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Special Education Teachers, Middle School

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

Teach academic, social, and life skills to middle 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.

Related: Special Education Teachers, Elementary School Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten Special Education Teachers, Preschool Special Education Teachers, Secondary School Teaching Assistants, Special Education

Industries: Education

Summary
Details

Collaborate with other teachers that provide instruction to special education students to ensure that the students receive appropriate support.
Instruct through lectures, discussions, and demonstrations in one or more subjects, such as English, mathematics, or social studies.
Guide and counsel students with adjustments, academic problems, or special academic interests.
Meet with parents and guardians to provide guidance in using community resources and to teach skills for dealing with students' impairments.
Administer standardized ability and achievement tests, and interpret results to determine students' strengths and needs.
Plan and supervise class projects, field trips, visits by guest speakers, or other experiential activities, and guide students in learning from those activities.
Collaborate with other teachers that provide instruction to special education students to ensure that the students receive appropriate support.
Establish clear objectives for all lessons, units, and projects, and communicate those objectives to students.
Maintain accurate and complete student records, and prepare reports on children and activities, as required by laws, district policies, and administrative regulations.
Observe and evaluate students' performance, behavior, social development, and physical health.
Confer with parents or guardians, other teachers, counselors, and administrators to resolve students' behavioral and academic problems.
Develop and implement strategies to meet the needs of students with a variety of handicapping conditions.
Select, store, order, issue, and inventory classroom equipment, materials, and supplies.
Develop or write Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) for students.
Confer with parents, administrators, testing specialists, social workers, and professionals to develop individual educational plans (IEPs) for students' educational, physical, and social development.
Prepare materials and classrooms for class activities.
Develop or write Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) for students.
Confer with parents, administrators, testing specialists, social workers, and professionals to develop individual educational plans (IEPs) for students' educational, physical, and social development.
Monitor teachers and teacher assistants to ensure that they adhere to inclusive special education program requirements.
Establish and enforce rules for behavior and policies and procedures to maintain order among students.
Confer with parents or guardians, other teachers, counselors, and administrators to resolve students' behavioral and academic problems.
Select, store, order, issue, and inventory classroom equipment, materials, and supplies.
Prepare, administer, and grade tests and assignments to evaluate students' progress.
Prepare for assigned classes, and show written evidence of preparation upon request of immediate supervisors.
Instruct students in daily living skills required for independent maintenance and self-sufficiency, such as hygiene, safety, and food preparation.
Attend professional meetings, educational conferences, and teacher training workshops to maintain and improve professional competence.
Instruct and monitor students in the use and care of equipment and materials to prevent injuries and damage.
Instruct and monitor students in the use and care of equipment and materials to prevent injuries and damage.
Organize and supervise games and other recreational activities to promote physical, mental, and social development.
Plan and conduct activities for a balanced program of instruction, demonstration, and work time that provides students with opportunities to observe, question, and investigate.
Supervise, evaluate, and plan assignments for teacher assistants and volunteers.
Observe and evaluate students' performance, behavior, social development, and physical health.
Observe and evaluate students' performance, behavior, social development, and physical health.
Prepare objectives and outlines for courses of study, following curriculum guidelines or requirements of states and schools.
Provide additional instruction in vocational areas.
Supervise, evaluate, and plan assignments for teacher assistants and volunteers.
Use computers, audio-visual aids, and other equipment and materials to supplement presentations.
Perform administrative duties, such as school library assistance, hall and cafeteria monitoring, and bus loading and unloading.
Visit schools to tutor students with sensory impairments and to consult with teachers regarding students' special needs.
Select, store, order, issue, and inventory classroom equipment, materials, and supplies.
Modify the general education curriculum for students with disabilities, based upon a variety of instructional techniques and instructional technology.
Employ special educational strategies and techniques during instruction to improve the development of sensory- and perceptual-motor skills, language, cognition, and memory.
Coordinate placement of students with special needs into mainstream classes.
Provide assistive devices, supportive technology, and assistance accessing facilities, such as restrooms.
Meet with parents and guardians to discuss their children's progress and to determine priorities for their children and their resource needs.
Teach students personal development skills, such as goal setting, independence, and self-advocacy.
Prepare, administer, and grade tests and assignments to evaluate students' progress.
Confer with other staff members to plan and schedule lessons promoting learning, following approved curricula.
Attend staff meetings and serve on committees, as required.
Organize and label materials and display students' work.

Equipment Selection
- Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
Active Learning
- Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Instructing
- Teaching people how to do something.
Speaking
- Talking to others.
Technology Design
- Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Complex Problem Solving
- Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Equipment Maintenance
- Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
Time Management
- Managing your time and the time of other people.
Systems Evaluation
- Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Management of Personnel Resources
- Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Learning Strategies
- Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Service Orientation
- Looking for ways to help people.
Operations Analysis
- Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Critical Thinking
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
Negotiation
- Bringing people together to solve differences.
Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Mathematics
- Using math to solve problems.
Writing
- Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Systems Analysis
- Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Quality Control Analysis
- Testing how well a product or service works.
Management of Financial Resources
- Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
Reading Comprehension
- Reading work-related information.
Active Listening
- Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
Science
- Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Persuasion
- Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
Programming
- Writing computer programs.
Social Perceptiveness
- Understanding people's reactions.
Coordination
- Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Monitoring
- Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Troubleshooting
- Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
Judgment and Decision Making
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
Operation and Control
- Using equipment or systems.
Management of Material Resources
- Managing equipment and materials.

Flexibility of Closure
- Seeing hidden patterns.
Response Orientation
- Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Perceptual Speed
- Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Oral Expression
- Communicating by speaking.
Category Flexibility
- Grouping things in different ways.
Auditory Attention
- Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Speech Recognition
- Recognizing spoken words.
Originality
- Creating new and original ideas.
Hearing Sensitivity
- Telling the difference between sounds.
Gross Body Coordination
- Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
Visual Color Discrimination
- Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Time Sharing
- Doing two or more things at the same time.
Visualization
- Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Dynamic Flexibility
- Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Wrist-Finger Speed
- Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
Speed of Limb Movement
- Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Control Precision
- Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
Reaction Time
- Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Deductive Reasoning
- Using rules to solve problems.
Written Expression
- Communicating by writing.
Inductive Reasoning
- Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Trunk Strength
- Using your lower back and stomach.
Far Vision
- Seeing details that are far away.
Fluency of Ideas
- Coming up with lots of ideas.
Near Vision
- Seeing details up close.
Written Comprehension
- Reading and understanding what is written.
Number Facility
- Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Speed of Closure
- Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Memorization
- Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Multilimb Coordination
- Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Selective Attention
- Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Explosive Strength
- Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
Problem Sensitivity
- Noticing when problems happen.
Manual Dexterity
- Holding or moving items with your hands.
Information Ordering
- Ordering or arranging things.
Rate Control
- Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Finger Dexterity
- Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Static Strength
- Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Mathematical Reasoning
- Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Sound Localization
- Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Speech Clarity
- Speaking clearly.
Gross Body Equilibrium
- Keeping your balance or staying upright.
Glare Sensitivity
- Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Extent Flexibility
- Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Night Vision
- Seeing at night or under low light.
Depth Perception
- Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
Stamina
- Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Peripheral Vision
- Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Dynamic Strength
- Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
Oral Comprehension
- Listening and understanding what people say.
Spatial Orientation
- Knowing where things are around you.

Chemistry
- Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Building and Construction
- Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Psychology
- Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Geography
- Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Physics
- Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Sales and Marketing
- Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Customer and Personal Service
- Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Foreign Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
Administrative
- Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Therapy and Counseling
- Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
Education and Training
- Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Philosophy and Theology
- Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Communications and Media
- Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Administration and Management
- Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Engineering and Technology
- Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
Medicine and Dentistry
- Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Fine Arts
- Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
Personnel and Human Resources
- Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Economics and Accounting
- Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Public Safety and Security
- Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.

Education

Bachelor's degree

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

No on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

95440/yr

Currently Employed

1,680

Yearly Projected Openings

140

Social: People interested in this work like activities that include helping people, teaching, and talking. They do well at jobs that need:

Stress Tolerance
Adaptability/Flexibility
Dependability
Cooperation
Integrity
Self Control

Adaptive communication switches for the physically challenged
Assistive listening devices
Binocular light compound microscopes
Braille devices for the physically challenged
Cassette players or recorders
Childrens science kits
Compasses
Computer mouse
Desktop calculator
Desktop computers
Digital camcorders or video cameras
Document camera
Enteral feeding administration sets
Game pads or joy sticks
Gas burners
Goggles
Hand held camcorders or video cameras
Keyboards
Laboratory beakers
Laboratory hotplates
Laboratory scalpels
Laminators
Laser printers
Letter or symbol boards for the physically challenged
Medical gas cylinders or related devices
Medical or surgical suction tubings
Microphones
Mobile medical services first aid kits
Notebook computers
Page turners for the physically challenged
Personal computers
Photocopiers
Protective gloves
Scanners
Tablet computers
Telecommunication devices TDD or teletypewriters TTY for the physically challenged
Televisions
Touch screen monitors
Video cassette players or recorders
Visual presenters
Voice synthesizers for the physically challenged
Wheelchairs
Writing aids for the physically challenged