First month as a cover supervisor

I've just finished my first month of cover supervision work with two teaching agencies and I wanted to take inventory of my experience thus far. For context, I am in my early twenties and am set to begin my PGCE for Design and Technology in September, not satisfied with working a retail job until then, I thought it would be beneficial to find supply work as an unqualified cover teacher to challenge myself... and challenge it has.

I've worked four days a week for four weeks and I've covered everything from Maths, Drama, PE, DT, History, RS, Music and Geography. I've spent one day in an Ofsted 'good' school and the rest have been in two 'inadequate' schools, each wanted me to work there until half term and I refused both but we'll get into that later.

I have been put through the wringer, I've never felt more disrespected, incompetent and mentally tested. Students have zero respect in my authority, when I dish out c1's to c4's I am seen as a joke. Instructions I give are never followed. Any request for quiet is partially accepted and then quickly dismissed. SLT's come in to lay down the law, the minute they leave its bedlam once more. I cannot believe how bad children have become, I used to think my secondary school was bad but now I am grateful (were year 7's always this feral?). Lesson after lesson is exactly the same. Students walk in to the class, a lot of them are delighted to see me. They immediately sit wherever (I've only been given a seating plan for THREE classes) and I'm already on the back foot. The cover work is usually boring, been done before or is incredibly dry and easy. Sometimes I'm given a powerpoint to deliver, It's never listened to no matter how hard I try. I'd say on average 10-20% of students will at least fill the sheets and then spend the rest of the lesson talking, fine. 30-40% will answer one question and will do nothing and the rest crumple the paper or turn it into an airplane. Students will ask me questions about my life, insult me, throw pens at each other, scream, get out of their seats, go on their phone, converse loudly, cause a mess, at least one student is escorted out by SLT and then I collect the pitiful work sheets and then sit on my chair and then repeat.

I'd like to highlight two distinctly bad days. The first was a year 10 DT class (all boys bar one girl). I handed out their work and tried to go through the PowerPoint, all the boys talked and even turned their back to me. Then the first lunch able was thrown, a good fight began. Pens were thrown. I gave out c4s to which they scoffed. They filled trays with water, threw haribos and pens at me, they wetted sponges and hurled them. I just sat in my chair and prayed for it to be over while they laughed. Then they all left as if nothing happened, one boy looked at me and said "you'll never forget this will you sir". Only once the carnage was done, did another teacher wald in and react sympathetically, they said they hadn't seen that in years, that they were the worst class in the school. For the duration of my day at that school my colleagues gave my pitying looks and asked if I had 'the crazy lesson'. After that day I called my agency and said I wouldn't work at that school anymore.

The next was my most recent day. My double year 10 business class was a false, nobody engaged or really worked but at least they weren't totally loud and destructive. The year 8 history class was not so forgiving. So much screaming and pen throwing, students were tapping the smart board, playing music, they'd sit on my desk chair when I'd try to help people, they'd take my whiteboard pen and write brain rot on there, pens thrown - the standard. Any attempt to discipline is met with an uproar of crash outs and mayhem. I zone out among the chaos, I'm not paid enough to lose myself and stress out. After all they want a reaction. This pattern was repeated for my next year seven classes but my final one ended with a small boy trying to fight a girl in his class for calling his mum a 'slag' he gunned for her and I had to grab him by the waist and hoist him out into the corridor for the SLT to come in and try to calm things. I sent to message to the headteacher the next morning on my agency app that I was at breaking point and was not qualified nor equipped to work there any longer. I was due to work that day and I feel bad about doing this at such short notice.

I feel like a liability. My status as the chill supply guy that everyone can walk all over is a detriment to the schools I work in and sets a bad precedent for other supply teachers. All the students love me and it's for the worst reasons. I don't know how I continue on, I need to be working in a supporting capacity now, that's the conclusion I've made. I can't think of a harder job for as little financial gain as this one. I'm not a trained teacher yet and I hope my journey improves. I just wanted to vent and hear the thoughts of the sub on this. I also want to say that I have immense respect for my fellow supply people, you are unsung heroes.