Specialising as a Supply Teacher: SEN, Primary, or Secondary?
Thinking of specialising as a supply teacher? Choose between SEN, primary, or secondary school teaching, and see which is the best fit for you.
If you are thinking of specialising as a supply teacher, you likely have any questions. You are going to want to know the difference between SEN, primary, and secondary supply teaching, which path is right for you, and what skills you need to achieve this goal.
Here, we will look at why you should specialise in your supply teaching career, and consider the options before you, including SEN, primary, and secondary school supply teaching.
Why Specialise as a Supply Teacher?
Specialising as a supply teacher allows you to teach and make a difference with students on your own terms with flexible working, less administrative tasks, and more freedom to have the work-life balance you want.
There are many benefits to choosing this route, and there are different possibilities to choose from depending on what you want to get out of your work, who you want to work with, and what you are interested in.
The top 5 benefits of specialising as a supply teacher:
- It’s flexible
- It allows you to relocate if you want to
- Your environment changes every day
- Better world-life balance
- You are always in-demand
What Are the Skills and Expectations for Supply Teaching in Primary Schools?
Specialising as a supply teacher in a primary school requires you to have broad knowledge as you may cover many areas in lessons, good classroom management to keep your class under control, patience, flexibility, and good organisational skills.
As a primary school supply teacher, your expectations will vary depending on how long you will be teaching at the institution, with teachers staying on for weeks or months having more responsibilities than those who will only be reaching for a few hours or weeks.
Top 5 benefits of primary school supply teaching:
- Every day is exciting
- There are international opportunities
- You get to make a difference in young lives
- Flexibility with when, where, and how many hours you work
- Work with 5–11-year-olds
What Are the Rewards and Challenges of Secondary School Supply Teaching? Challenges & Rewards
Working as a supply teacher in secondary schools requires more specialised knowledge, as the lessons are covered at a higher level (Key Stage 3 and 4, and maybe 5 if you are doing college-level supply teaching). As such, you should have a degree in the area of study so that you can effectively teach students in preparation for the next step of their education.
Secondary school teaching can often be more challenging due to the older age of the students and the additional stressors that they experience in this part of their life—more on that later in the blog!
Top 5 benefits of secondary school supply teaching:
- You can specialise in subjects you are passionate about
- Your days will always look different
- There is flexibility for how much you work
- Make a difference in lives
- Work with 11–16/18-year-olds
What Are the Unique Considerations and Benefits for SEN Supply Teaching?
Specialising as a supply teacher in the SEN field is incredibly varied, and may take place in any of the education levels and ages. However, not everyone is suited to be a SEN supply teacher, and an extra level of consideration should be taken before making the jump. An SEN supply teacher needs to be understanding, sensitive, patient, and the ability to remain calm in high-stress situations.
Individuals with the following could be classed as special education needs:
- Communication, language, and speech needs
- Mental, social, or emotional health
- Hearing or visual impairments
- Multi-sensory impairment
- Physical impairment
- Neurodiverse conditions (e.g. ASD or OCD)
- Specific learning disabilities (e.g. ADHD or dyslexia)
Of course, there are many benefits to specialising as an SEN supply teacher, but it is important to be realistic about yourself, who you are, and what you can handle.
Top 5 benefits of SEN supply teaching:
- The more challenging work can feel more rewarding
- You will continuously develop a range of useful skills
- You usually focus on smaller classes or one-to-one
- There are always SEN opportunities
- You can work in many different kinds of schools
Career Prospects and Demand Across SEN, Primary & Secondary Teaching
As a whole, teachers of all kinds are in-demand across the country and internationally. SEN teachers in particular have fantastic international teaching opportunities, and many countries want primary and secondary teachers. Globally, there is a teacher shortage that is impacting education, particularly in the way of languages, maths, and science teachers.
Specialising as any kind of teacher will open doors and career prospects for you, but it’s important to know that there are not typically career progression in supply teaching if you don’t have an intention of becoming a permanent teacher at a school or another educational institution.
For those who want to build a career and advance to form teacher → subject leader → so on, it is important to become a permanent, full-time teacher to progress. However, it is also key to note that this isn’t for everyone, and supply teaching comes with many benefits that lots of people prefer regarding flexibility, less paperwork, and more.
Top Questions to Ask Yourself When Choosing Your Specialism
The top three questions you should ask yourself when choosing our supply teacher specialism are: what age group do you want to teach, are you the right fit for working with SEN students, and is there a specific subject you want to teach?
Depending on the answers to these questions, you should quickly be able to determine which route you should follow, and make your decision on specialising as a supply teacher.
What Age Group Do You Want to Work With?
Primary schools typically have students between the ages of 5–11, but there may be instances where 4 and 12-year-olds are there as well. In secondary school, you will typically be working with 11–16-year-olds, but there could also be students up to 10 years old if the school is also a college.
For SEN, there are all age ranges, from primary and secondary school to college and even in university. However, depending on the level that you would want to teach at, there may be additional needs and qualifications that are necessary.
Overall, you need to know what kind of age range you want to work with as a supply teacher. Working with young children can be very fulfilling as you help in their early development and set them up for the next stage, but can be incredibly challenging and tiring because of their needs and ages.
On the other hand, working with secondary school students can also be rewarding because you are helping them prepare to step into the real world, but there are challenges surrounding behaviour, attitude, and higher expectations.
Are You The Right Fit to Work With SEN Students?
Not everyone will be the right fit to work with students who have special education needs. There is no single ‘typical’ student within SEN, and this means that you need to have a good understanding of a broad range of knowledge of special education types and needs, and also a suitable personality to work with more challenging students.
You need to be very realistic and know what you are getting yourself into. Because, while this specialisation is incredibly rewarding, flexibility and sensitivity are paramount, as well as the ability to understand reactions, actively listen, create the best possible conditions for different learning needs, and you need to enjoy working with people.
Before you jump into a career of SEN supply teaching, you need to know that:
- There will high highs and low lows
- Helping with special education is incredibly rewarding
- There are many different kinds of SEN students
- You will be stressed in many situations
- Online reporting is crucial
- You will probably have a lot of ‘unofficial’ duties
Is There a Specific Subject You Want to Teach?
If there is a specific subject that you are passionate about, working as a secondary education supply teacher is the better option for you, as this allows you to specialise on the given topic. For primary school teachers, it is generally better to have a broad range of knowledge, and should be familiar with all the subjects on the curriculum.
As the subjects covered in primary school are Key Stage 1 and 2, the depth of knowledge required is not nearly that of the secondary or further education skills level. This means that learning it and teaching it is far more manageable as long as you stay on top of new information, requirements, and curriculum changes.
How First Class Supply Supports Your Supply Teaching Career
Specialising as a supply teacher can be incredibly rewarding, but it is not without its challenges. Make sure that you take the time to consider your strengths and weaknesses before making a decision, and get the qualifications you need.
Ready to specialise your teaching career? Register with First Class Supply today and find your perfect teaching placement.
For more information, why not check out our community support, testimonials and meet the team? We also have information for schools and teachers, and like to keep you up-to-date on news.
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