Teaching Assistants, Preschool, Elementary, Middle, and Secondary School, Except Special Education
25-9042.00

A subset of this occupation's profile is available. Data collection is currently underway to populate other parts of the profile.

Assist a preschool, elementary, middle, or secondary school teacher with instructional duties. Serve in a position for which a teacher has primary responsibility for the design and implementation of educational programs and services.

Sample of reported job titles: Educational Assistant, Instructional Assistant, Paraeducator, Paraprofessional, Teacher Aide, Teacher Assistant

Occupation-Specific Information

Tasks

  • Assist in bus loading and unloading.
  • Assist librarians in school libraries.
  • Attend staff meetings and serve on committees, as required.
  • Clean classrooms.
  • Collect money from students for school-related projects.
  • Conduct demonstrations to teach skills, such as sports, dancing, and handicrafts.
  • Discuss assigned duties with classroom teachers to coordinate instructional efforts.
  • Distribute teaching materials, such as textbooks, workbooks, papers, and pencils, to students.
  • Distribute tests and homework assignments and collect them when they are completed.
  • Enforce administration policies and rules governing students.
  • Grade homework and tests, and compute and record results, using answer sheets or electronic marking devices.
  • Instruct and monitor students in the use and care of equipment and materials to prevent injuries and damage.
  • Laminate teaching materials to increase their durability under repeated use.
  • Maintain computers in classrooms and laboratories, and assist students with hardware and software use.
  • Observe students' performance, and record relevant data to assess progress.
  • Operate and maintain audio-visual equipment.
  • Organize and label materials and display students' work in a manner appropriate for their eye levels and perceptual skills.
  • Organize and supervise games and other recreational activities to promote physical, mental, and social development.
  • Participate in teacher-parent conferences regarding students' progress or problems.
  • Plan, prepare, and develop various teaching aids, such as bibliographies, charts, and graphs.
  • Prepare lesson materials, bulletin board displays, exhibits, equipment, and demonstrations.
  • Prepare lesson outlines and plans in assigned subject areas and submit outlines to teachers for review.
  • Present subject matter to students under the direction and guidance of teachers, using lectures, discussions, supervised role-playing methods, or by reading aloud.
  • Requisition and stock teaching materials and supplies.
  • Supervise students in classrooms, halls, cafeterias, school yards, and gymnasiums, or on field trips.
  • Take class attendance and maintain attendance records.
  • Teach social skills to students.
  • Tutor and assist children individually or in small groups to help them master assignments and to reinforce learning concepts presented by teachers.
  • Type, file, and duplicate materials.
  • Use computers, audio-visual aids, and other equipment and materials to supplement presentations.

back to top

Technology Skills

Hot technology
Hot Technologies are requirements most frequently included across all employer job postings.

back to top

Occupational Requirements

Detailed Work Activities

back to top

Experience Requirements

Job Zone

Title
Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed
Education
Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
Related Experience
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
Job Training
Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.
Job Zone Examples
These occupations usually involve using communication and organizational skills to coordinate, supervise, manage, or train others to accomplish goals. Examples include hydroelectric production managers, desktop publishers, electricians, agricultural technicians, barbers, court reporters and simultaneous captioners, and medical assistants.
SVP Range
(6.0 to < 7.0)

back to top

Training & Credentials

State training
Local training
Certifications
State licenses

back to top

Apprenticeship Opportunities

Example apprenticeship titles for this occupation:

  • Teacher Aide I

Specific title(s) listed above are vetted by industry and approved by the U.S. Department of Labor for use in a Registered Apprenticeship Program.

Start your career and build your skillset. Visit Apprenticeship.gov external site to learn about opportunities related to this occupation.

back to top

Worker Characteristics

Interests

Interest code: SC
Want to discover your interests? Take the O*NET Interest Profiler at My Next Move.
  • Social — Work involves helping, teaching, advising, assisting, or providing service to others. Social occupations are often associated with social, health care, personal service, teaching/education, or religious activities.
  • Conventional — Work involves following procedures and regulations to organize information or data, typically in a business setting. Conventional occupations are often associated with office work, accounting, mathematics/statistics, information technology, finance, or human resources.

back to top

Workforce Characteristics

Wages & Employment Trends

Median wage data for Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary.
Employment data for Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary.
Industry data for Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary.
Median wages (2022)
$30,920 annual
State wages
Local wages
Employment (2022)
1,298,900 employees
Projected growth (2022-2032)
Little or no change
Projected job openings (2022-2032)
151,000
State trends
Top industries (2022)

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics 2022 wage data external site and 2022-2032 employment projections external site. “Projected growth” represents the estimated change in total employment over the projections period (2022-2032). “Projected job openings” represent openings due to growth and replacement.

back to top

Job Openings on the Web

State job openings
Local job openings

back to top

More Information

back to top

Sources of Additional Information

Disclaimer: Sources are listed to provide additional information on related jobs, specialties, and/or industries. Links to non-DOL Internet sites are provided for your convenience and do not constitute an endorsement.

back to top