Subs and Technology- Your Questions Answered

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By Kerri Lambert, Instructional Technology Teacher Specialist

Sub plans. A necessary evil in the world of teachers. How many of us have gone to work sick simply because we dreaded having to write up lessons for the day? And when you find a good sub, you cross your fingers they never stop subbing!

Adding to the stress of writing sub plans is the ever growing number of digital resources that substitutes need to access in order to fill in for the day. What can they access? What can’t they access something? How can they get all the links and videos needed?

To help plan for those inevitable absences, here are some FAQs about substitute teachers and technology:

Do I need to leave my log in for the sub?

NO!!! Please don’t give your AACPS login information to ANYONE. This is a major security risk both for your personal information and that of your students.
 

Then how do subs login?

All AACPS substitutes have their own AACPS username and password to get them into the system. This is what they should use.
 

I need to leave a (fill in digital tool here) link for the sub. Will they be able to get into the program?

Subs accounts have access to the following:
  • Email
  • Google Drive and all Google Apps
  • OneDrive
  • Brightspace
  • Classlink
  • Google Earth
  • YouTube


Why don’t they have access to everything like we do?

Many of our applications are subscription based, like Discovery Education, iReady, LearnZillion, and Scholastic Literacy Pro. This means we pay per person for using the service. Other approved applications like GoNoodle, and Kahoot are not managed by AACPS and each user must set up their account individually.


If the sub can’t get into the program I need them too, what can I do?


We recommend placing links into Brightspace for students to access directly. This works well for Discovery Education, Lumio (formerly SLSO), Nearpod, Wixie, etc. If known ahead of time, the sub can be added temporarily to the Brightspace course by the teacher so they can model for the students where to go.


So what can I give subs digitally?

You can share your plans directly with the sub in Google Drive or OneDrive. Any slide decks can also be shared directly with the sub. SMART Notebook files can be shared via Google or OneDrive and the sub can download them directly to the computer to be used with SMART Notebook on the desktop.


Where can substitutes learn how to use the technology available?


The OIT website “Teacher Intro to Digital Tools” is available to all substitutes on Classlink. They should look for the “T” icon.

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