Special Education Teachers, Middle School

Education and TrainingO*NET 25-2057.00United States

Teach academic, social, and life skills to middle school students with learning, emotional, or physical disabilities. Includes teachers who specialize and work with students who are blind or have visual impairments; students who are deaf or have hearing impairments; and students with intellectual disabilities.

COMING SOON See related ASU learning

Median annual earnings: $66,762
Projected change: +1.8%
Typical education: Bachelor's degree
Employment: 92.29K jobs

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Build the skills

ASU learning related to this career

These courses and certificates are connected through catalog career relationships and Lightcast skill tags.

The work

What special education teachers, middle school do

Tasks reported for this occupation, ordered by how often they come up in the role.

Develop or write Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) for students.
Establish and enforce rules for behavior and policies and procedures to maintain order among students.
Develop and implement strategies to meet the needs of students with a variety of handicapping conditions.
Prepare materials and classrooms for class activities.
Confer with parents or guardians, other teachers, counselors, and administrators to resolve students' behavioral and academic problems.
Instruct students in daily living skills required for independent maintenance and self-sufficiency, such as hygiene, safety, and food preparation.
Confer with parents, administrators, testing specialists, social workers, and professionals to develop individual educational plans (IEPs) for students' educational, physical, and social development.
Modify the general education curriculum for students with disabilities, based upon a variety of instructional techniques and instructional technology.
Coordinate placement of students with special needs into mainstream classes.
Teach socially acceptable behavior, employing techniques such as behavior modification and positive reinforcement.
Guide and counsel students with adjustments, academic problems, or special academic interests.
Establish clear objectives for all lessons, units, and projects, and communicate those objectives to students.
Maintain accurate and complete student records, and prepare reports on children and activities, as required by laws, district policies, and administrative regulations.
Employ special educational strategies and techniques during instruction to improve the development of sensory- and perceptual-motor skills, language, cognition, and memory.
Teach students personal development skills, such as goal setting, independence, and self-advocacy.
Collaborate with other teachers that provide instruction to special education students to ensure that the students receive appropriate support.
Instruct through lectures, discussions, and demonstrations in one or more subjects, such as English, mathematics, or social studies.
Monitor teachers and teacher assistants to ensure that they adhere to inclusive special education program requirements.
Meet with parents and guardians to discuss their children's progress and to determine priorities for their children and their resource needs.
Observe and evaluate students' performance, behavior, social development, and physical health.
Plan and conduct activities for a balanced program of instruction, demonstration, and work time that provides students with opportunities to observe, question, and investigate.
Instruct and monitor students in the use and care of equipment and materials to prevent injuries and damage.
Confer with other staff members to plan and schedule lessons promoting learning, following approved curricula.
Prepare objectives and outlines for courses of study, following curriculum guidelines or requirements of states and schools.
Use computers, audio-visual aids, and other equipment and materials to supplement presentations.
Prepare for assigned classes, and show written evidence of preparation upon request of immediate supervisors.
Administer standardized ability and achievement tests, and interpret results to determine students' strengths and needs.
Prepare, administer, and grade tests and assignments to evaluate students' progress.
Meet with parents and guardians to provide guidance in using community resources and to teach skills for dealing with students' impairments.
Provide additional instruction in vocational areas.
Organize and label materials and display students' work.
Attend staff meetings and serve on committees, as required.
Attend professional meetings, educational conferences, and teacher training workshops to maintain and improve professional competence.
Plan and supervise class projects, field trips, visits by guest speakers, or other experiential activities, and guide students in learning from those activities.
Perform administrative duties, such as school library assistance, hall and cafeteria monitoring, and bus loading and unloading.

Pay and outlook

What the job pays and where it is heading

Annual earnings range

Reported earnings by percentile, United States

10th percentile: $49,319
25th percentile: $59,893
50th percentile: $66,762
75th percentile: $82,838
90th percentile: $102,726

The gold marker shows the median. Half earn more than $66,762 and half earn less.

Employment outlook

2025 to 2035 projection

+1.8%average or slower

202592,289 jobs

2035 projected93,980 jobs

1,691 more positions over the decade, before replacement hiring.

Preparation

Education levels

What people currently working in the career hold. These are not entry requirements.

Bachelor's degree: 82.5%
Master's or Professional degree: 17.5%

Skills

Skills employers ask for

Technical skills appearing most often in job postings for this occupation.

Special Education
Individualized Education Programs (IEP)
Classroom Management
Lesson Planning
Differentiated Instruction
Curriculum Development
Instructional Strategies
Learning Styles
Mathematics Education
Student Engagement
Disabilities
Data Analysis
Behavior Management
Educational Assessment
Instructional Design
Formative And Summative Assessments
Science Education
Effective Communication
Parent Communication
Social Studies

How the work gets done

Core competencies

Broad capabilities associated with strong performance in this occupation.

Learning Strategies: Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Instructing: Teaching others how to do something.
Social Perceptiveness: Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Active Learning: Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
Reading Comprehension: Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
Writing: Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
Coordination: Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Monitoring: Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Service Orientation: Actively looking for ways to help people.
Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
Time Management: Managing one's own time and the time of others.
Complex Problem Solving: Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
Judgment and Decision Making: Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Persuasion: Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
Negotiation: Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
Systems Evaluation: Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
Systems Analysis: Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
Management of Personnel Resources: Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.

In the market

Job titles and employers

Recent job postings in United States

Common job titles

01Middle School Special Education Teachers1,169 postings
02Middle School Teachers534 postings
03Middle School Math Teachers408 postings
04Middle School Science Teachers326 postings
05Middle School Social Studies Teachers183 postings
06Middle School Ela Teachers123 postings
07Middle School English Teachers100 postings
08Middle School English Language Arts Teachers81 postings
09Middle School Spanish Teachers52 postings
10Middle School Mathematics Teachers44 postings
11Middle/High School Teachers43 postings
12Middle School Language Arts Teachers31 postings
13Middle School History Teachers30 postings
14Middle School Math/Science Teachers29 postings
15Middle School Instructors26 postings
16Long Term Substitute Special Education Teachers25 postings
17Middle School Humanities Teachers24 postings
18Special Education Life Skills Teachers23 postings
19Middle School Lead Teachers22 postings
20Middle School Math and Science Teachers19 postings

Top employers

01Uncommon Schools131 postings
02Edjoin.Org97 postings
03Soliant Health61 postings
04Colorado Springs School District 1136 postings
05Jefferson County Public Schools33 postings
06Amergis30 postings
07Blazerjobs29 postings
08KIPP29 postings
09Kipp Public Schools Northern California27 postings
10Kipp Massachusetts24 postings
11Stride K1223 postings
12Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District22 postings
13North East Independent School District21 postings
14Ankeny Community School District15 postings
15Nobel Learning Communities14 postings
16Springfield Public Schools, MA14 postings
17Basis Independent Schools13 postings
18Hmong College Prep Academy13 postings
19ProCare Therapy13 postings
20Christina School District12 postings

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