What does a special education teacher do?
A special education teacher is responsible for teaching students with disabilities. Special education teachers are trained professionals to provide distinct learning instructions for children with special cases for them to achieve their potentials and improve their self-confidence. A special education teacher must have excellent communication and organizational skills to assist the students with their learning areas. Special education teachers should be able to come up with engaging activities to support the students' behavioral and intellectual development.
Special education teacher responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real special education teacher resumes:
- Lead a DIBELS intervention group.
- Lead the data team with interpreting results, including NWEA and other benchmark assessments.
- Design a unique and differentiate curriculum that addressed state standards for both mathematics and special education.
- Educate special needs kids with mental and physical disabilities using proven conventional and improvise teaching/learning methods.
- Plan appropriate lessons align to NYS CCSS.
- Instruct and create ELA lessons through Fountas and Pinnell and Fundations.
- Work with ESL students to assist them in acquiring English language skills
- Start working part time as a para educator at the local school.
- Maintain records of progress for each student and evaluate students for progress or regression.
- Receive training from a reading specialist on different research based learning strategies for increasing ELA skills.
- Work with Pre-K students who are not functioning at age-appropriate levels to be promote to kindergarten.
- Execute daily operations of a self-contain middle school learning disable students, write designed and produce IEPS.
- Write IEPS, lesson plans, academic goals in the general education and special education classroom setting.
- Utilize adaptive technology and a variety of movement equipment need for the physical well being of students.
- Provide small group or one on one support for students with ADHD or those with mild learning disabilities.
Special education teacher skills and personality traits
We calculated that 11% of Special Education Teachers are proficient in Classroom Management, Autism, and Behavior Management. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Patience, and Resourcefulness.
We break down the percentage of Special Education Teachers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Classroom Management, 11%
Completed a variety of professional development workshops centered on learning goals, classroom management, student motivation and engaging learning activities.
- Autism, 10%
Provided Special Education Resource services for students with mental impairments, specific learning disabilities, behavioral and emotional disorders and autism.
- Behavior Management, 6%
Structured and implemented positive behavior management/modification based programs.
- IEPs, 6%
Portrayed an in-depth knowledge of students' IEPS and Behavior Support Plans in daily instruction and interactions.
- Professional Development, 6%
Fulfilled professional responsibilities through education and professional development opportunities.
- Student Learning, 6%
Designed and implemented individualized and group instruction within the general education classroom to support inclusion for maximizing all student learning.
Most special education teachers use their skills in "classroom management," "autism," and "behavior management" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential special education teacher responsibilities here:
Communication skills. One of the key soft skills for a special education teacher to have is communication skills. You can see how this relates to what special education teachers do because "special education teachers need to explain concepts in terms that students with learning disabilities can understand." Additionally, a special education teacher resume shows how special education teachers use communication skills: "facilitate home-school communication via as conferencing, telephoning, e-mail, and using web-based teacher classrooms to communicate student learning. "
Patience. Many special education teacher duties rely on patience. "special education teachers must be able to stay calm instructing students with disabilities, who may lack basic skills, present behavioral or other challenges, or require repeated efforts to understand material.," so a special education teacher will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways special education teacher responsibilities rely on patience: "demonstrate patience and understanding while providing individualized instruction in a safe, inclusive classroom learning environment for students with significant disabilities. "
Resourcefulness. This is an important skill for special education teachers to perform their duties. For an example of how special education teacher responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "special education teachers must develop different ways to present information that meet their students’ needs." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a special education teacher: "showed resourcefulness and teaching effectiveness in meeting the needs of students with limited english language proficiency as well as learning disabilities. ".
The three companies that hire the most special education teachers are:
- New Story322 special education teachers jobs
- AlphaVista Services165 special education teachers jobs
- Chester Community Charter School
83 special education teachers jobs
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Compare different special education teachers
Special education teacher vs. Teacher associate
A teacher associate is responsible for assisting the teacher in classroom operations and providing teaching support for the students. Teacher associates develop learning materials according to the instructions of the headteachers, helping them to track students' progress and observing class behaviors. They also take class responsibility if the teacher is away, ensuring to keep activity records and attendance for reference. A teacher associate must have excellent communication and organizational skills, especially in handling students' difficulties and working with the teacher to develop techniques to address those challenges.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, special education teacher responsibilities require skills like "autism," "ieps," "professional development," and "student learning." Meanwhile a typical teacher associate has skills in areas such as "child care," "cpr," "child development," and "cleanliness." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Teacher associates earn the highest salaries when working in the health care industry, with an average yearly salary of $32,745. On the other hand, special education teachers are paid more in the government industry with an average salary of $55,080.The education levels that teacher associates earn slightly differ from special education teachers. In particular, teacher associates are 18.2% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a special education teacher. Additionally, they're 0.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Special education teacher vs. 2nd grade teacher
A 2nd-grade teacher specializes in educating young children, providing them with a safe and efficient classroom environment. One of their primary responsibilities is to devise strategies to improve the students' academic knowledge and interpersonal skills, craft effective lesson plans, and enhance their reading and writing skills. Moreover, a teacher must assess the students' progress by conducting tests and quizzes, encouraging them to learn through various activities, monitoring the children's behavior, and reporting to their parents should there be any concerns.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that special education teacher responsibilities requires skills like "autism," "behavior management," "ieps," and "mathematics." But a 2nd grade teacher might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "parent-teacher conferences," "learning process," "iep," and "esl."
2nd grade teachers earn a lower average salary than special education teachers. But 2nd grade teachers earn the highest pay in the education industry, with an average salary of $46,266. Additionally, special education teachers earn the highest salaries in the government with average pay of $55,080 annually.In general, 2nd grade teachers achieve lower levels of education than special education teachers. They're 6.3% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for special education teachers in the next 3-5 years?
Dr. Diana Jones
Chair, Department of Kinesiology, Anderson University
Special education teacher vs. 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. Every teacher is unique and has their own teaching styles and methods depending on the subject they teach and the age of their students. Oftentimes they also function as a parent, counselor, coach, friend, and even a lawmaker. There is essentially no limit to the roles a teacher portrays.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a special education teacher is likely to be skilled in "autism," "behavior management," "ieps," and "education programs," while a typical teacher is skilled in "esl," "handle scheduling," "kids," and "cpr."
Teachers earn the highest salary when working in the education industry, where they receive an average salary of $49,700. Comparatively, special education teachers have the highest earning potential in the government industry, with an average salary of $55,080.teachers typically earn lower educational levels compared to special education teachers. Specifically, they're 12.1% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Special education teacher vs. Elementary school teacher
Elementary school teachers are trained to provide education to children from kindergarten through fifth grade. The teachers are responsible for children's emotional and educational growth in the classroom. They manage the resources and materials to be used for their education. It is part of their duties to evaluate the students' performance, social development, physical health, and behavior. Also, they adapt to teaching methods and instructions to meet the interests and needs of the children.
Types of special education teacher
Updated January 8, 2025
