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Education & Training · Updated Aug 2026

Special Education Teachers, Elementary School

Teach academic, social, and life skills to elementary school students with learning, emotional, or physical disabilities. Includes teachers who specialize and work with students who are blind or have visual impairments; students who are deaf or have hearing impairments; and students with intellectual disabilities.

JVS 2.0.0-phase4b
AI Exposure
65/100
High

How much of this occupation’s work can be materially affected by current AI systems.

Replacement Risk
59/100
Moderate

How likely exposure is to translate into reduced human demand.

Includes provisional estimates for AI adoption pressure and labour-market resilience. How this is measured

Evidence quality
Confidence82/100
Task coverage86%

Confidence reflects task coverage, mapping and capability-evidence quality, and how much of the score rests on provisional inputs.

Task-level evidence

What is driving the score?

Occupation scores are built from the task mix—not a single prediction about a job title.

JVS 2.0.0-phase4b
TaskImportanceAI impactExposure
Develop or implement strategies to meet the needs of students with a variety of disabilities.High
69
Prepare classrooms with a variety of materials or resources for children to explore, manipulate, or use in learning activities or imaginative play.High
75
Instruct students with disabilities in academic subjects, using a variety of techniques, such as phonetics, multisensory learning, or repetition to reinforce learning and meet students' varying needs.High
59
Establish and enforce rules for behavior and procedures for maintaining order among students.High
62
Establish and communicate clear objectives for all lessons, units, and projects to students.High
71
Modify the general elementary education curriculum for students with disabilities.High
62
Teach socially acceptable behavior, employing techniques such as behavior modification or positive reinforcement.High
62
Provide assistive devices, supportive technology, or assistance accessing facilities, such as restrooms.High
75
Maintain accurate and complete student records as required by laws, district policies, or administrative regulations.High
71
Encourage students to explore learning opportunities or persevere with challenging tasks to prepare them for later grades.High
61
Prepare objectives, outlines, or other materials for courses of study, following curriculum guidelines or school or state requirements.High
75
Teach students personal development skills, such as goal setting, independence, or self-advocacy.High
62
Observe and evaluate students' performance, behavior, social development, and physical health.High
61
Prepare, administer, or grade tests or assignments to evaluate students' progress.High
74
Plan or conduct activities for a balanced program of instruction, demonstration, and work time that provides students with opportunities to observe, question, and investigate.High
58
Monitor teachers or teacher assistants to ensure adherence to special education program requirements.High
55
Guide or counsel students with adjustment problems, academic problems, or special academic interests.High
53
Organize and display students' work in a manner appropriate for their perceptual skills.High
70
Confer with other staff members to plan or schedule lessons promoting learning, following approved curricula.High
66
Organize and supervise games or other recreational activities to promote physical, mental, or social development.Medium
72
Instruct students in daily living skills required for independent maintenance and self-sufficiency, such as hygiene, safety, or food preparation.High
61
Instruct and monitor students in the use and care of equipment or materials to prevent injuries and damage.High
53
Most exposed

Where AI can do more

Routine, digitized, and highly repeatable tasks face the greatest pressure.

  1. Prepare classrooms with a variety of materials or resources for children to explore, manipulate, or use in learning activities or imaginative play.75
  2. Provide assistive devices, supportive technology, or assistance accessing facilities, such as restrooms.75
  3. Prepare objectives, outlines, or other materials for courses of study, following curriculum guidelines or school or state requirements.75
  4. Prepare, administer, or grade tests or assignments to evaluate students' progress.74
Hardest to automate

Where people still matter

These tasks score lowest on automation feasibility—physical presence, judgement, accountability and real-world variability all resist end-to-end automation.

  1. Guide or counsel students with adjustment problems, academic problems, or special academic interests.01
  2. Instruct and monitor students in the use and care of equipment or materials to prevent injuries and damage.02
  3. Prepare classrooms with a variety of materials or resources for children to explore, manipulate, or use in learning activities or imaginative play.03
  4. Provide assistive devices, supportive technology, or assistance accessing facilities, such as restrooms.04
  5. Prepare objectives, outlines, or other materials for courses of study, following curriculum guidelines or school or state requirements.05
Where else this work leads

Related occupations

Occupations O*NET links to this one. Relatedness reflects shared work, not a claim that these roles are safer.

See all rankings →
AI risk 61

Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, and English as a Second Language Instructors

Related work

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Beyond AI capability

Adoption and labour-market outlook

Structural factors are kept separate from raw capability so you can see what actually resists automation. Adoption pressure and labour-market resilience are still provisional models—25% of this occupation’s replacement-risk weight rests on them.

Human dependency48
Physical dependency40
Adoption pressure45
Labour-market resilience60
Methodology & sources

O*NET 30.3 occupational data interpreted through the JobsVsAI capability, automation and structural-constraint models.

Confidence82/100
CalculatedAug 21, 2026
Read methodology →