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Teaching assistant vs learning assistant

The differences between teaching assistants and learning assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a teaching assistant has an average salary of $36,519, which is higher than the $28,576 average annual salary of a learning assistant.

The top three skills for a teaching assistant include lab experiments, laboratory experiments and TA. The most important skills for a learning assistant are mathematics, math, and student learning.

Teaching assistant vs learning assistant overview

Teaching AssistantLearning Assistant
Yearly salary$36,519$28,576
Hourly rate$17.56$13.74
Growth rate-4%
Number of jobs59,46514,674
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 70%Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Average age4444
Years of experience--

What does a teaching assistant do?

Teaching assistants are employees who aid teachers in activities needed to deliver lessons. They are usually junior employees or even students who are doing part-time work. Teaching assistants usually set up classrooms, prepare handouts, and give out these handouts in the classroom. They may also be tapped to help prepare presentation materials, source items for classroom demonstration purposes, and assist in the conduct of the lesson. Teaching assistants also help collect schoolwork from students and may also assist teachers in checking schoolwork.

What does a learning assistant do?

A learning assistant is often also known as a student assistant who is tasked with different school divisions. They are responsible for preparing and writing weekly accomplishment reports, taking down notes in a training program or meeting, as well as managing discussions and interacting with students and school officials if there are other activities to be done. Meaning, this career is for someone who has a sufficient communication skill, research-oriented and actively participates in a lot of discussions.

Teaching assistant vs learning assistant salary

Teaching assistants and learning assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

Teaching AssistantLearning Assistant
Average salary$36,519$28,576
Salary rangeBetween $22,000 And $59,000Between $21,000 And $38,000
Highest paying CityPhiladelphia, PACambridge, MA
Highest paying statePennsylvaniaMassachusetts
Best paying companyPace UniversityGoogle
Best paying industryEducationEducation

Differences between teaching assistant and learning assistant education

There are a few differences between a teaching assistant and a learning assistant in terms of educational background:

Teaching AssistantLearning Assistant
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 70%Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Most common majorPsychologyPsychology
Most common college-University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Teaching assistant vs learning assistant demographics

Here are the differences between teaching assistants' and learning assistants' demographics:

Teaching AssistantLearning Assistant
Average age4444
Gender ratioMale, 42.4% Female, 57.6%Male, 41.9% Female, 58.1%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 10.9% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 17.5% Asian, 11.6% White, 54.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 17.9% Asian, 8.5% White, 58.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4%
LGBT Percentage6%6%

Differences between teaching assistant and learning assistant duties and responsibilities

Teaching assistant example responsibilities.

  • Lead well-received labs aim at students learning SAS including: data step, general regression models building and plots generating.
  • Develop and lead ELA lessons at the 8th grade level, with an emphasis on critical reading and literary analysis.
  • Assist classmates with developing positive study habits and strategies for managing classroom material.
  • Lead discussion sections for students to understand concepts including introductory quantum theory and statistical thermodynamics as well as their applications.
  • Develop expanded communication and teaching skills on explaining the human anatomy and its functions to achieve student understanding and patient education.
  • Organize and run review sessions design to help students better understand concepts of animal anatomy and physiology.
  • Show more

Learning assistant example responsibilities.

  • Lead discussion sections for students to understand concepts including introductory quantum theory and statistical thermodynamics as well as their applications.
  • Tutor students in calculus, general chemistry and biochemistry
  • Tutor students in algebra, trigonometry, life-science base calculus, chemistry and basic genetics
  • Educate undergraduate students on math and computer technology especially on using the computer software to do their math assignments
  • Used blackboard to input student grades.
  • Grade students' homework and answer questions of algorithms
  • Show more

Teaching assistant vs learning assistant skills

Common teaching assistant skills
  • Lab Experiments, 20%
  • Laboratory Experiments, 10%
  • TA, 6%
  • Organic Chemistry, 6%
  • Mathematics, 6%
  • Undergraduate Courses, 4%
Common learning assistant skills
  • Mathematics, 13%
  • Math, 9%
  • Student Learning, 9%
  • Professional Development, 6%
  • Academic Support, 6%
  • Computer Lab, 6%

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