Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between special education aides and education paraprofessionals can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a special education aide has an average salary of $31,638, which is higher than the $31,158 average annual salary of an education paraprofessional.
The top three skills for a special education aide include behavior management, paraprofessional and IEP. The most important skills for an education paraprofessional are autism, behavioral issues, and mathematics.
| Special Education Aide | Education Paraprofessional | |
| Yearly salary | $31,638 | $31,158 |
| Hourly rate | $15.21 | $14.98 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 95,429 | 53,164 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4.33 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 59% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
A special education aide works with therapists and special education teachers to teach children with disabilities. Special education aides teach children with behavioral and emotional disorders, intellectual disorders, and those with physical and communication disabilities. They perform their job in a small group or individual setting. The scope of their job is performed outside or inside the classroom. Patience, attention to detail, and communication are necessary for performing their job.
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.
Special education aides and education paraprofessionals have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Special Education Aide | Education Paraprofessional | |
| Average salary | $31,638 | $31,158 |
| Salary range | Between $25,000 And $39,000 | Between $24,000 And $39,000 |
| Highest paying City | Riverhead, NY | South San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Bear Valley Unified School District | Boston Public Schools |
| Best paying industry | Education | Finance |
There are a few differences between a special education aide and an education paraprofessional in terms of educational background:
| Special Education Aide | Education Paraprofessional | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 59% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Psychology |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between special education aides' and education paraprofessionals' demographics:
| Special Education Aide | Education Paraprofessional | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 20.0% Female, 80.0% | Male, 19.7% Female, 80.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 19.8% Asian, 8.1% White, 57.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% | 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% |