Educational Instruction and Library Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages Peer-group outlier SOC 25-2057

Special Education Teachers, Middle School

Median pay sits 33% below the mid peer in Educational Instruction and Library Occupations (neighbors include Law Teachers, Postsecondary, Architecture Teachers, Postsecondary, Geography Teachers, Postsecondary, Business Teachers, Postsecondary).

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Special Education Teachers, Middle School: Law Teachers, Postsecondary ($129K) , Architecture Teachers, Postsecondary ($97K) , Geography Teachers, Postsecondary ($98K) , Business Teachers, Postsecondary ($99K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Special Education Teachers, Middle School publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 25-2057 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Develop or write Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) for students
  2. 2. Establish and enforce rules for behavior and policies and procedures to maintain order among students
  3. 3. Develop and implement strategies to meet the needs of students with a variety of handicapping conditions
  4. 4. Prepare materials and classrooms for class activities
  5. 5. Instruct students in daily living skills required for independent maintenance and self-sufficiency, such as hygiene, safety, and food pre…
  6. 6. Confer with parents or guardians, other teachers, counselors, and administrators to resolve students' behavioral and academic problems
  7. 7. Coordinate placement of students with special needs into mainstream classes
  8. 8. Confer with parents, administrators, testing specialists, social workers, and professionals to develop individual educational plans (IEPs…
  9. 9. Modify the general education curriculum for students with disabilities, based upon a variety of instructional techniques and instructiona…
  10. 10. Teach socially acceptable behavior, employing techniques such as behavior modification and positive reinforcement
  11. 11. Guide and counsel students with adjustments, academic problems, or special academic interests
  12. 12. Establish clear objectives for all lessons, units, and projects, and communicate those objectives to students

Special Education Teachers, Middle School: O*NET ranks Active Listening first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 25-2057 - lead skill Active Listening at 4.0 ; lead knowledge English Language. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Active Listening 4.0
  2. 2. Speaking 4.0
  3. 3. Active Learning 4.0
  4. 4. Learning Strategies 4.0
  5. 5. Social Perceptiveness 4.0
  6. 6. Instructing 4.0
  7. 7. Reading Comprehension 3.9
  8. 8. Writing 3.9

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. English Language 4.5
  2. 2. Education and Training 4.4
  3. 3. Mathematics 4.0
  4. 4. Administrative 3.8
  5. 5. Customer and Personal Service 3.6
  6. 6. Psychology 3.5
Pay vs Educational Instruction and Library Occupations peers
-33%
vs mid peer median $99,650
This role $66,810/yr
$67K
National median
↓ -2%
Growth 2024-2034
6,300
Annual openings
95,200
Estimated US jobs
Law Teachers, Postsecondary
Highest-pay peer · $129K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education Bachelor's degree

Top Paying States for Special Education Teachers, Middle School

1. Connecticut $92,900
2. Alaska $81,000
3. District of Columbia $79,170
4. Washington $99,520
5. New York $93,820
6. California $101,530
7. New Jersey $79,110
8. Rhode Island $93,970
9. Massachusetts $84,550
10. Utah $78,920

Other Educational Instruction and Library Occupations titles

  1. 1. Geography Teachers, Postsecondary $97,590
  2. 2. Business Teachers, Postsecondary $99,080
  3. 3. Law Teachers, Postsecondary $128,500
  4. 4. Physics Teachers, Postsecondary $100,310
  5. 5. Engineering Teachers, Postsecondary $109,270
  6. 6. Architecture Teachers, Postsecondary $96,870

Among Educational Instruction and Library Occupations peers on this card, Special Education Teachers, Middle School sits 33% below the mid peer median ($99,650). Its own median is $66,810.

Employment Projections expect -2% change between 2024 and 2034 (declining vs baseline 3.1%). About 6,300 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns Bachelor's degree as typical education needed for entry. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: Connecticut at $92,900. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Law Teachers, Postsecondary at $128,500. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Special Education Teachers, Middle School pay-rank #42 in Educational Instruction and Library Occupations

Special Education Teachers, Middle School sits at pay-rank #42 of 64 detailed Educational Instruction and Library Occupations, the middle third of the major-group median table. ROW_NUMBER on median; title breaks ties.

Other mid-table titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024-2034.

Special Education Teachers, Middle School pays 33% below its major-group peer median. See the state map and the peers closest to (and furthest from) this line.

Special Education Teachers, Middle School salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 25-2057

Connecticut · top state for Special Education Teachers, Middle School

$93K published median

Alaska · #2 state pay

$81K · behind Connecticut

Law Teachers, Postsecondary

Highest-pay peer vs Special Education Teachers, Middle School · $129K

Architecture Teachers, Postsecondary

Lower-pay peer beside Special Education Teachers, Middle School · $97K

Compare Special Education Teachers, Middle School

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
Compare Special Education Teachers, Middle School with another occupation →

Peer-comparison next reads

Compare Special Education Teachers, Middle School

Against another occupation

Law Teachers, Postsecondary card

Top peer in this major group

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Special Education Teachers, Middle School mid-table among Educational Instruction and Library Occupations? ▼
Yes: pay-rank #42 of 64 detailed Educational Instruction and Library Occupations, the middle third. Mid-table neighbors: Career/Technical Education Teachers, Secondary School ($66K), Librarians and Media Collections Specialists ($68K), Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education ($72K), Social Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary, All Other ($73K). ROW_NUMBER on median; title breaks ties.
What do special education teachers, middle school do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Special Education Teachers, Middle School. Leading ones include: Develop or write Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) for students; Establish and enforce rules for behavior and policies and procedures to maintain order among students; Develop and implement strategies to meet the needs of students with a variety of handicapping conditions; Prepare materials and classrooms for class activities. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for special education teachers, middle school? ▼
For SOC 25-2057, O*NET importance scores lead with Active Listening (4.0), Speaking (4.0), Active Learning (4.0), Learning Strategies (4.0). Knowledge areas emphasize English Language, Education and Training, Mathematics. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
What is the OEWS national median for Special Education Teachers, Middle School? ▼
May 2025 OEWS reports $66,810 as the national median for Special Education Teachers, Middle School. The published 10th-90th range is $49,420 to $102,510. Beside Law Teachers, Postsecondary ($128,500), this is the occupation-level national figure, not a local offer.
What employment change does BLS publish for Special Education Teachers, Middle School? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Special Education Teachers, Middle School is -2%. Projected annual openings: about 6,300. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: declining.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Special Education Teachers, Middle School? ▼
BLS assigns Bachelor's degree as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Special Education Teachers, Middle School. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Special Education Teachers, Middle School? ▼
Connecticut ($92,900), Alaska ($81,000), District of Columbia ($79,170) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024-2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this Special Education Teachers, Middle School card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 25-2057. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Special Education Teachers, Middle School. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics