Dive Brief:
- Teaching-related occupations were the fastest-growing jobs in seven different states, according to an analysis of data from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics conducted by SmartAsset. The firm analyzed raw numbers of people employed in each state from 2012 to 2016.
- Postsecondary teachers saw the highest level of growth in four of the states or areas (Illinois, South Carolina, Virginia and Washington, DC), and in these states, the new postsecondary education hires tend to make at least $70,000 a year.
- The amount of compensation varied depending on the kind of educational job. While preschool special education teachers tended to be paid a lot, one needed sufficient education to be qualified for those positions. In Connecticut, the average preschool special ed teacher made a little under $70,000.
Dive Insight:
According to the BLS, education can be a dependable profession with a wide variety of job opportunities. The differing needs for prior education and diversity of talents may be one of the reasons the education profession continues to be a vibrant source of employment in some states. Applicants may also be attracted by (depending on the particular job) good benefits and dependable job security, and it could also be seen as a profession whose existence is not wholesale threatened by emerging technology (it is unlikely, for example, AI will be able to replace a kindergarten educator). However, support staff in the education profession could be endangered by increased automation, and those jobs tend to be the lower-paying.
While education may continue to be a job creator, there is still the issue of teacher retention, which schools across the nation must constantly face. And the news that education was the fastest-growing sector in seven states is all the more surprising considering the national picture of teacher supply is somewhat bleak. Learning Policy Institute President Linda Darling-Hammond said in that NPR interview that the crisis can vary from state to state, so the individual state upticks could be accounted for if those states contain more consistent and higher-paying educational jobs.