Teacher Assistants
Skills & Knowledge
Most Important Skills for Teacher Assistants
- Understanding How People Learn—Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
- Being Aware of Others—Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Reading—Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
- Coordinating with Others—Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Learning New Things—Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Listening—Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Monitoring Performance—Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Speaking—Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Teaching—Teaching others how to do something.
- Thinking Critically—Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Most Important Knowledge Areas for Teacher Assistants
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Geography—Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- Clerical—Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
- History and Archeology—Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- 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.
- Philosophy and Theology—Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- 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.
Interests
Different careers may be a good fit for your personality or interests. This career is:
- Social—Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others.
- Conventional—Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.
Learn more about your interests. Take the MnCareers Interest Assessment.
Describe Your Skills
People who have worked in this career typically perform the following tasks.
These statements can help a prospective employer understand what you can do, on a resume or during an interview.
- Helping and caring for people.
- Communicating with supervisors, co-workers, or people that work under you.
- Creating and maintaining interpersonal relationships.
- Training and teaching other people.
- Collecting information from different sources.
- Monitoring information from a variety of sources to find problems.
- Organizing, planning, and prioritizing work.
- Making decisions or solving problems.
Careers that Use Similar Skills
The following careers use skills, knowledge, and abilities that are similar to those used for Teacher Assistants.
View more careers in the Education and Training cluster
View more careers in the Teaching and Training pathway
This page includes information from the O*NET 24.2 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Source: You can learn about our data sources in the About Us section.
