Special Education Teachers, Middle School
Special Education Teachers, Middle School (SOC 25-2057) earn a median $66,810 a year in the United States, with 95,200 employed as of May 2025; the highest-paying state is California.
What special education teachers, middle school do
Special education teachers at the middle school level teach academic, social, and life skills to middle school students with disabilities in learning, emotion, or physical function, including students who are blind or visually impaired, deaf or hard of hearing, or intellectually disabled. A central duty is developing or writing Individualized Education Programs (IEPs). They also develop and implement strategies for students with a variety of disabilities, prepare materials and classrooms, enforce behavior rules, and teach daily living skills such as hygiene, safety, and food preparation that support independence. They confer with parents or guardians, other teachers, counselors, and administrators, and coordinate placement of students with special needs into mainstream classes. General middle school teachers and short-term substitutes are classified separately. Titles such as deaf and hard of hearing teacher, early intervention specialist, and emotionally impaired teacher appear in O*NET's list.
Typical entry: According to O*NET, the most commonly reported level of education for this occupation is a bachelor's degree.
Also called: Blind Teacher, Braille Teacher, Deaf Teacher, DHOH Teacher, Early Intervention Specialist.
National wage percentiles, May 2025
| Area | Basis | Percentile wage | Mean | Employment | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th | ||||
| United States | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 95,200 |
| Annual | $49,420 | $60,000 | $66,810 | $82,800 | $102,510 | $73,780 | ||
Employment per 1,000 jobs and the location quotient are area measures; they appear in the state and metro tables below. To see what a wage in this range leaves after tax, use FastCalc's take-home pay calculator.
Where special education teachers, middle school earn and work most
Five highest-paying states
| Area | Basis | Percentile wage | Mean | Employment | Jobs per 1,000 | Location quotient | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th | ||||||
| California | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 4,860 | 0.27 | 0.44 |
| Annual | $68,110 | $80,550 | $101,530 | $120,550 | $127,720 | $99,830 | ||||
| Washington | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 1,550 | 0.44 | 0.71 |
| Annual | $67,650 | $80,570 | $99,520 | $111,320 | $127,390 | $97,240 | ||||
| Rhode Island | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 380 | 0.76 | 1.24 |
| Annual | $48,830 | $76,710 | $93,970 | $95,500 | $97,450 | $83,910 | ||||
| New York | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 7,870 | 0.81 | 1.33 |
| Annual | $59,720 | $67,930 | $93,820 | $115,810 | $132,490 | $92,940 | ||||
| Connecticut | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 1,260 | 0.74 | 1.21 |
| Annual | $61,370 | $72,450 | $92,900 | $100,610 | $107,660 | $87,110 | ||||
Five states with the most jobs
| Area | Basis | Percentile wage | Mean | Employment | Jobs per 1,000 | Location quotient | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th | ||||||
| Texas | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 12,580 | 0.89 | 1.46 |
| Annual | $50,530 | $61,070 | $63,360 | $71,030 | $77,720 | $64,850 | ||||
| New York | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 7,870 | 0.81 | 1.33 |
| Annual | $59,720 | $67,930 | $93,820 | $115,810 | $132,490 | $92,940 | ||||
| Ohio | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 7,540 | 1.36 | 2.22 |
| Annual | $47,630 | $60,080 | $74,590 | $86,150 | $98,120 | $73,110 | ||||
| New Jersey | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 5,660 | 1.32 | 2.16 |
| Annual | $63,570 | $67,690 | $79,110 | $96,930 | $103,520 | $82,680 | ||||
| California | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 4,860 | 0.27 | 0.44 |
| Annual | $68,110 | $80,550 | $101,530 | $120,550 | $127,720 | $99,830 | ||||
Five highest-paying metropolitan areas
| Area | Basis | Percentile wage | Mean | Employment | Jobs per 1,000 | Location quotient | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th | ||||||
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 360 | 0.31 | 0.51 |
| Annual | $78,660 | $91,850 | $121,070 | $130,800 | $134,250 | $112,040 | ||||
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 350 | 0.32 | 0.53 |
| Annual | $69,740 | $89,590 | $110,850 | $117,680 | $117,680 | $102,930 | ||||
| Fresno, CA | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 80 | 0.18 | 0.29 |
| Annual | $64,000 | $66,620 | $104,540 | $109,180 | $125,180 | $92,160 | ||||
| Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 50 | 0.51 | 0.83 |
| Annual | $79,880 | $81,250 | $104,450 | $126,650 | $130,480 | $104,860 | ||||
| Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 70 | 0.54 | 0.88 |
| Annual | $75,590 | $79,790 | $103,880 | $107,840 | $121,550 | $97,640 | ||||
Five metropolitan areas with the most jobs
| Area | Basis | Percentile wage | Mean | Employment | Jobs per 1,000 | Location quotient | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th | ||||||
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 8,330 | 0.88 | 1.43 |
| Annual | $64,460 | $76,770 | $94,740 | $107,630 | $132,270 | $94,790 | ||||
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 5,610 | 1.39 | 2.26 |
| Annual | $62,510 | $62,510 | $65,870 | $73,730 | $77,720 | $68,190 | ||||
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 3,190 | 0.71 | 1.15 |
| Annual | $56,020 | $62,390 | $77,840 | $97,150 | $105,180 | $79,540 | ||||
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 2,780 | 0.96 | 1.57 |
| Annual | $61,170 | $62,900 | $78,860 | $95,400 | $104,860 | $80,580 | ||||
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | Hourly | * | * | * | * | * | * | 2,540 | 0.81 | 1.32 |
| Annual | $59,120 | $65,000 | $77,050 | $100,010 | $122,710 | $83,690 | ||||
Top industries employing special education teachers, middle school
Elementary and Secondary Schools employ 99.7% of special education teachers, middle school nationally (94,900 jobs) at a median $66,760 a year, followed by Educational Support Services (0.1%) and Residential Intellectual and Developmental Disability, Mental Health, and Substance Abuse Facilities (0.1%).
| Industry | Employment | Share of occupation | Median annual | Median hourly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elementary and Secondary Schools NAICS 611100 | 94,900 | 99.7% | $66,760 | * |
| Educational Support Services NAICS 611700 | 90 | 0.1% | $71,970 | * |
| Residential Intellectual and Developmental Disability, Mental Health, and Substance Abuse Facilities NAICS 623200 | 50 | 0.1% | $79,170 | * |
Share is the industry's employment over the occupation's national employment (95,200). Industries whose employment BLS withheld are not ranked.
Published medians, May 2021 to May 2025
BLS published a median annual wage of $61,820 for special education teachers, middle school in May 2021 and $66,810 in May 2025, with employment of 79,070 and 95,200.
| Release | Median annual | Median hourly | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 2021 | $61,820 | * | 79,070 |
| May 2022 | $62,990 | * | 82,970 |
| May 2023 | $66,600 | * | 88,850 |
| May 2024 | $64,880 | * | 95,330 |
| May 2025 | $66,810 | * | 95,200 |
BLS does not design OEWS as a time series: each release pools three years of samples, and occupational classifications, area definitions and estimation methods change between releases, so a difference between two releases is not a measure of change over time. The figures are shown as published, side by side, and nothing is computed from them. See how often OEWS is updated.
Every state, by median wage
51 states and DC publish a row for this occupation. A linked state has its own page with the within-state metro table and comparison; the others appear here only.
| Rank | State | Median hourly | Median annual | 10th pct (annual) | 90th pct (annual) | Employment | Jobs per 1,000 | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California profile | * | $101,530 | $68,110 | $127,720 | 4,860 | 0.27 | 0.44 |
| 2 | Washington profile | * | $99,520 | $67,650 | $127,390 | 1,550 | 0.44 | 0.71 |
| 3 | Rhode Island profile | * | $93,970 | $48,830 | $97,450 | 380 | 0.76 | 1.24 |
| 4 | New York profile | * | $93,820 | $59,720 | $132,490 | 7,870 | 0.81 | 1.33 |
| 5 | Connecticut profile | * | $92,900 | $61,370 | $107,660 | 1,260 | 0.74 | 1.21 |
| 6 | Massachusetts profile | * | $84,550 | $60,080 | $108,440 | 3,110 | 0.86 | 1.40 |
| 7 | Alaska profile | * | $81,000 | $61,620 | $98,380 | 200 | 0.61 | 0.99 |
| 8 | District of Columbia profile | * | $79,170 | $66,840 | $127,280 | 520 | 0.74 | 1.21 |
| 9 | New Jersey profile | * | $79,110 | $63,570 | $103,520 | 5,660 | 1.32 | 2.16 |
| 10 | Utah profile | * | $78,920 | $48,410 | $113,830 | 690 | 0.40 | 0.65 |
| 11 | Oregon profile | * | $78,360 | $51,470 | $98,090 | 590 | 0.30 | 0.49 |
| 12 | Delaware profile | * | $77,420 | $52,240 | $95,410 | ** | ** | ** |
| 13 | Pennsylvania profile | * | $77,040 | $52,300 | $106,140 | 3,710 | 0.61 | 1.00 |
| 14 | Maryland profile | * | $76,410 | $51,100 | $122,710 | 1,540 | 0.56 | 0.91 |
| 15 | Michigan profile | * | $76,040 | $46,790 | $93,350 | 1,410 | 0.32 | 0.52 |
| 16 | Illinois profile | * | $74,730 | $49,660 | $102,200 | 4,460 | 0.73 | 1.19 |
| 17 | Ohio profile | * | $74,590 | $47,630 | $98,120 | 7,540 | 1.36 | 2.22 |
| 18 | New Mexico profile | * | $74,440 | $60,070 | $89,760 | 1,090 | 1.25 | 2.04 |
| 19 | Vermont profile | * | $73,110 | $49,040 | $99,320 | 470 | 1.56 | 2.54 |
| 20 | Georgia profile | * | $70,550 | $48,170 | $95,970 | 3,740 | 0.77 | 1.25 |
| 21 | New Hampshire profile | * | $66,760 | $48,290 | $81,260 | 650 | 0.95 | 1.55 |
| 22 | Colorado profile | * | $66,130 | $50,750 | $98,620 | 2,020 | 0.70 | 1.15 |
| 23 | Wisconsin profile | * | $65,840 | $47,480 | $94,660 | 2,650 | 0.90 | 1.47 |
| 24 | Montana profile | * | $63,960 | $42,050 | $80,690 | 190 | 0.37 | 0.60 |
| 25 | Virginia profile | * | $63,820 | $51,360 | $100,010 | 3,000 | 0.73 | 1.19 |
| 26 | Minnesota profile | * | $63,630 | $49,100 | $93,820 | 1,930 | 0.65 | 1.07 |
| 27 | Iowa profile | * | $63,590 | $46,490 | $90,460 | 990 | 0.64 | 1.04 |
| 28 | Nebraska profile | * | $63,460 | $46,640 | $78,990 | 680 | 0.66 | 1.08 |
| 29 | Maine profile | * | $63,440 | $47,560 | $81,550 | 310 | 0.49 | 0.80 |
| 30 | Texas profile | * | $63,360 | $50,530 | $77,720 | 12,580 | 0.89 | 1.46 |
| 31 | Nevada profile | * | $63,280 | $36,210 | $80,240 | 290 | 0.19 | 0.31 |
| 32 | Alabama profile | * | $62,850 | $34,360 | $76,730 | 460 | 0.22 | 0.36 |
| 33 | Wyoming profile | * | $62,770 | $52,190 | $79,060 | 330 | 1.16 | 1.90 |
| 34 | South Carolina profile | * | $62,310 | $48,900 | $81,280 | 980 | 0.43 | 0.70 |
| 35 | Arizona profile | * | $62,130 | $47,010 | $77,520 | 580 | 0.18 | 0.29 |
| 36 | Hawaii profile | * | $61,750 | $59,120 | $80,570 | 380 | 0.61 | 1.00 |
| 37 | Florida profile | * | $60,440 | $50,160 | $73,210 | 2,630 | 0.27 | 0.43 |
| 38 | Kentucky profile | * | $60,200 | $44,070 | $75,970 | 1,530 | 0.77 | 1.25 |
| 39 | Idaho profile | * | $60,170 | $50,190 | $76,200 | 300 | 0.35 | 0.58 |
| 40 | Tennessee profile | * | $60,000 | $48,640 | $75,490 | 1,310 | 0.40 | 0.65 |
| 41 | Kansas profile | * | $59,780 | $48,620 | $75,480 | 550 | 0.38 | 0.62 |
| 42 | Louisiana profile | * | $59,420 | $48,210 | $64,080 | 1,130 | 0.58 | 0.95 |
| 43 | North Carolina profile | * | $59,360 | $44,580 | $73,670 | 2,470 | 0.50 | 0.82 |
| 44 | Indiana profile | * | $58,900 | $46,500 | $78,160 | 1,070 | 0.33 | 0.54 |
| 45 | North Dakota profile | * | $57,680 | $47,350 | $82,930 | 200 | 0.45 | 0.74 |
| 46 | Arkansas profile | * | $56,830 | $48,840 | $66,560 | 750 | 0.58 | 0.94 |
| 47 | West Virginia profile | * | $56,440 | $45,380 | $63,710 | 1,080 | 1.54 | 2.51 |
| 48 | South Dakota profile | * | $51,360 | $46,680 | $60,120 | 310 | 0.67 | 1.10 |
| 49 | Mississippi profile | * | $50,750 | $45,830 | $62,120 | 1,020 | 0.88 | 1.44 |
| 50 | Oklahoma profile | * | $50,450 | $45,400 | $73,160 | 930 | 0.55 | 0.89 |
| 51 | Missouri profile | * | $50,370 | $39,990 | $81,110 | 1,050 | 0.36 | 0.58 |
Related occupations
Occupations in the same SOC broad group (25-2050), with their national median annual wage.
Part of Educational Instruction and Library Occupations. Compare any area in the wage explorer.
Source and notes
Data: BLS OEWS May 2025, released 2026-05-15. Cross-industry estimates, all ownerships. BLS page: OEWS 25-2057 Special Education Teachers, Middle School.
*- Wage estimate not available.
**- Employment estimate not available.
- Annual wages assume 2,080 hours a year at the hourly rate; occupations BLS publishes on one basis only show an en dash (–) on the other.
- Employment is rounded to the nearest 10 by BLS. Where BLS withholds a cell, nothing is estimated in its place.
- Top industries: nat4d_M2025_dl.xlsx in oesm25in4.zip (BLS OEWS May 2025, national, 4-digit NAICS, cross-ownership). Employment is the industry's rounded total for this occupation; industries whose employment BLS withheld (**) are not ranked. A withheld or top-coded median in that table shows the marker explained above.
- Published medians: national_M2021_dl.xlsx to national_M2024_dl.xlsx in oesm21nat.zip to oesm24nat.zip (BLS OEWS May 2021 to May 2024, national, cross-industry, all ownerships) and the May 2025 spine. Each release is shown as published; nothing is computed between them. A withheld or top-coded cell in that table shows the marker explained above.
Sources
- BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2018, definition of 25-2057, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (public domain).
- O*NET 30.1 Database, 25-2057.00, National Center for O*NET Development, USDOL/ETA (CC BY 4.0).
- OEWS May 2025 national industry-specific estimates, 4-digit NAICS (oesm25in4.zip), US Bureau of Labor Statistics (public domain).
- OEWS May 2021 national estimates (oesm21nat.zip), US Bureau of Labor Statistics (public domain).
- OEWS May 2022 national estimates (oesm22nat.zip), US Bureau of Labor Statistics (public domain).
- OEWS May 2023 national estimates (oesm23nat.zip), US Bureau of Labor Statistics (public domain).
- OEWS May 2024 national estimates (oesm24nat.zip), US Bureau of Labor Statistics (public domain).
- OEWS May 2025 national estimates (oesm25nat.zip), the site's data spine, US Bureau of Labor Statistics (public domain).
Includes information from O*NET 30.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, used under the CC BY 4.0 license.
Description written 2026-10-17 in our own words from the sources above.