MISSION SAN JOSE HIGH SCHOOL
VOL. 57, NO. 2
October 22, 2021
41717 PALM AVENUE, FREMONT, CA 94539 41717 PALM AVENUE, FREMONT, CA 94539
STATEWIDE SUBSTITUTE TEACHER SHORTAGE EXERTS PRESSURE ON FUSD By Rohan Bhagat, Jacob Han, Vedesh Kodnani & Shelley Li Staff Writers As CA schools return to in-person learning, school districts statewide have been grappling with an urgent issue: a lack of substitute teachers. In order to compensate for the staff shortage, teachers have had to cover for their coworkers, sacrificing their prep periods and coping with elevated stress levels. To investigate how this issue has impacted the state, district, and MSJ community, the Smoke Signal contacted substitutes, teachers, and district staff to conduct an in-depth investigation into the shortage of substitute teachers.
CA Substitute Teacher Shortage School districts statewide have been dealing with the substitute teacher shortage since the start of the school year. According to the CalMatters, the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing only issued 47,000 substitute teaching credentials in 2020-21, down from the 64,000 permits that were issued in 2018-19. Furthermore, based on the data from the California State Teachers’ Retirement System, 13,558 of California’s teachers retired during the There is a critical need for substitute teachers across the 2020-21 school year — 1,000 more than state, and the MSJ community is no exception. From a survey the previous year. of 38 teachers, more than 16% of them required a substitute five times or more since the beginning of the school year. In order to fill in for this shortage, more than 50% of teachers surveyed had to sub in five times or more for a coworker during their prep time. This lack of prep time has caused widespread frustration across the faculty. “During one two-week period I lost my prep eight of a possible 10 times, setting me back exponentially on my own work,” one teacher said.
From 2018-2021, the number of substitute teaching permits issued dropped
26.6%
Substitute Teacher Shortage at MSJ
The Smoke Signal surveyed teachers at MSJ for their experiences with the Substitute Teacher Shortage.
How many times Have you required a sub tHis year?
How many times Have you Had to sub in for otHer periods during your prep period tHis year?
16.2%
<5 TIMES 5+ TIMES
<5 TIMES >5 TIMES 83.8%
47.4% 39.5%
10+ TIMES 15+ TIMES 20+ TIMES
CA COMMISSION ON TEACHER CREDENTIALING
Causes The cause of this shortage stems mainly from the effects of the pandemic. According to Principal Jeff Evans, during the pandemic and online learning, the demand for substitute teachers was lower because everyone was working at home; therefore, many substitutes obtained other jobs or chose to retire. Furthermore, due to the economic pressure created by the pandemic, substitutes “have decided to move out of the Bay Area because it’s more expensive,” FUSD Human Resources Department Certificated Personnel Director Sherry Strausbaugh said. Some of those who do return have taken teaching positions in order to fill the teacher shortage that occurred because of the pandemic. “While we know that there has been a [substitute] teacher shortage for some time, we have not experienced substitute shortage like this during my time in FUSD as a director of human resources,” Strausbaugh said.
Impact on the School Community The impact of this issue reaches far across the school community, affecting administrators, teachers, substitute teachers, and students. In the teacher survey, many teachers expressed concerns about elevated stress levels, exhaustion, and complete burnout from having to substitute for colleagues on top of managing their respective classes and facing the difficulties of transitioning back to in-person teaching. “The lack of subs is adding to burnout for our staff and is not sustainable,” one teacher said. “For the first time in my career, I am considering how much longer I will have the energy to adequately do my job.” The lack of proper prep time for teachers results in lower productivity in the classroom, ultimately hurting the student body. For example, Social Studies Teacher
FUSD Response
Rachel Tevlin said, “I wasn’t able to make copies [for a class project] ... everybody had to wait an additional day before I could get them started.” Substitute teachers also suffer from the shortage of personnel. “Whereas normally, I’d be booked [for only] two to three weeks, it’s been almost a month,” Substitute Teacher Mark Henriquez said. “The teachers know that if they don’t book me out ahead, they’re not going to get me.” In order to adapt to the shortage, the MSJ administration has filled in for other teachers during their absence, setting them back on their own duties. “I’ve been running around the AP [classrooms], opening doors [and] staying in until the teacher gets there,” Evans said.
At the moment, FUSD is attempting to speed up the hiring process from their limited applicant pool. The urgency of the situation means that they need to squeeze their recruitment routine into a tighter time frame. “As we see substitutes apply, we are trying to quickly bring them in, get them hired and give them an orientation so they may begin,” Strausbaugh said. Due to the shortage, the district is forced to usher new hires in immediately after passing their interviews. According to Strausbaugh, there are now substitute interviews and orientations being held monthly. Furthermore, the district has altered its hiring techniques to target substitutes who are willing to work more at flexible hours and locations, as well as work with universities to recruit student teachers to assist as substitutes. When asked about long-term solutions, Strausbaugh said, “At the state level, there is definitely more money being put into higher education. Hopefully, we can see more individuals attending universities, getting degrees, and being qualified to become substitute teachers.”
“A joint video message (FUDTA & FUSD) is made and will be pushed out to community members to address the substitute shortage that is impacting the entire district and state. FUSD is aware of the issue. In fact, 20,000 fewer sub credentials across the state were issued this year than in previous years.“ — Fremont Unified District Teachers Association representatives to MSJ teachers
Teachers were asked if they would like their comments to be anonymous. “The lack of subs is adding to burnout for our staff and is not sustainable ... For the first time in my career, I am considering how much longer I will have the energy to adequately do my job.“ — Anonymous Teacher “The district needs to make a better effort to hire subs and meet needs, especially at the secondary level where the expectations that teachers should continue to give up prep periods to fill in [for other classes] are beyond reasonable at this point.” — Anonymous Teacher
ONLINE
THIS MONTH
www.thesmokesignal.org
MEET THE NEW FACULTY
HOMSJ: WHAT’S IN YOUR BAG?
With more than a third of MSJ staff being new this year, check out the Smoke Signal’s interactive spread featuring all new teachers, administrators, and school staff.
Wondering why your best friend›s backpack is so heavy? In this HOMSJ, discover the usual and not-so-usual contents of MSJ students’ bags.
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