Special Education Teacher
What Does a Professional in this Career Do?
A Special Education Teacher teaches students who have disabilities, and adapts teaching methods to meet the needs of students. Assesses students and helps to develop individualized education plans that specify the services and accommodations needed for each student. Works in a classroom that includes only students with IEPs, or works with students and teachers in regular classes. For students with severe disabilities, may focus on developing skills for independent living. Works as part of a team that includes therapists, school counselors or social workers.
Job Outlook
There were 1954 Special Education Teacher job postings in North Carolina in the past year and 107374 in the United States.
In combination with other careers in the Special Education Teacher industry, which includes the Special Education Teacher career, the following graph shows the number of people employed for each year since 2015:
Salary
Many new Special Education Teacher jobs have salaries estimated to be in the following ranges, based on the requirements and responsibilities listed in job postings from the past year.
National
The average estimated salary in the United States for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $70,700.
State
The average estimated salary in North Carolina for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $68,554.
Percentiles represent the percentage that is lower than the value. For example, 25% of estimated salaries for Special Education Teacher postings in the United States in the past year were lower than $59,024.
Education and Experience
Posted Special Education Teacher jobs typically require the following level of education. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list education requirements.
| Education Level | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Associate's Degree | 0% |
| Bachelor's Degree | 46.61% |
| Master's Degree | 21.79% |
| Doctoral Degree | 2.25% |
| Other | 15.87% |
Posted Special Education Teacher jobs typically require the following number of years of experience. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list experience requirements.
| Years of Experience | Percentage |
|---|---|
| 0 to 2 years | 77.31% |
| 3 to 5 years | 18.86% |
| 6 to 8 years | 1.77% |
| 9+ years | 2.06% |
Skills
Below are listings of the most common general and specialized skills Special Education Teacher positions expect applicants to have as well as the most common skills that distinguish individuals from their peers. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is also listed.
Baseline Skills
A skill that is required across a broad range of occupations, including this one.
- Teaching (45.32%)
- Communication (39.59%)
- Planning (14.4%)
- Writing (12.84%)
- Interpersonal Communications (10.5%)
- Management (10.25%)
- English Language (9.16%)
- Mathematics (8.47%)
- Research (8.03%)
- Leadership (7.52%)
Defining Skills
A core skill for this occupation, it occurs frequently in job postings.
- Individualized Education Programs (IEP) (43.72%)
- Instructional Strategies (7.71%)
- Educational Assessment (7.87%)
- Special Education (78.44%)
- Learning Disabilities (7.47%)
- Autism Spectrum Disorders (14.18%)
Necessary Skills
A skill that is requested frequently in this occupation but isn’t specific to it.
- Classroom Management (9.81%)
- Behavior Management (8.2%)
- Mental Health (2.85%)
- Psychology (6.97%)
- Working With Children (8.47%)
- Curriculum Development (7.91%)
- Disabilities (15.69%)
- Learning Styles (9.27%)
- Lesson Planning (13.79%)
Distinguishing Skills
A skill that may distinguish a subset of the occupation.
- Behavioral Disorders (4.47%)
- Visual Impairment Education (4.95%)
- Progress Monitoring (3.57%)
- Early Intervention (4.1%)
- Special Education Law (4.85%)
- Direct Instruction (5.52%)
- Physical Restraint (3.57%)
- Social Development (4.68%)
Salary Boosting Skills
A professional who wishes to excel in this career path may consider developing the following highly valued skills. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is listed.
- Progress Monitoring (4.01%)
- Visual Impairment Education (5.57%)
- Behavioral Disorders (5.02%)
- Special Education (88.12%)
- Instructional Strategies (8.66%)
- Early Intervention (4.6%)
- Educational Assessment (8.84%)
- Special Education Law (5.45%)
- Autism Spectrum Disorders (15.93%)
- Direct Instruction (6.2%)
- Physical Restraint (4.02%)
- Social Development (5.25%)
Alternative Job Titles
Sometimes employers post jobs with Special Education Teacher skills but a different job title. Some common alternative job titles include:
- Special Education Paraprofessional
- School Special Education Teacher
- Special Education Paraeducator
- Elementary Special Education Teacher
- Intervention Specialist
- Teacher of the Blind and Visually Impaired
- Special Needs Caregiver
- Deaf and Hard of Hearing Teacher
- Early Intervention Specialist
Similar Occupations
If you are interested in exploring occupations with similar skills, you may want to research the following job titles. Note that we only list occupations that have at least one corresponding NC State Online and Distance Education program.
- Director of Special Education
- Elementary School Teacher
- Middle / High School Teacher (Other)
- English / Language Arts Teacher
- Vocational Education Instructor
- Curriculum Specialist
Common Employers
Here are the employers that have posted the most Special Education Teacher jobs in the past year along with how many they have posted.
United States
- ATX Learning (9071)
- Amergis (3992)
- Stepping Stones (2587)
- ProCare Therapy (1562)
- New Story School (1229)
- VocoVision (1227)
- Soliant Health (1161)
- Sunbelt Staffing (1126)
- Blazerjobs (1037)
- Stride K12 (1016)
North Carolina
- Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools (111)
- Cape Fear Valley Health System (81)
- Amergis (73)
- Wake County Public Schools (59)
- Stepping Stones (53)
- VocoVision (53)
- State of North Carolina (48)
- Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (39)
- Connect N Care Aba (37)
- Soliant Health (37)
NC State Programs Relevant to this Career
If you are interested in preparing for a career in this field, the following NC State Online and Distance Education programs offer a great place to start!
- Special Education Master's Degrees
- Special Education for Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) Graduate Certificates
All wages, job posting statistics, employment trend projections, and information about skill desirability on this page represents historical data and does not guarantee future conditions. Data is provided by and downloaded regularly from Lightcast. For more information about how Lightcast gathers data and what it represents, see Lightcast Data: Basic Overview on Lightcast's Knowledge Base website.