Example Career: Middle School Teachers

Career Description

Teach students in one or more subjects in public or private schools at the middle, intermediate or junior high level, which falls between elementary and senior high school as defined by applicable laws and regulations.

What Job Titles Middle School Teachers Might Have

• Language Arts Teacher
• Math Teacher (Mathematics Teacher)
• Science Teacher
• Teacher

What Middle School Teachers Do

• 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.
• Confer with parents or guardians, other teachers, counselors, and administrators to resolve students' behavioral and academic problems.
• Maintain accurate, complete, and correct student records as required by laws, district policies, and administrative regulations.
• Prepare, administer, and grade tests and assignments to evaluate students' progress.
• Prepare materials and classrooms for class activities.
• Instruct through lectures, discussions, and demonstrations in one or more subjects, such as English, mathematics, or social studies.
• Establish clear objectives for all lessons, units, and projects, and communicate these objectives to students.
• Assist students who need extra help, such as by tutoring and preparing and implementing remedial programs.
• Assign lessons and correct homework.
• Enforce all administration policies and rules governing students.
• Prepare objectives and outlines for courses of study, following curriculum guidelines or requirements of states and schools.
• Observe and evaluate students' performance, behavior, social development, and physical health.
• Plan and conduct activities for a balanced program of instruction, demonstration, and work time that provides students with opportunities to observe, question, and investigate.
• Meet or correspond with parents or guardians to discuss children's progress and to determine priorities and resource needs.
• Instruct and monitor students in the use and care of equipment and materials to prevent injury and damage.
• Prepare students for later grades by encouraging them to explore learning opportunities and to persevere with challenging tasks.
• Guide and counsel students with adjustment or academic problems, or special academic interests.
• Meet with other professionals to discuss individual students' needs and progress.
• Collaborate with other teachers and administrators in the development, evaluation, and revision of middle school programs.
• Confer with other staff members to plan and schedule lessons promoting learning, following approved curricula.
• Use computers, audio-visual aids, and other equipment and materials to supplement presentations.
• Prepare reports on students and activities as required by administration.
• Plan and supervise class projects, field trips, visits by guest speakers or other experiential activities, and guide students in learning from such activities.
• Organize and supervise games and other recreational activities to promote physical, mental, and social development.
• Administer standardized ability and achievement tests and interpret results to determine student strengths and areas of need.
• Prepare for assigned classes and show written evidence of preparation upon request of immediate supervisors.
• Perform administrative duties, such as assisting in school libraries, hall and cafeteria monitoring, and bus loading and unloading.
• Select, store, order, issue, and inventory classroom equipment, materials, and supplies.
• Organize and label materials and display students' work.
• Attend staff meetings and serve on staff committees, as required.
• Attend professional meetings, educational conferences, and teacher training workshops to maintain and improve professional competence.
• Coordinate and supervise extracurricular activities, such as clubs, student organizations, and academic contests.
• Supervise, evaluate, and plan assignments for teacher assistants and volunteers.
• Provide disabled students with assistive devices, supportive technology, and assistance accessing facilities, such as restrooms.

What Middle School Teachers Should Be Good At

• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
• Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
• Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

What Middle School Teachers Need to Learn

• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
• Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.
• Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.