Career/Technical Education Teachers, Middle School

Career Overview

Teach occupational, vocational, career, or technical subjects to students at the middle, intermediate, or junior high school level.

Also Known As

  • Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher (FACS Teacher)
  • Teacher
  • Technology Education Teacher (Tech Ed Teacher)
  • Technology Teacher

Alternate Job Titles

  • Agriscience Technology Instructor (Agriculture Science Technology Instructor)
  • Automotive Education Teacher
  • Business Education Teacher
  • Business Teacher
  • Career and Technology Education Teacher (CTE Teacher)
  • Career Discovery Teacher
  • Career Education Teacher
  • Career Technical Education Instructor
  • Carpentry Teacher
  • Computer Discovery Teacher
  • Computer Science Teacher
  • Computer Teacher
  • Computer Technology Teacher
  • Culinary Technical Education Teacher
  • Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher (FACS Teacher)

What You'll Do

In this role, your typical responsibilities include:

  • Instruct students individually and in groups, using various teaching methods, such as lectures, discussions, and demonstrations.
  • Prepare materials and classrooms for class activities.
  • Adapt teaching methods and instructional materials to meet students' varying needs and interests.
  • Establish and enforce rules for behavior and procedures for maintaining order among students.
  • Establish clear objectives for all lessons, units, and projects, and communicate those objectives to students.
  • Prepare students for later educational experiences by encouraging them to explore learning opportunities and to persevere with challenging tasks.
  • Maintain accurate and complete student records as required by laws, district policies, and administrative regulations.

Knowledge You'll Use

You'll need solid knowledge in these areas:

  • English Language
  • Education and Training
  • Psychology
  • Computers and Electronics

Essential Skills

Success in this career requires strong skills in:

  1. Speaking
  2. Reading Comprehension
  3. Active Listening
  4. Learning Strategies
  5. Instructing
  6. Critical Thinking
  7. Monitoring
  8. Social Perceptiveness
  9. Writing

Key Abilities

This career requires key abilities in:

  • Oral Expression
  • Oral Comprehension
  • Written Comprehension
  • Speech Clarity
  • Speech Recognition
  • Deductive Reasoning
  • Near Vision
  • Written Expression
  • Problem Sensitivity
  • Inductive Reasoning

Work Style

People who excel in this career typically demonstrate:

  • Dependability
  • Social Orientation
  • Cooperation
  • Self-Control
  • Empathy

What Matters in This Career

This career tends to satisfy these work values:

  • Relationships
  • Achievement
  • Independence
  • Working Conditions
  • Recognition

Education & Preparation

Typical Education: Bachelor's Degree

Related Work Experience Needed: Over 3 months, up to and including 6 months

On-the-Job Training: Over 3 months, up to and including 6 months

Education Details: Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

Experience Required: A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.

Technology You'll Use

Popular Technologies & Software

  • Amazon DynamoDB
  • Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud EC2
  • Amazon Web Services AWS CloudFormation
  • Amazon Web Services AWS software
  • Ansible software
  • Apache Cassandra
  • Apache Hadoop
  • Apache Kafka
  • Apache Tomcat
  • Atlassian Confluence

Tools & Equipment

  • Airbrush sets
  • Airlift pumps
  • Analog multimeters
  • Animal cages
  • Animal grooming brushes
  • Audio mixers
  • Axes
  • Bakeware pans
  • Belt sanders
  • Bench vises
  • Binding machines
  • Biofilters
  • Caliper sets
  • Carousel slide projectors
  • Chef's knives

Work Environment

  • E-Mail
  • Contact With Others
  • Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams
  • Frequency of Decision Making
  • Freedom to Make Decisions

Salary & Job Market

Salary PercentileAnnual Wage
Entry-Level (10th percentile)$47,090
Median$63,620
Top Earners (90th percentile)$98,430

Workers Employed Nationally: 14,200

Related Careers

If you're interested in this career, you might also consider:


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Occupational data sourced from the O*NET OnLine database, developed by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration. Wage data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), 2024.

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