Education and libraries
Special education teachers, secondary school
Teach academic, social, and life skills to secondary 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.
Median pay
$74,260
Growth to 2035
0%
little or no change
Openings a year
10,400
Time to qualify*
Minimal
* From a bachelor's degree in an unrelated field.
Pay
Special education teachers, secondary school
Getting in
- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
- On-the-job training
- None
- Prior experience
- None
Calculate your switch to special education teachers, secondary school
What the work is like
Dealing with the public
Unpleasant or angry people
Time pressure
Cost of a mistake
Freedom to make decisions
Repeating the same tasks
Time sitting
Time standing
Outdoors in all weather
Exposure to disease
Special education teachers, secondary school: 59% usually work over 40 hours a week
Core tasks
- Establish and enforce rules for behavior and policies and procedures to maintain order among students.
- Maintain accurate and complete student records, and prepare reports on children and activities, as required by laws, district policies, and administrative regulations.
- Confer with parents, administrators, testing specialists, social workers, or other professionals to develop individual educational plans (IEPs) for students' educational, physical, and social development.
- Employ special educational strategies and techniques during instruction to improve the development of sensory- and perceptual-motor skills, language, cognition, and memory.
- Establish clear objectives for all lessons, units, and projects, and communicate those objectives to students.
- Prepare materials and classrooms for class activities.
- Teach socially acceptable behavior, employing techniques such as behavior modification and positive reinforcement.
- Confer with parents or guardians, other teachers, counselors, and administrators to resolve students' behavioral and academic problems.
Also called: Education Specialist · Emotional Disability Special Education Teacher (ED SPED Teacher) · Exceptional Student Education Teacher (ESE Teacher) · Handicapped Teacher · HS SPED Teacher (High School Special Education Teacher) · Learning Disabilities Special Education Teacher (LD Special Education Teacher) · Learning Support Teacher · Special Day Class Teacher (SDC Teacher)
Outlook and AI
Special education teachers, secondary school held 164,800 jobs in 2025. BLS projects 164,500 by 2035 (0%, little or no change; all jobs: +3.5%).
Compare with
- Special education teachers, secondary school vs. Special education teachers, middle school
- Special education teachers, secondary school vs. Special education teachers, preschool
- Special education teachers, secondary school vs. Elementary school teacher
- Special education teachers, secondary school vs. High school teacher
- Special education teachers, secondary school vs. Adult basic education, adult secondary education, and english as a second language instructors
- Special education teachers, secondary school vs. Kindergarten teachers, except special education
- Special education teachers, secondary school vs. Tutor