Substitute Teachers Case Study

1. The substitute teacher, Linda Collins, is expected to provide the same standard of care as a regular teacher. She can be held liable for any negligence on her part (Cotten, 1995). The regular teacher, not being present, does not have any liability. In this particular case study, the substitute teacher works on a regular basis, and therefore should understand the level of supervision that is necessary when teaching a class. Since the school district employs the substitute teacher, the school district is liable for the actions of the teacher.

2. The sexual assault of a student does not automatically signal that someone from the school is to be held liable for negligence. However, in this instance, the school would be liable. The school is certainly responsible for providing supervision for all students during school hours. When an injury occurs, it must be determined if the school took appropriate safety precautions. In this case, the substitute teacher and accordingly, the school, failed to provide a safe space for the student who was assaulted. The substitute teacher could not have prevented it, but appropriate attention and oversight would not have allowed the injuring party the opportunity to go out of sight for long enough for this
When parents send their children to school, they expect a certain level of supervision and safety for them. In this instance, that standard of care was clearly not met. The substitute teacher is not at fault as much as the injuring student, and, likewise, the school district is not at fault as much as the substitute teacher. However, each would likely be held liable by the court in this situation. The only option I see for the school district to defend against this charge of negligence, is to claim comparative negligence, essentially claiming that they are not as responsible as the substitute teacher or the injuring party. It is unlikely that they will be absolved, but it may limit the damages that they are responsible