How to hire a special education assistant teacher

How to hire a special education assistant teacher, step by step

Here's a step-by-step special education assistant teacher hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a special education assistant teacher job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new special education assistant teacher
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a special education assistant teacher, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A special education assistant teacher's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, special education assistant teachers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list shows salaries for various types of special education assistant teachers.

   Type of Special Education Assistant Teacher	Description	Hourly rate
   Special Education Assistant Teacher	Teacher assistants work under a teacher’s supervision to give students additional attention and instruction.	$12-19
   Teacher Aide	Teacher aides help lead teachers in managing the classroom. They assist teachers in conducting classroom sessions by setting up the classroom in advance, sourcing materials needed for class activities, helping in presentations, and guiding students during class activities... Show more	$11-17
   Teacher	Being a teacher is one of the most passionate professions, among others. Teachers educate, motivate, and guide every generation of learners to prepare them for the real world... Show more	$15-33

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Classroom Management
   • Math
   • CPR
   • Mathematics
   • Behavioral Problems
   • IEP
   • Behavior Modification
   • Classroom Environment
   • Instructional Materials
   • Applied Behavior Analysis
   • Behavior Management
   • Social Development
   • Crisis Intervention
   • Grade Student

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Perform responsible human support and paraprofessional work assisting classroom teacher or other professionals, achieve institution objectives.
   • Collect and record daily ABA data.
   • Plan lessons in mathematics, reading and writing.
   • Assist children with developmental skills such as reading, writing, and mathematics.
   • Facilitate the instruction of regular and special education curriculum in reading, writing, language, and math skills.
   • Plan and deliver daily lessons in literacy, math, and daily living skills to high school students in small groups.

   More special education assistant teacher duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your special education assistant teacher job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A special education assistant teacher salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, special education assistant teachers' average salary in missouri is 40% less than in alaska.
   • Seniority. Entry-level special education assistant teachers earn 35% less than senior-level special education assistant teachers.
   • Certifications. A special education assistant teacher with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a special education assistant teacher's salary.

   Average special education assistant teacher salary

   $15.85hourly

   $32,961 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level special education assistant teacher salary

   $26,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 16, 2025

   Average special education assistant teacher salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Minnesota	$37,388	$18
   2	Massachusetts	$36,192	$17
   3	Wisconsin	$36,054	$17
   4	California	$35,452	$17
   5	Connecticut	$34,797	$17
   6	Maryland	$34,626	$17
   7	Louisiana	$28,125	$14

   Average special education assistant teacher salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Minneapolis Public Schools	$33,714	$16.21	22
   2	Arrow Child And Family Ministries	$32,692	$15.72	4
   3	Santa Rosa City Schools	$32,159	$15.46
   4	Westwood Elementary School	$31,696	$15.24	21
   5	Cajon Valley Union School District	$29,888	$14.37	7

4. Writing a special education assistant teacher job description

   A good special education assistant teacher job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a special education assistant teacher job description:

   Special education assistant teacher job description example

   Click here to see campuses calendars for the 2022-2023 school year.
   
   * Help teacher prepare instructional materials and classroom displays
   * Help maintain a neat and orderly classroom and prepare classroom according to student needs
   
   * Help with inventory, care and maintenance of equipment
   
   * Help teacher keep administrative records and prepare required reports
   
   * Provide orientation and assistance to substitutes teachers
   
   * Assist students with physical disabilities according to their needs, including transferring to and from wheelchairs, lifting or positioning
   
   * Assist students with physical needs and personal care, including feeding, bathroom needs and personal hygiene
   
   * Assist with classroom curriculum
   
   * Help manage behavior of students which includes intervening in crisis situations and restraining disruptive or dangerous student behavior as needed
   
   * Assume responsibility for learning and adapting to each student's special medical, physical, communicative and emotional needs
   
   * Work with individual students or small groups to develop motor skills and conduct instructional exercises assigned by teacher
   
   * Help supervise students throughout the school day, inside and outside the classroom which includes lunchroom, bus and playground duty
   
   * Keep teacher informed of special needs or problems of individual students
   
   * Maintain confidentiality
   
   * Participate in staff development training programs, faculty meetings and special events as assigned
   
   * Perform all other tasks and duties as assigned
   
   * Regular and punctual attendance at the worksite is required for this position
   
   WORK ENVIRONMENT:
   
   The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate. Travel throughout the district is integral to this job. A remote working environment /alternate work arrangement is not an option for campus-based employees/campus-based positions because regular and punctual attendance at the worksite and performing all duties at the worksite are essential job duties for all campus-based personnel.
   
   * Accredited Senior High School Diploma or equivalent (U.S.A. equivalency), plus one of the following: Associate degree, 48 college credit hours, pass an academic assessment
   * Paraprofessional certificate required from State Board of Certification
   
   * Successful completion of a specific training program for teacher assistants or six months of knowledge and skills acquired through work experience preferred
   
   * Demonstrated general knowledge of child growth/development and behavior characteristics
   
   * Demonstrated ability to work with people from diverse ethnic groups
   
   * Demonstrated organizational and interpersonal skills required to meet the goals of the position
   
   * Demonstrated initiative and a willingness to follow verbal and written instructions
   
   * Demonstrated effective communication skills both in oral and written form
   
   * Demonstrated ability to work with children with disabilities
   
   * Bilingual (English/Spanish) preferred
   
   * Demonstrated flexibility to cope with the challenges of a rapidly changing world
   
   * Demonstrated willingness to remain current with the latest developments in the profession

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right special education assistant teacher for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your special education assistant teacher job on Zippia to find and recruit special education assistant teacher candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting special education assistant teachers requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new special education assistant teacher

   Once you've found the special education assistant teacher candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new special education assistant teacher. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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