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Education25-2056.00Specialization

Special Education Teachers, Elementary School

Teach academic, social, and life skills to elementary school students with learning, emotional, or physical disabilities. Includes teachers who specialize and work with students who are blind or have visual impairments; students who are deaf or have hearing impairments; and students with intellectual disabilities.

$65,910
Median Pay
4-6 years
Training
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AI-Resilient
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View Preschool & Elementary Teachers

This is a specialization of

Preschool & Elementary Teachers

Career Overview Video

AI Impact Assessment

AI Resilience Score

Score 5/6: low AI task exposure, strong human advantage provides strong protection from AI displacement (estimated from legacy data)

🟢AI-Resilient

How we calculated this:

AI Exposure
Low+2

11% of tasks can be accelerated by AI

Job Growth
Stable+1

0% projected (2024-2034)

Human Advantage
Strong+2

EPOCH score: 23/25

Total Score5/6
Methodology: v2.0 - GPTs are GPTs / BLS / EPOCH Additive ScoringUpdated: 2026-01-09
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Key Responsibilities

  • Instruct students with disabilities in academic subjects, using a variety of techniques, such as phonetics, multisensory learning, or repetition to reinforce learning and meet students' varying needs.
  • Develop or implement strategies to meet the needs of students with a variety of disabilities.
  • Teach socially acceptable behavior, employing techniques such as behavior modification or positive reinforcement.
  • Modify the general elementary education curriculum for students with disabilities.
  • Maintain accurate and complete student records as required by laws, district policies, or administrative regulations.
  • Prepare classrooms with a variety of materials or resources for children to explore, manipulate, or use in learning activities or imaginative play.
  • Establish and enforce rules for behavior and procedures for maintaining order among students.
  • Provide assistive devices, supportive technology, or assistance accessing facilities, such as restrooms.
  • Coordinate placement of students with special needs into mainstream classes.
  • Observe and evaluate students' performance, behavior, social development, and physical health.

Education & Training

Typical Entry Education

Bachelor's degree

Time to Job Ready

4-6 years

Based on Job Zone 4. For formal education duration only, see education_duration.

Technology Skills

IEP softwareAssistive technology toolsMicrosoft OfficeLearning management systemsAssessment toolsCommunication/AAC devices

Key Abilities

Oral ExpressionOral ComprehensionProblem SensitivitySpeech ClarityWritten ComprehensionDeductive ReasoningInductive ReasoningFluency of IdeasNear VisionWritten Expression

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Find jobs and training programs for special education teachers, elementary school- Median salary: $66K/year

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Compensation Details

$47,520
10th Percentile
$65,910
Median
$106,290
90th Percentile

Based on 528,400 employed workers

Also Known As

Academic InterventionistAPE Teacher (Adapted Physical Education Teacher)Behavior InterventionistBehavior SpecialistBlind TeacherBraille TeacherCross-Categorical SPED Teacher (Cross-Categorical Special Education Teacher)Deaf and Hard of Hearing Teacher (DHH Teacher)Developmentally Delayed Special Education Teacher (DD Special Education Teacher)Early Childhood Special Educator

Data from O*NET 30.1 and BLS Occupational Employment Statistics

O*NET Code: 25-2056.00