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Professional educator vs student teacher

The differences between professional educators and student teachers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a student teacher has an average salary of $59,035, which is higher than the $50,068 average annual salary of a professional educator.

The top three skills for a professional educator include classroom management, curriculum development and training programs. The most important skills for a student teacher are classroom management, math, and language arts.

Professional educator vs student teacher overview

Professional EducatorStudent Teacher
Yearly salary$50,068$59,035
Hourly rate$24.07$28.38
Growth rate4%4%
Number of jobs52,44979,071
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 60%Bachelor's Degree, 75%
Average age4242
Years of experience--

What does a professional educator do?

Professional educators have skills in critical thinking, patience, communication, organization, imaginative thinking, leadership, teamwork, and time management. Those who choose this career field will be required to provide quality educational programs and promote their profession above any personal gain and possess accountability to clients, community, parents, and students.

What does a student teacher do?

A student-teacher is responsible for assisting their supervising instructors in maintaining the class orderliness during lectures and class activities. Student teachers' duties include helping with lesson plans, organizing learning activities, managing student behaviors, observing classroom procedures, preparing visual materials and other educational equipment, providing feedback for students, and keeping students' records for evaluation. A student-teacher must maintain excellent communication and decision-making skills to set goals and make consistent progress to the class while keeping students engaged.

Professional educator vs student teacher salary

Professional educators and student teachers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Professional EducatorStudent Teacher
Average salary$50,068$59,035
Salary rangeBetween $34,000 And $73,000Between $46,000 And $74,000
Highest paying CityNew York, NYBoston, MA
Highest paying stateNew YorkMaryland
Best paying companyHealthTrustGreat Hearts Academies
Best paying industryEducationEducation

Differences between professional educator and student teacher education

There are a few differences between a professional educator and a student teacher in terms of educational background:

Professional EducatorStudent Teacher
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 60%Bachelor's Degree, 75%
Most common majorBusinessElementary Education
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaNorthwestern University

Professional educator vs student teacher demographics

Here are the differences between professional educators' and student teachers' demographics:

Professional EducatorStudent Teacher
Average age4242
Gender ratioMale, 35.0% Female, 65.0%Male, 26.4% Female, 73.6%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 3.6% White, 69.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%Black or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 3.7% White, 69.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage9%9%

Differences between professional educator and student teacher duties and responsibilities

Professional educator example responsibilities.

  • Manage revolving caseload of students with IEP team including initials, transfer placements, manifestation determinations.
  • Design and organize workshops for parents to provide tools in assisting students to increase literacy and mathematics achievement.
  • Provide urban education, multicultural education and leadership training for a diverse population of new teachers.

Student teacher example responsibilities.

  • Manage RTI reading groups using both basal materials and literature-base novel units.
  • Lead debates with advance students on topics including globalization, economics, and political history.
  • Develop lessons that integrate technology into mathematics and language arts for various grade-levels.
  • Enhance student engagement for learning math and science through maintaining collaborative learning classroom environment.
  • Used responsive classroom strategies for Pre-K and first grade.
  • Attend workshops on how to access and create IEPS and bill for services.
  • Show more

Professional educator vs student teacher skills

Common professional educator skills
  • Classroom Management, 8%
  • Curriculum Development, 7%
  • Training Programs, 7%
  • English Language, 7%
  • Autism, 6%
  • Professional Development, 5%
Common student teacher skills
  • Classroom Management, 20%
  • Math, 13%
  • Language Arts, 8%
  • Social Studies, 6%
  • Kindergarten, 5%
  • IEP, 4%

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