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The differences between early childhood specialists and child care teachers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an early childhood specialist has an average salary of $35,575, which is higher than the $26,036 average annual salary of a child care teacher.
The top three skills for an early childhood specialist include professional development, technical assistance and staff development. The most important skills for a child care teacher are child care, child development, and CPR.
| Early Childhood Specialist | Child Care Teacher | |
| Yearly salary | $35,575 | $26,036 |
| Hourly rate | $17.10 | $12.52 |
| Growth rate | 15% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 33,451 | 139,010 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 59% | Bachelor's Degree, 40% |
| Average age | 40 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 2 | - |
An early childhood specialist is responsible for managing the activities of young learners, monitoring their learning development, and designing engaging activities to observe their personal and social behaviors. Early childhood specialists assist the parents and the teachers of a child with administering programs that would expose their skills and their ability to solve basic problem-solving tasks. They coordinate with the parents to provide them progress updates and adjust learning strategies as needed depending on the child's performance.
A child care teacher is responsible for educating young learners, observing their personal and social behaviors. They also prepare engaging and fun activities for the children, ensuring their safety and security. Child care teachers assist the children's daily activities and provide progress reports and updates to the children's parents for any concerns and support needed. They also maintain the cleanliness and orderliness of the facilities by adhering to the safety standards and protocols. A child care teacher must have excellent communication and organizational skills and implement learning methods that would fit the curriculum.
Early childhood specialists and child care teachers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Early Childhood Specialist | Child Care Teacher | |
| Average salary | $35,575 | $26,036 |
| Salary range | Between $25,000 And $50,000 | Between $14,000 And $45,000 |
| Highest paying City | Harrison, NY | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | New York | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Edmonds Community College, Lynnwood | |
| Best paying industry | Professional | - |
There are a few differences between an early childhood specialist and a child care teacher in terms of educational background:
| Early Childhood Specialist | Child Care Teacher | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 59% | Bachelor's Degree, 40% |
| Most common major | Early Childhood Education | Early Childhood Education |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Duke University |
Here are the differences between early childhood specialists' and child care teachers' demographics:
| Early Childhood Specialist | Child Care Teacher | |
| Average age | 40 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 12.8% Female, 87.2% | Male, 10.8% Female, 89.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.7% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 17.2% Asian, 5.6% White, 63.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% | Black or African American, 10.3% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 17.6% Asian, 9.0% White, 57.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 6% |