Elementary Teacher Salary

The average elementary teacher salary in the United States is pegged at around USD 47,000 p.a. The scale ranges upwards from USD 27,000 p.a. to USD 70,000 p.a. in the upper range. The good news for those of you who are aspiring for a career as an elementary school teacher is that there are other ways to boost your income. You could earn extra by coaching students in sports and extracurricular activities, get additional qualifications such as a master’s degree or national certification and be eligible for a raise in pay or even act as a mentor. Other ways of boosting elementary teacher salary could be by teaching at summer school or taking up other jobs in the school system.

As an elementary school teacher you would prepare lesson plans, instruct elementary school children, evaluate and monitor student's performance. Since you would be dealing with young children, you are expected to be sensitive in your dealings. To be patient, creative and to possess a desire to educate are important qualities for a successful elementary school teacher. An elementary school teacher requires to be a bachelor's degree and about 2-4 years of experience in the field or in a related area. Some states require teachers to be certified.

The future prospects for elementary teachers are good. Job opportunities over the next 10 years are excellent since a lot of job openings are expected to result from replacing the large number of teachers who are expected to retire in the next ten years. There are also additional jobs that are created by teachers who leave teaching jobs in poor, urban schools after a couple of years. With qualified teachers being in shortage, you could benefit from the competition for good teachers since schools are known to lure teachers from other States and districts with bonuses and higher pay. You would do well to be geographically mobile and secure licensure in more than one subject since that will give you an advantage. Jobs are expected to increase in the Western states especially California, Idaho, Hawaii, Alaska, Utah, and New Mexico while jobs in the South will increase at a more modest rate. The Northeast and Midwest are expected to hold relatively steady or decline.

Job prospects vary by location and by subject and are certainly better in inner cities and rural areas. There is a shortage in qualified teachers in subject areas such as mathematics, science (especially chemistry and physics), bilingual education, and foreign languages. The increasing number of minorities would cause recruitment of minority teachers to increase as also demand for bilingual teachers.

With improved job prospects, better elementary teacher salary, more teacher involvement in school policy, and greater public interest in education, the supply in teachers is increasing. There is also an increase in number of bachelor’s and master’s degrees granted in education in recent years. To get some statistics on the actual number of jobs - preschool, kindergarten, elementary school, middle school, and secondary school teachers held about 3.8 million jobs in 2004. Of these jobs, about 1.5 million are elementary school teachers. The majority work in local government educational services and about 10 percent work for private schools.