Example Career: Middle School Teachers

Career Description

Teach one or more subjects to students at the middle, intermediate, or junior high school level.

What Job Titles Middle School Teachers Might Have

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

What Middle School Teachers Do

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

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.