When teachers have a great idea, but…

After the last Make & Take Tech Day at Conewago Elementary, several teachers asked if it was possible to have a technology pull-out day with me to sit around a table and create lesson plans that effectively integrate technology using the tools I have provided so far. Those are words to a technology coach’s ears! It’s not often teachers request a pull-out day, a day away from their classroom and having to make substitute plans, so this idea is amazing. There’s one catch, however, the lack of substitutes is putting a wrench in this idea.

According to the York Daily Record (2015), there are many reasons why there is a lack substitutes in York County. Locally, school districts generally pay substitutes the same rate but there are less certified teachers graduating due to the changes the in the certification process that has made getting certificates more difficult. The Bureau of Labor Statistics shares employment statistics from May 2017 showing that there are approximately 17,500 substitute teachers in the state of Pennsylvania’s 500 public school districts with an average salary of about $33,000 per year. For those substitutes with a college degree, there are other opportunities out there that provide a better wage with the possibility of included insurance.

Even with a substitute shortage, I still need to advocate for teachers who strive to use technology but need time to process how to make it happen. Hampton High School is Allison Park (2015), describes the role of technology coach to perfection. In their video, they very accurately describe this role as being someone who has knowledge of curriculum and classroom demands and put them into a role of the ultimate collaborator, someone who takes ideas that one teacher has and shares it out to other teachers who would benefit. The role of their technology coach is also someone who works with teachers to create effective lesson plans that integrate technology and is even sometimes just an extra hand in the classroom. As a technology coach, I can do professional development after professional development and provide endless resources via email and social media but time for some teachers to sit and plan with me, proves to be the most difficult hurdle to jump over.

I have reached out to the teachers who were interested to brainstorm ideas how we can make a large chunk of time for collaboration. I have even offered an after-school pizza party technology session since securing substitutes is impossible right now. We will see how things pan out...hopefully in our favor.

References

25-3098 Substitute Teachers. (2018, March 30). Retrieved from https://www.bls.gov/oes/2017/may/oes253098.htm

Instructional Coaching: Driving Meaningful Tech Integration. (2015, June 24). Retrieved from https://youtu.be/4l5JBUacW1w

Facebook.com/amasonydr. (2015, November 24). Districts feel substitute shortage. Retrieved from https://www.ydr.com/story/news/education/2015/11/24/substitute-teacher-shortage-pennsylvania/75647730/