Preschool and Elementary School Special Education Teachers: Schools and Careers

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Preschool And Elementary School Special Education Teachers - Career Information

Preschool and Elementary School Special Education Teachers

Preschool and elementary school special education teachers, teach educationally and physically handicapped students and preschoolers. Their goal is to make sure students with disabilities reach their learning potential. The majority of special education teachers help children with mild to moderate disabilities.

Some preschool and elementary special-ed teachers specialize in working with visually and audibly handicapped students. Some teachers specialize in providing basic life processes and academic skills to those with mental impairments.

Special education teachers use teaching methods such as individualized instruction, small group work and problem solving assignments. They help create an individualized education program for every special education student. The programs establish personalized objectives for each student and are designed for an individual's needs and abilities.

Some of the sample job titles are preschool special education teacher, special education teacher, early interventionist, intervention specialist, early childhood special education teacher, EC special education teacher, teacher of developmentally delayed, severe emotional disorders elementary teacher, SED elementary teacher and mildly disabled student special education teacher.

Responsibilities

Utilize special education techniques and strategies
Teach academic subjects to students utilizing a variety of techniques
Modify the general education program for special needs students
Establish and enforce rules for behavior
Teach socially acceptable behavior
Discuss students' progress with parents and guardians
Collaborate with others to develop individual educational plans designed to advance students' educational, social and physical development
Establish goals for lessons and projects and communicate these goals to students
Maintain student records

Job Characteristics

Some special-ed teachers have their own classroom and only teach special education students, whereas others work as special education resource teachers and provide individualized assistance to students in general education classrooms. Some special education teachers work with general education teachers in classes that include general and special education students.

Their work can be very rewarding, however, at times, it can be physically and emotionally draining. The job may also involve a heavy workload and administrative tasks. Most special education teachers work 40 hours a week in a basic 10 month school year. Some special education teachers work all year.

Preschool and elementary school special education teachers need patience and compassion and they should enjoy helping people. They also need good organizational skills. Special education teachers should be able to motivate students.

Employment Outlook

The Bureau of Labor Statistics forecasts a 20 percent growth in employment from 2008 to 2018 for preschool, kindergarten and elementary school special education teachers. In 2008 the median annual earnings for special education teachers who work in preschools, kindergartens and elementary schools was $50,020.

Education, Certification, and Licensing

Undergraduate, master's and doctoral programs in special education are provided by a large number of colleges and universities. Some programs require specialization, however some colleges and universities provide generalized special education degrees.

In their last year of the program, students typically are involved in a student teaching role in a classroom setting under the supervision of a special education teacher. Special education teachers often partake in longer training periods than general education teachers.

All the states require special education teachers to acquire a license, which usually requires at least a bachelor's degree along with completing an approved special education teaching training program. Licensure varies by state. Many states provide general special education licenses in a variety of disability categories, whereas other states license several different specialties within special education. Most of the states provide alternative paths for entry for those that have a bachelor's degree but do not have training in education.

Resources

Major Employers

The top job providers are public schools, child day care services, individual and family services and educational support services.

Schools for Preschool And Elementary School Special Education Teachers are listed in the column to the left.

The Top Cities tab shows employment statistics for Preschool And Elementary School Special Education Teachers by major metro area.

The Top Industries tab shows which industries have the most jobs for Preschool And Elementary School Special Education Teachers, along with salary data by industry.

The Find Schools tab lets you search for schools by field of study, degree level, and location.

Metro Area	Jobs	Salary (2008)	Relative Popularity
ALABAMA
Anniston	80	$40,950	1.3
Florence	80	$44,390	1.2
Auburn	60	$45,850	1
Decatur	70	$51,210	1
Montgomery	230	$43,380	0.9
Tuscaloosa	100	$42,580	0.8
Dothan	40	$43,440	0.5
Birmingham	350	$46,100	0.4
Huntsville	80	$47,490	0.3
ARIZONA
Flagstaff	220	$32,870	3
Prescott	110	$27,640	1.3
Kingman	50	$37,600	0.7
Yuma	60	$38,150	0.7
Tucson	370	$41,640	0.7
Phoenix	1,820	$43,190	0.6
ARKANSAS
Pine Bluff	40	$45,130	0.9
Jonesboro	50	$40,500	0.8
Fort Smith	100	$41,270	0.6
Little Rock	250	$45,600	0.5
CALIFORNIA
El Centro	240	$65,540	3.5
Merced	250	$55,490	3.2
Hanford	80	$67,180	2.2
Fresno	980	$62,100	2
Stockton	440	$68,560	1.4
Yuba City	70	$66,200	1.4
Bakersfield	540	$54,820	1.4
Modesto	300	$65,250	1.2
Visalia	220	$83,220	1.1
San Luis Obispo	140	$55,550	1
Oakland	1,510	$60,310	1
Santa Barbara	220	$66,450	0.9
Santa Rosa	240	$60,480	0.9
Oxnard	350	$54,700	0.8
Riverside	1,530	$61,120	0.8
Vallejo	110	$64,960	0.6
Sacramento	830	$56,260	0.6
San Diego	1,010	$69,410	0.5
San Jose	640	$62,230	0.5
Santa Ana	980	$71,560	0.4
San Francisco	630	$50,370	0.4
Salinas	80	$53,150	0.4
Santa Cruz	40	$60,300	0.3
COLORADO
Fort Collins	230	$46,920	1.3
Greeley	130	$43,840	1.3
Colorado Springs	400	$46,910	1.1
Denver	1,390	$54,990	0.7
Boulder	170	$54,630	0.7
CONNECTICUT
Waterbury	320		3.4
Norwich	380	$65,590	2.1
Hartford	1,100	$60,020	1.2
Bridgeport	760	$64,910	1.1
New Haven	480	$66,400	1.1
Danbury	80	$65,420	0.8
DELAWARE
Wilmington	560	$51,060	1.1
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Washington	4,640	$69,740	1.3
FLORIDA
Tampa	1,960	$56,090	1
Jacksonville	850	$47,500	0.9
Tallahassee	210	$45,280	0.9
Orlando	1,180	$47,820	0.7
GEORGIA
Hinesville	80	$51,800	5.3
Athens	210	$52,780	2
Dalton	190	$47,800	1.8
Macon	250	$51,510	1.8
Gainesville	150	$49,980	1.6
Atlanta	4,600	$51,300	1.3
Brunswick	60	$45,880	1.1
Savannah	170	$49,070	0.8
Valdosta	50	$49,530	0.7
Columbus	100	$45,960	0.6
Augusta	190	$49,090	0.6
HAWAII
Honolulu	1,080	$47,920	1.6
ILLINOIS
Springfield	460	$44,800	3.1
Danville	100	$44,450	3.1
Rockford	560	$69,160	2.5
Champaign	280	$39,450	2.1
Peoria	310	$47,300	1.2
Bloomington	110	$51,520	1.1
Chicago	5,610	$57,680	1
INDIANA
Anderson	120	$47,550	2.3
Kokomo	90	$48,670	2
Gary	600	$50,720	1.4
Fort Wayne	290	$47,530	0.9
Michigan City	50	$47,120	0.9
Bloomington	80	$48,190	0.8
Indianapolis	1,070	$49,620	0.8
Elkhart	140	$45,180	0.8
Evansville	190	$49,270	0.7
Muncie	40	$47,970	0.7
Terre Haute	50	$58,160	0.5
South Bend	80	$48,070	0.4
IOWA
Waterloo	400	$44,210	3.3
Iowa City	160	$33,460	1.6
Cedar Rapids	300	$41,990	1.5
Dubuque	100	$36,690	1.5
Davenport	380	$46,560	1.4
Sioux City	90	$37,580	0.9
Des Moines	400	$40,370	0.8
KANSAS
Topeka	200	$46,790	1.3
Wichita	300	$45,310	0.7
KENTUCKY
Owensboro	130	$45,860	2
Louisville	1,050	$50,540	1.1
Lexington	280	$44,610	0.8
LOUISIANA
Alexandria	60	$33,450	0.7
Baton Rouge	310	$41,440	0.6
Monroe	60	$43,070	0.6
Lafayette	100	$37,200	0.5
Houma	50	$43,190	0.4
Shreveport	80	$40,640	0.3
MAINE
Lewiston	140	$43,550	2.1
Bangor	170	$41,450	1.9
Portland	520	$48,800	1.7
MARYLAND
Salisbury	100	$60,200	1.4
Baltimore	2,460	$57,880	1.2
Bethesda	660	$78,210	0.8
MASSACHUSETTS
Brockton	420	$47,980	3.4
Leominster	190	$54,910	2.9
Haverhill	260	$55,290	2.4
Springfield	980	$51,120	2.2
New Bedford	180	$63,640	2
Framingham	440	$52,210	1.9
Lowell	320	$57,080	1.8
Worcester	680	$54,020	1.8
Barnstable	250	$50,720	1.8
Pittsfield	70	$56,100	1.7
Taunton	90	$56,050	1.5
Lawrence	110	$57,980	1.4
Boston	3,340	$55,990	1.3
MICHIGAN
Niles	160	$52,250	1.9
Muskegon	150	$56,740	1.8
Monroe	70	$47,320	1.4
Detroit	1,420	$57,290	1.3
Flint	240	$60,970	1.2
Lansing	320	$55,050	1.1
Battle Creek	70	$46,310	1.1
Holland	130	$52,870	0.9
Jackson	60	$55,630	0.9
Grand Rapids	490	$58,000	0.9
Saginaw	90	$54,690	0.9
Warren	1,320	$66,120	0.7
Kalamazoo	140	$48,040	0.7
Ann Arbor	160	$71,630	0.7
MINNESOTA
Duluth	250	$51,610	1.4
Rochester	170	$48,110	1.3
St. Cloud	170	$51,080	1.2
Minneapolis	3,170	$51,860	1.2
MISSISSIPPI
Pascagoula	120	$45,290	1.9
Hattiesburg	130	$45,390	1.7
Gulfport	130	$47,710	0.8
Jackson	260	$46,560	0.7
MISSOURI
Joplin	170	$42,060	1.5
Springfield	400	$44,130	1.4
St. Joseph	90	$36,740	1.4
Kansas City	2,100	$49,530	1.3
St. Louis	2,410	$51,280	1.2
Columbia	130	$42,040	1.1
Jefferson City	90	$37,080	1
MONTANA
Great Falls	40	$35,290	0.9
Billings	80	$43,930	0.7
NEBRASKA
Lincoln	310	$46,280	1.3
Omaha	720	$41,940	1
NEVADA
Las Vegas	620	$50,130	0.4
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Rochester	110	$46,880	1.4
Manchester	160	$47,970	1.1
Nashua	200	$48,680	1
Portsmouth	40	$49,680	0.5
NEW JERSEY
Vineland	170	$56,710	2.2
Trenton	650	$64,300	2
Camden	1,590	$56,250	2
Edison	2,650	$57,590	1.7
Atlantic City	360	$56,660	1.7
Ocean City	90	$57,410	1.7
Newark	2,340	$62,250	1.5
NEW MEXICO
Farmington	150	$46,980	2.1
Albuquerque	270	$63,070	0.5
NEW YORK
Elmira	150	$59,080	3.3
Poughkeepsie	1,050	$64,980	2.9
Ithaca	150	$57,240	2.7
Kingston	210	$62,460	2.6
Buffalo	2,000	$59,850	2.4
Glens Falls	160	$55,930	2.3
Syracuse	990	$56,990	2.1
Nassau	3,900	$79,510	2
Utica	370	$56,230	2
Rochester	1,260	$57,290	1.7
Albany	1,070	$52,520	1.6
Binghamton	230	$52,590	1.5
New York	10,000	$67,310	1.3
NORTH CAROLINA
Hickory	630	$42,130	2.6
Rocky Mount	200	$39,730	2.5
Fayetteville	430	$38,600	2.5
Burlington	150	$41,910	1.9
Greensboro	930	$42,480	1.7
Raleigh	1,250	$47,820	1.6
Wilmington	300	$37,240	1.4
Charlotte	1,920	$44,620	1.4
Winston-Salem	380	$39,630	1.2
Asheville	280	$44,000	1.1
Durham	400	$44,640	1
NORTH DAKOTA
Bismarck	120	$48,760	1.6
Grand Forks	100	$50,260	1.6
Fargo	200	$53,050	1.2
OHIO
Mansfield	110	$45,090	1.6
Youngstown	520	$50,060	1.5
Springfield	90	$50,750	1.4
Toledo	590	$51,970	1.3
Lima	80	$47,330	1.1
Sandusky	50	$56,320	1.1
Canton	250	$50,460	1
Dayton	580	$57,600	1
Akron	470	$52,390	0.9
Columbus	1,310	$54,740	0.9
Cleveland	1,370	$55,930	0.8
Cincinnati	1,080	$53,160	0.7
OKLAHOMA
Oklahoma City	1,040	$47,470	1.2
Tulsa	630	$41,180	1
OREGON
Eugene	280	$47,380	1.3
Bend	80	$48,640	0.9
Medford	80	$54,430	0.7
Portland	1,000	$52,480	0.6
Salem	130	$52,000	0.6
PENNSYLVANIA
Johnstown	180	$50,630	2.4
Erie	390	$45,310	2.2
Williamsport	120	$50,240	1.8
Reading	410	$54,650	1.7
Allentown	800	$55,550	1.6
Philadelphia	4,310	$58,400	1.5
Lebanon	90	$56,220	1.5
Pittsburgh	2,290	$54,830	1.3
Lancaster	400	$52,900	1.1
State College	80	$52,270	1.1
Altoona	80	$53,060	1
Scranton	380	$51,470	1
Harrisburg	430	$53,800	0.9
RHODE ISLAND
Providence	1,260		1.5
SOUTH CAROLINA
Spartanburg	260	$42,380	1.5
Florence	150	$45,530	1.3
Anderson	70	$45,100	0.9
Greenville	390	$41,580	0.9
Columbia	320	$45,860	0.6
Charleston	260	$44,440	0.6
SOUTH DAKOTA
Rapid City	110	$46,890	1.3
Sioux Falls	160	$35,690	0.8
TENNESSEE
Morristown	160	$30,640	2.6
Clarksville	150	$55,300	1.4
Jackson	110	$43,930	1.4
Johnson City	110	$42,030	1.1
Memphis	1,000	$41,300	1.1
Kingsport	170	$42,280	1
Chattanooga	320	$45,910	0.9
Cleveland	40	$42,590	0.9
Knoxville	370	$44,190	0.7
TEXAS
Brownsville	280	$48,220	1.6
Killeen	260	$44,240	1.5
McAllen	450	$48,250	1.4
College Station	140	$41,580	1.3
Abilene	110	$41,390	1.3
Wichita Falls	100	$42,490	1.3
Fort Worth	1,650	$41,970	1.2
Sherman	60	$41,250	1.2
San Antonio	1,390	$48,470	1.1
El Paso	410	$46,940	1
Austin	1,100	$43,400	0.9
Corpus Christi	240	$43,140	0.9
Longview	120	$42,650	0.9
Waco	120	$40,850	0.9
Houston	3,080	$48,460	0.8
Dallas	2,480	$48,400	0.8
Beaumont	160	$45,200	0.7
Lubbock	120	$40,910	0.7
Tyler	70	$43,810	0.6
UTAH
Ogden	420	$48,330	1.4
Logan	80	$43,590	1.3
Provo	230	$34,690	0.9
Salt Lake City	340	$48,370	0.4
VERMONT
Burlington	170	$53,690	1.1
VIRGINIA
Danville	90	$47,870	2
Winchester	120	$48,950	1.7
Blacksburg	120	$43,600	1.5
Charlottesville	190	$47,860	1.4
Roanoke	270	$50,370	1.2
Richmond	950	$52,350	1
Lynchburg	140	$40,900	1
Virginia Beach	1,000	$46,860	0.9
WASHINGTON
Tacoma	420	$54,320	1
Mount Vernon	60	$52,720	1
Olympia	130	$51,630	1
Longview	40	$49,400	1
Bremerton	100	$54,530	0.9
Spokane	250	$47,790	0.8
Wenatchee	40	$49,380	0.8
Kennewick	90	$54,420	0.7
Bellingham	60	$52,290	0.5
Seattle	1,050	$53,790	0.5
Yakima	50	$49,720	0.4
WEST VIRGINIA
Weirton	130	$40,780	2.4
Charleston	440	$41,660	2.1
Parkersburg	150	$45,060	1.6
Wheeling	120	$39,520	1.4
Huntington	200	$41,670	1.2
WISCONSIN
Janesville	110	$45,340	1.2
Oshkosh	140	$43,220	1.2
Racine	120	$46,850	1.1
Appleton	180	$53,100	1.1
Sheboygan	80	$49,000	1
Eau Claire	110	$45,750	1
Madison	380	$46,400	0.8
Green Bay	170	$53,100	0.7
La Crosse	60	$45,050	0.6
Milwaukee	720	$56,260	0.6

Industry	Jobs	Percent	Salary (2008)
Education	211,840	93%	$50,520
Social Service	9,420	4%	$37,720

Employment For:
All Jobs > Preschool And Elementary Special Ed Teachers

Selected Schools for Preschool and Elementary School Special Education Teachers (including any online schools)

These schools offer particularly quick info upon request, and we have written detailed profiles for each (click school names to see the profiles).

Request info from multiple schools, by clicking the Get Info links.

School	Locations	Degrees	Quick Info
Grand Canyon University	Online	Master	Get Info
Kaplan University Online	Online	Master	Get Info
University of Phoenix	AZ, CA, CO, DC, DE, FL, GA, HI, IA, ID, IL, LA, MA, MD, MO, NC, NE, NM, NV, OK, OR, PA, PR, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, WY	Master	Get Info
University of Phoenix Online	Online	Master	Get Info

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Special Education Teacher Training Schools by State

We have some additional detailed pages at the state level for Preschool and Elementary School Special Education Teachers.

Numbers in parentheses are counts of relevant campus-based schools in the state; online schools may also be available.

Preschool and Elementary School Special Education Teachers: Schools and Careers

Preschool And Elementary School Special Education Teachers - Career Information

Metro Areas Rated for Popularity (as of 2008) for:Preschool and Elementary School Special Education Teachers

ALABAMA

ARIZONA

ARKANSAS

CALIFORNIA

COLORADO

CONNECTICUT

DELAWARE

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

FLORIDA

GEORGIA

HAWAII

ILLINOIS

INDIANA

IOWA

KANSAS

KENTUCKY

LOUISIANA

MAINE

MARYLAND

MASSACHUSETTS

MICHIGAN

MINNESOTA

MISSISSIPPI

MISSOURI

MONTANA

NEBRASKA

NEVADA

NEW HAMPSHIRE

NEW JERSEY

NEW MEXICO

NEW YORK

NORTH CAROLINA

NORTH DAKOTA

OHIO

OKLAHOMA

OREGON

PENNSYLVANIA

RHODE ISLAND

SOUTH CAROLINA

SOUTH DAKOTA

TENNESSEE

TEXAS

UTAH

VERMONT

VIRGINIA

WASHINGTON

WEST VIRGINIA

WISCONSIN

Career Stories (Job Profiles) for Preschool and Elementary School Special Education Teachers

Most Popular Industries (as of 2008) for:Preschool and Elementary School Special Education Teachers

Selected Schools for Preschool and Elementary School Special Education Teachers (including any online schools)

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Special Education Teacher Training Schools by State

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Metro Areas Rated for Popularity (as of 2008) for:
Preschool and Elementary School Special Education Teachers

Most Popular Industries (as of 2008) for:
Preschool and Elementary School Special Education Teachers