Teacher Assistant
Comprehensive Sites
Bureau of Labor Statistics: Teacher AssistantAn overview teacher assistant is presented at this page, provided by the U.S. Department of Labor, as well as information on career preparation, job pay, and sources of further information on related careers. Work environment, education, nature of the work, and favorable job prospects are outlined, with links available to projected employment, according to teacher type and additional to links to the latest local earnings data.
U.S. Department of EducationResources for teaching are provided here, including opportunities, feature articles, information about teaching the first year, and training and degree programs. Although the site is intended for teachers, the resources for the classroom are useful for assistants and aides, too.
Occupational Titles
Teaching Assistant
Assistant Teacher
Childhood Associate
Education Assistant
Instructional Assistant
Teacher Associate
Teacher’s Aide
Preschool Teacher
Accredited Academic Programs
College Board: Teaching AssistantThe teaching assistant and its related college majors are presented at this page, which emphasizes the associate’s degree program for this chosen career path. Helpful high school courses are listed, as well as typical college majors, such as child development, classroom management, and other 2-year degrees that are typical for teacher assistants or aides.
Salary Levels
Indeed.com: Assistant Teacher SalariesThe average salary of a teacher assistant across the nation is displayed at the graph at this site, with additional graphs on the average salary of jobs with related titles.
PayScale: Teacher AssistantThis site offers a salary report for all teacher assistants across the U.S. by years of experience, as well as, as well as further information on salary according to geographic location, such as city and state. You can also access links to information on salary by school name, company, and age.
Professional Organizations
American Federation of Teachers: Paraprofessionals and School-related Personnel.This is a professional teachers’ union and offers economic, social, and professional advantages to teacher members. Hot topics in the field are discussed, and a legislative action center includes an online activists’ network. You can find useful tools, such as a salary survey, and special links for public employees and early childhood education teachers. This site is specifically geared toward paraprofessionals or teacher assistants, including information on certification and the development of high standards for paraprofessionals.
Council for American Private EducationReasons for working in a private school are introduced at this organization’s site, where you can compare the main goals of public schools with the educational focus of a private school. Detail on job satisfaction, the professional environment, and a focus of values are emphasized. This site includes a list of private school job banks, including religious schools, Montessori schools, and Waldorf academy links.
National Association of Independent SchoolsThis organization represents a voice for independent education in America and offers details on membership, subscriptions, public information on the differences between public and private schools, and a career center.
National Education Association, Educational Support Personnel DivisionThe National Education Association includes sub-sites for teacher assistants and students aspiring to be support professionals. This sub-site talks about a 3-day training for teacher assistants offered by the organization and offers a video about the unique position of a teacher support professional.
National Resource Center for ParaprofessionalsGeneral resources for paraprofessionals, such as teaching assistants, are found at this page, including links to career ladder articles and the employment and preparation of paraprofessional educators. A manual at the site reviews state policies and systems, teacher and assistant team roles, and strategies for professional development.
Licensing & Certification
American Federation of Teachers: Paraprofessionals and School-related PersonnelThe establishment of state-based certification for teaching assistant paraprofessionals is discussed at this site, including links to information on national initiatives on skill standards and career directions. If you click on the career link, you’ll find information on opportunities and the benefits of membership.
Job Opportunity Sources
Council for American Private Education: Job BanksThe list of links here takes you to employment possibilities across a variety of private school settings, including religious schools, Montessori teaching jobs, and jobs at Waldorf schools. Links to these sites may lead to paraprofessional opportunities.
Indeed.com: Teacher Assistant JobsSearching hundreds of databases, this site collects more than 5,000 teaching assistant positions across the U.S. in one location. Here, you can browse positions by relevance or date posted, and narrow your search by keyword or location.
National Association of Independent Educators: NAIS Career CenterThe career center here is from resources collected from the foremost organization on private school education. If you are looking for an opportunity as a private school teacher assistant, you can search for jobs, and find articles about working at a private school.
Publications
Education WeekEducation Week contains an enormous amount of information for the would-be educator, including national news, online videos, topics in health, special education, and curriculum, blogs, chats, and transcripts, and plenty of free web learning conferences.
Independent School MagazineThe information available at this site includes details about article contents, such as building a nation of readers the influence that teachers can have on their student and other topics of interest to teachers and teaching assistants.
Teacher MagazineTeacher Magazine contains plenty of opinions on what it’s like to work in the education field, including information for you on the best practices of successful teachers and articles from all kinds of teachers.
U.S. Department of Education: Academic SubjectsThis set of links, compiled by the U.S. Department of Education, connects you to publications and organization related to teaching across a variety of specialty areas, including arts, foreign language, health, science, history, geography, economics, and physical education.
U.S. Department of Education: EdPubsThis collection of publications helps you identify and order free or low cost publications in the field of education. More than 6,000 titles are available, including brochures, CD-ROMs, newsletters, and research reports. You can locate publications by audience type, education level, language, or subject, or view the list of the top 10 publications. This is a great resource for new teachers, teacher assistants, or students about to enter the field.
Online Forums & Blogs
Education Week: BlogsBlogs at this site are combined from Teacher Magazine and Edweek.org and include the impact of politics on all K-12 education, exploration of learning innovations, starting out in the education field, and tapping into the gifted child. If you go to BlogBoard, you’ll find “new and noteworthy” blogs that are really up-to-date.
National Resource Center for Paraprofessionals: ForumThe forum at this site is from an organization dedicated to bringing together teaching assistant paraprofessionals. You can post or read in the general discussion section or have questions answered about training and conferences. A state-by-state posting is also available.
Career Videos
TeacherTubeLesson plans, student video lessons, and teaching videos are available at TeacherTube, a large online collection of videos just for teaching. The most popular videos can be accessed, as well as most discussed and top-rated. Teacher Tube blogs, groups, and channels on different aspects of teaching are available. On the video search, type in the keywords for the type of career information you are interested in.
