PRPS Recognizes Substitute Appreciation Week
Above photos: Corinne Aupperle at IF Cox School and Muhamed Ibrahimovic at Eagle Butte High School
Corinne Aupperle is a substitute teacher with Prairie Rose Public Schools, primarily at IF Cox School working across all the grades. She enjoys returning to the same school for the familiarity of the environment and knowing the students in the class she is covering.
After teaching in rural Saskatchewan for 30 years, Aupperle retired early to move to Medicine Hat when her daughter got pregnant. She took a few years off to enjoy being a grandmother before becoming a substitute teacher, which she’s done for the past seven years. It took a while to get her name out, but she was fortunate to be recommended to IF Cox as she lives in Redcliff.
“I can work when I want and not work when I have other things to do. I can take a holiday, or I can spend time with my family. A huge benefit is when the day is done, I’m done. There is no planning, no extracurricular, no report cards or parent-teacher interviews. I do some marking just because I know how busy teachers are, but if I’m busy I don’t even have to do that. It’s wonderful to just walk out the door,” said Aupperle.
Even though there are numerous substitute teachers, there are many days where not many are available. Sometimes Aupperle subs at McCoy for the Catholic division, which is enjoyable in a different way than being in an elementary school. There are days, such as last Thursday, where she is already scheduled to be in one school and has several calls from other schools who need a sub.
“You can see by just being in there it’s lots of fun and you can engage with the kids,” explained Aupperle. “What’s beneficial for me is, moving from Saskatchewan, I didn’t know anybody, and this is a way to connect with the community. I can be at Costco and there are kids who know me and then I get to know their parents to say hello. I can walk down the street and if there are people out, it’s a rare time a child doesn’t recognize me. That is a benefit and is a good way to get involved with the community.”
Muhamed Ibrahimovic taught Language Arts for six years in his home country of Bosnia before immigrating to Canada in 2015. While he was working on getting his diploma accredited by Alberta Education, he taught ESL at Medicine Hat College and for Saamis Immigration. His diploma was accredited in 2021 and he’s been subbing since then. One of those schools is Eagle Butte High School. He also has casual employment as a Correctional Peace Officer, which often results in full-time hours.
“The flexibility is really nice and you get to pick and choose the schools you like best. You have that luxury because I don’t know if subbing can be a full-time job because work is not always guaranteed,” explained Ibrahimovic. “At this school I like it because the students are respectful, the staff is appreciative and I’m really enjoying it. I’m not doing it for the experience or financial benefit, I just enjoy it here.”
He prefers subbing in high schools because he appreciates working with students who understand on a higher level and can go into more depth on topics. “Being a sub, I have to follow a sub plan, but with high school, I can incorporate what I know and enrich the lesson here and there while still following the plan,” said Ibrahimovic.
One of the challenges of being a sub is the last-minute calls and needing to be somewhere right away, although sometimes there are a few days or even a few weeks' notice. “I’m glad this Substitute Appreciation Week exists, and schools are showing they love their subs,” stated Ibrahimovic. “Many people don’t know how challenging it can be to be a sub, sometimes you are thrown into the fire.”
By Samantha Johnson, Prairie Rose Public Schools Content Writer