Teaching Assistants, Special Education

Education and TrainingO*NET 25-9043.00United States

Assist a preschool, elementary, middle, or secondary school teacher to provide academic, social, or life skills to students who have learning, emotional, or physical disabilities. Serve in a position for which a teacher has primary responsibility for the design and implementation of educational programs and services.

COMING SOON See related ASU learning

Median annual earnings: $36,696
Projected change: +2.8%
Typical education: Bachelor's degree
Employment: 1.43M 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 teaching assistants, special education do

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

Provide assistance to students with special needs.
Teach socially acceptable behavior, employing techniques such as behavior modification or positive reinforcement.
Supervise students in classrooms, halls, cafeterias, school yards, and gymnasiums, or on field trips.
Provide students with disabilities with assistive devices, supportive technology, and assistance accessing facilities, such as restrooms.
Carry out therapeutic regimens, such as behavior modification and personal development programs, under the supervision of special education instructors, psychologists, or speech-language pathologists.
Tutor and assist children individually or in small groups to help them master assignments and to reinforce learning concepts presented by teachers.
Employ special educational strategies or techniques during instruction to improve the development of sensory- and perceptual-motor skills, language, cognition, or memory.
Enforce administration policies and rules governing students.
Instruct and monitor students in the use and care of equipment and materials to prevent injuries and damage.
Observe students' performance, and record relevant data to assess progress.
Present subject matter to students under the direction and guidance of teachers, using lectures, discussions, supervised role-playing methods, or by reading aloud.
Discuss assigned duties with classroom teachers to coordinate instructional efforts.
Instruct students in daily living skills required for independent maintenance and self-sufficiency, such as hygiene, safety, or food preparation.
Prepare classrooms with a variety of materials or resources for children to explore, manipulate, or use in learning activities or imaginative play.
Distribute teaching materials, such as textbooks, workbooks, papers, and pencils, to students.
Organize and supervise games and other recreational activities to promote physical, mental, and social development.
Use computers, audio-visual aids, and other equipment and materials to supplement presentations.
Clean classrooms.
Organize and label materials and display students' work in a manner appropriate for their eye levels and perceptual skills.
Prepare lesson materials, bulletin board displays, exhibits, equipment, and demonstrations.

Pay and outlook

What the job pays and where it is heading

Annual earnings range

Reported earnings by percentile, United States

10th percentile: $26,979
25th percentile: $30,920
50th percentile: $36,696
75th percentile: $45,383
90th percentile: $50,678

The gold marker shows the median. Half earn more than $36,696 and half earn less.

Employment outlook

2025 to 2035 projection

+2.8%average or slower

20251,433,700 jobs

2035 projected1,473,292 jobs

39,592 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: 39.2%
High school diploma or less: 24.6%
Some college: 18.2%
Associate degree: 14.5%
Master's or Professional degree: 3.6%

Skills

Skills employers ask for

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

Special Education
Individualized Education Programs (IEP)
Toileting
Disabilities
Behavior Management
Working With Children
Personal Care
Office Equipment
Lifting Ability
Classroom Management
Data Collection
Behavior Intervention
Autism Spectrum Disorders
Child Development
De-escalation Techniques
Lesson Planning
Student Services
Crisis Prevention
First Aid
Crisis Intervention

How the work gets done

Core competencies

Broad capabilities associated with strong performance in this occupation.

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.
Social Perceptiveness: Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Learning Strategies: Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
Reading Comprehension: Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
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.
Instructing: Teaching others how to do something.
Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
Writing: Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
Coordination: Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Persuasion: Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
Active Learning: Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
Complex Problem Solving: Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
Negotiation: Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
Judgment and Decision Making: Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Time Management: Managing one's own time and the time of others.
Management of Personnel Resources: Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
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.

In the market

Job titles and employers

Recent job postings in United States

Common job titles

01Special Education Paraprofessionals5,576 postings
02Special Education Paraeducators2,855 postings
03Special Education Aides1,623 postings
04Special Education Instructional Assistants1,556 postings
05Special Education Assistants1,086 postings
06Special Education Teacher Assistants615 postings
07Elementary Special Education Teachers510 postings
08Special Education Instructional Aides484 postings
09Special Educational Assistants314 postings
10Middle School Educators281 postings
11Self-Contained Special Education Teachers227 postings
12High School Educators225 postings
13Special Education Life Skills Teachers187 postings
14Middle School Special Education Teachers186 postings
15Special Education Teachers184 postings
16Early Childhood Special Educators176 postings
17Early Childhood Special Education Paraprofessionals153 postings
18School Special Education Teachers147 postings
19Substitute Special Education Paraprofessionals145 postings
20High School Special Education Teachers143 postings

Top employers

01Edjoin.Org1,456 postings
02Montgomery County Public Schools445 postings
03Wake County Public Schools332 postings
04Zen Educate204 postings
05Poudre School District153 postings
06National Heritage Academies136 postings
07Soliant Health124 postings
08Anne Arundel County Public Schools122 postings
09Amergis120 postings
10Washington County Public Schools120 postings
11New Story School110 postings
12Evergreen Public Schools107 postings
13Fort Bend Independent School District105 postings
14Denver Public Schools98 postings
15Mesa Public Schools97 postings
16Minneapolis Public Schools96 postings
17Seattle Public Schools90 postings
18Fort Wayne Community Schools85 postings
19Everett Public Schools83 postings
20The School District Of Philadelphia81 postings

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