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The differences between educational aids and education paraprofessionals can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an education paraprofessional has an average salary of $31,158, which is higher than the $29,988 average annual salary of an educational aid.
The top three skills for an educational aid include behavior management, CPR and instructional materials. The most important skills for an education paraprofessional are autism, behavioral issues, and mathematics.
| Educational Aid | Education Paraprofessional | |
| Yearly salary | $29,988 | $31,158 |
| Hourly rate | $14.42 | $14.98 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 71,043 | 53,164 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4.33 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 54% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
An educational aide is needed to thoroughly manage and assess children's development and learning. They help teachers monitor students' development and class standing. They provide hands-on tutoring to children in need of additional study courses. They also help teachers develop lesson plans, assist with distributing handouts, and collect homework. They can act as teachers when the lead teacher is absent. To make learning lively, they help in room beautification and cleanliness.
An education paraprofessional's role is to carry out support tasks for a teacher in a school setting. They are responsible for creating learning materials such as visual aids and presentations, participating in devising lesson plans and assessment methods, grading and evaluating student performances, and even maintaining order in the classroom. There are also instances where they must assist students who are having difficulties catching up with the lessons. Furthermore, an education paraprofessional may also teach under the supervision of a more experienced educator.
Educational aids and education paraprofessionals have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Educational Aid | Education Paraprofessional | |
| Average salary | $29,988 | $31,158 |
| Salary range | Between $23,000 And $37,000 | Between $24,000 And $39,000 |
| Highest paying City | Fairfield, CA | South San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Point Loma Nazarene University | Boston Public Schools |
| Best paying industry | Education | Finance |
There are a few differences between an educational aid and an education paraprofessional in terms of educational background:
| Educational Aid | Education Paraprofessional | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 54% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Most common major | Business | Psychology |
| Most common college | Duke University | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between educational aids' and education paraprofessionals' demographics:
| Educational Aid | Education Paraprofessional | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 23.0% Female, 77.0% | Male, 19.7% Female, 80.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.1% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 19.9% Asian, 7.8% White, 54.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3% | Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.3% Asian, 8.3% White, 60.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |