Can ELL teachers serve as substitute teachers?
Both federal and state laws prohibit the use of ELL funds to supplant instruction. Our federal Title III Program was audited in 2006, and one of the areas we were asked to account for was the use of ELL funds to “supplement, not supplant” regular instruction. According to law, we need to be able to demonstrate that we are providing ELL services consistently and using federal and state LEP funds appropriately. When ELL teachers are used as substitutes, they cannot fulfill their duties to work with the ELL students in their charge, and ultimately the students lose out. While it is understood that principals need to make the best use of all personnel to meet daily building needs, the frequent reassignment of ELL staff away from their regular contract duties has a negative effect on the ELL students that they have been hired to serve. Plans for substitute coverage should not include ELL teachers unless they are scheduled as part of an equitable rotation that includes all other licensed sch
