Substitute teacher asked to leave school after singing Britney Spears’ ‘Toxic’ on karaoke machine

A substitute teacher was reportedly asked to leave a Texas high school earlier following an in-class karaoke performance to his students.

As reported by the New York Post, the unnamed sub was "relieved of duty" after video footage captured by students in his class showed him performing Britney Spear's chart-topper 'Toxic' with the accompaniment of a karaoke machine. Additionally, a multicolored light show can be seen whirling around the classroom.

While sitting from the desk at the front of the class, the teacher can be heard belting the familiar lyric: "With a taste of a poison paradise, I’m addicted to you. Don’t you know that you’re toxic?"

The incident occurred at Austin’s Bowie High School.

Check it out in the tweet below:

Following the performance, an Austin Independent School District (AISD) representative told local NBC news outlet KXAN that the substitute teacher was asked to leave early, as he "wasn’t following [the district's] best practices".

Hilariously, the spokesperson added: "I’ve heard worse Britney Spears covers, but the lights are a bit much."

After rumors circulated that the substitute teacher was actually a prankster in disguise, the AISD spokesperson clarified: "All processes were followed, it was simply a case of a substitute not following our practices."

The Post added: "The substitute was a registered substitute placed on campus to cover a class and has not been arrested."

The father of the student who recorded the performance said it was "all a bit confusing."

"We didn’t know what this was all about until our son explained what it was," father Andre Abelkis told The Post. "Yes, we were a little upset that a substitute teacher would not care about teaching the class and just do something for themselves. And, yes, I think the teacher should have been removed from class."

Response to the video on social media has been mixed, with one person writing: "He’s a substitute. It’s not like students actually do anything when there’s a sub. They are glorified babysitters that pass out busy work."

However, a second Twitter user replied: "These folks who take up teaching are doing it for the wrong reason. I suspect most take teaching jobs because they have no other skills. Teachers in the past had a passion to teach and allowed students to grow now they either indoctrinate or to a poor job of teaching. Not all. [sic]"

Featured image credit: David Izquierdo Roger / Alamy