What does a special education teaching assistant do?
Special education teaching assistant responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real special education teaching assistant resumes:
- Lead small group and one-to-one lessons in science and mathematics which are tailored to individual student needs and learning styles.
- Perform responsible human support and paraprofessional work assisting classroom teacher or other professionals, achieve institution objectives.
- Experience in working with children with disabilities including autism, Down's-Syndrome, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
- Train in CPI restraints for combative children.
- Attend all trainings and conferences including CPR infant and child certification.
- Assist in reading, language arts, mathematics, and science classrooms.
- Receive proper training in order to assist with toileting, lifting, and CPI.
- Work as a paraprofessional with a student with high functioning autism within all his classes.
- Perform health care procedures including: CPR, g-tube feedings, oral care, feeding and therapeutic repositioning.
- Team with school and district instructional staff providing in-depth feedback and advice regarding each student's progress toward meeting IEP goals.
- Collect academic and social-emotional IEP goal data.
- Plan and instruct professional development for peers on RTI regulations, various educational computer software, and PowerPoint presentations.
- Receive certificates for speech, sensory integration, ABA, and DT programs.
- Perform a variety of support activities relate to behavior management and classroom instruction of special education students.
Special education teaching assistant skills and personality traits
We calculated that 21% of Special Education Teaching Assistants are proficient in Autism, IEP, and CPR. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Interpersonal skills, and Patience.
We break down the percentage of Special Education Teaching Assistants that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Autism, 21%
Assisted in teaching children with multiple disabilities including Autism and ID -Undertook student physical and academic needs within structured environment
- IEP, 8%
Collected academic and social-emotional IEP goal data.
- CPR, 8%
Certified in First Aid, CPR, and CPI/SPA (member of the crisis response team).
- Professional Development, 7%
Facilitated smaller group instruction Professional Development and Affiliations:.
- Classroom Management, 5%
Provide daily assistance to classroom teacher, including classroom management, implementation of curriculum and individual student support.
- Applied Behavior Analysis, 5%
Performed Applied Behavior Analysis techniques during one to one instruction.
"autism," "iep," and "cpr" are among the most common skills that special education teaching assistants use at work. You can find even more special education teaching assistant responsibilities below, including:
Communication skills. One of the key soft skills for a special education teaching assistant to have is communication skills. You can see how this relates to what special education teaching assistants do because "teacher assistants need to be clear and concise in discussing student progress with teachers and parents." Additionally, a special education teaching assistant resume shows how special education teaching assistants use communication skills: "assisted special education teachers with material preparation, data collection, and parent communications. "
Interpersonal skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling special education teaching assistant duties is interpersonal skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "teacher assistants must be able to develop relationships with a variety of people, including teachers, students, parents, and administrators." According to a special education teaching assistant resume, here's how special education teaching assistants can utilize interpersonal skills in their job responsibilities: "have assisted these students with interpersonal/discipline challenges within the general education classroom setting. "
Patience. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of special education teaching assistants is patience. This skill is critical to many everyday special education teaching assistant duties, as "working with students of different abilities and backgrounds may be difficult." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "exhibited patience, ability, and desire to work with children who have special needs.assisted classroom teacher with lessons and activities. "
Resourcefulness. A big part of what special education teaching assistants do relies on "resourcefulness." You can see how essential it is to special education teaching assistant responsibilities because "teacher assistants must find ways to explain information to students who have different learning styles." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical special education teaching assistant tasks: "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 teaching assistants are:
- Jeffrey C Still Middle School
12 special education teaching assistants jobs
- Amphi Public Schools4 special education teaching assistants jobs
- Explore Schools3 special education teaching assistants jobs
Choose from 10+ customizable special education teaching assistant resume templates
Build a professional special education teaching assistant resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your special education teaching assistant resume.Compare different special education teaching assistants
Special education teaching assistant vs. Assistant daycare teacher
An assistant daycare teacher is responsible for performing support tasks in a daycare center. Most of the duties primarily revolve around maintaining a safe and healthy environment for children, preparing meals and learning materials, assisting children during bathroom or hygiene-related activities, and keeping the classroom clean and sanitized. Furthermore, there are instances when an assistant daycare teacher must come up with recreational activities, maintain student records, and help children improve their motor skills and basic knowledge in concepts such as recognizing the alphabet or coloring.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, special education teaching assistant responsibilities require skills like "autism," "iep," "professional development," and "classroom management." Meanwhile a typical assistant daycare teacher has skills in areas such as "child care," "kids," "child development," and "open communication." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
On average, assistant daycare teachers reach lower levels of education than special education teaching assistants. Assistant daycare teachers are 12.6% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.4% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Special education teaching assistant vs. Floater/assistant teacher
Floater assistant teachers help a homeroom teacher in their daily undertakings inside the classroom. They provide assistance with evaluating every student's activities and ensure that routines are followed and done on time. They make sure students are taught well and are physically and mentally present in the classroom. Also, the floater assistant teacher helps in maintaining the orderliness of the classroom visited.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real special education teaching assistant resumes. While special education teaching assistant responsibilities can utilize skills like "autism," "iep," "professional development," and "applied behavior analysis," floater/assistant teachers use skills like "child care," "patients," "child development," and "emr."
Average education levels between the two professions vary. Floater/assistant teachers tend to reach lower levels of education than special education teaching assistants. In fact, they're 11.7% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.4% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for special education teaching assistants in the next 3-5 years?
Professor, Special Education/Urban Teacher Education, Indiana University - Purdue University Indianapolis
Special education teaching assistant vs. Classroom assistant
A classroom assistant is responsible for monitoring the class activities and the students' learning progress under the command of a head instructor. Classroom assistants help the teachers in conducting engaging learning activities, creating comprehensive lesson plans, and gathering educational materials to support the students' needs. They take the initiative on observing the class when the teacher is away, leaving them activities to work on as the teacher instructed. A classroom assistant must have excellent communication and organization skills, as they also serve as a liaison between the students and the teacher for inquiries and concerns.
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 teaching assistant is likely to be skilled in "autism," "general education," "education plan," and "instructional support," while a typical classroom assistant is skilled in "photocopying," "homework assignments," "child care," and "behavioral issues."
Classroom assistants make a very good living in the technology industry with an average annual salary of $27,753. On the other hand, special education teaching assistants are paid the highest salary in the education industry, with average annual pay of $32,765.Most classroom assistants achieve a lower degree level compared to special education teaching assistants. For example, they're 7.2% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.3% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Special education teaching assistant vs. Student assistant
Student assistants are university students who are working part-time for a staff member or department. They are usually assigned to do administrative or clerical activities to help ease the load of their supervisor. They may manage files and information dissemination channels of the department. They may extend assistance during the registration period by helping other students fill out forms, managing the department's enrollment procedure, or doing any other activity required by their supervisor. They may also be asked to mentor younger students. Student assistants should be organized and trustworthy.
Types of special education teaching assistant
Updated January 8, 2025











