schools indicated that substitute teachers should be evaluated, that an inservice program for substitutes was needed to help provide information and direction that could improve their overall effectiveness, and that there was strong…

Many recent studies have revealed a dramatic increase in teacher absenteeism. Some findings indicate that absenteeism increases following collective bargaining agreements that provide a set number of days that employees may be compensated for illness. There appears to be a growing public reaction to such absenteeism. A New York study noted that…