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The differences between special education instructional assistants and education paraprofessionals can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a special education instructional assistant has an average salary of $32,025, which is higher than the $31,158 average annual salary of an education paraprofessional.
The top three skills for a special education instructional assistant include CPR, instructional materials and autism. The most important skills for an education paraprofessional are autism, behavioral issues, and mathematics.
| Special Education Instructional Assistant | Education Paraprofessional | |
| Yearly salary | $32,025 | $31,158 |
| Hourly rate | $15.40 | $14.98 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 60,974 | 53,164 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4.33 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 60% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
Special education instructional assistant does work under the supervision of the principal and other administrative workers, especially in school and college. They prepare the material aids which are helping to teach in the classroom. Moreover, they are more inclined upon the progress of students. Conducting the exams, preparing the notes, preparing the result and giving the instruction to the students about their life career and course books etc are the main duties of the special education instructional assistant. They preach, instruct, command and come up with the idea about making the school environment more friendly and viable.
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 instructional assistants and education paraprofessionals have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Special Education Instructional Assistant | Education Paraprofessional | |
| Average salary | $32,025 | $31,158 |
| Salary range | Between $25,000 And $40,000 | Between $24,000 And $39,000 |
| Highest paying City | Redwood City, CA | South San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Goleta Union School District | Boston Public Schools |
| Best paying industry | Education | Finance |
There are a few differences between a special education instructional assistant and an education paraprofessional in terms of educational background:
| Special Education Instructional Assistant | Education Paraprofessional | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 60% | Bachelor's Degree, 59% |
| Most common major | Psychology | Psychology |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between special education instructional assistants' and education paraprofessionals' demographics:
| Special Education Instructional Assistant | Education Paraprofessional | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 19.3% Female, 80.7% | Male, 19.7% Female, 80.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 24.1% Asian, 7.3% White, 54.1% 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% |