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Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education

Occupation · SOC 25-2011.00

Instruct preschool-aged students, following curricula or lesson plans, in activities designed to promote social, physical, and intellectual growth.

Also called: Montessori Preschool Teacher · Pre-Kindergarten Teacher (Pre-K Teacher) · Teacher · Toddler Teacher · Child Development Teacher · Early Childhood Teacher · Group Teacher · Infant Teacher · Nursery Teacher · After School Teacher · Child Care Assistant Teacher · Childcare Teacher

Job family: Educational Instruction and Library Occupations

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Download .md

A source-stamped Markdown brief of this occupation — paste it into an agent, or fetch /roles/role-25-2011-00/context.md directly.

AI work map

A fast read on where AI already shows up in this occupation, where it stays a copilot, where humans remain in the loop, and what the labor market is doing. Built from observed Claude.ai conversations mapped to O*NET tasks and from published research — measures of usage and exposure, not advice or predictions that the job is going away.

Often handed to AI

Task areas most often handled directively in observed AI conversations — candidates to delegate with light review.

  • Prepare materials and classrooms for class activities. · 2.2%
  • Plan and conduct activities for a balanced program of instruction, demonstration, and work time that provides students with opportunities to observe, question, and investigate. · 2.0%
  • Organize and lead activities designed to promote physical, mental, and social development, such as games, arts and crafts, music, storytelling, and field trips. · 0.5%
See how AI is used here →

Use as a copilot

Task areas where people work with AI — iterating, learning, or checking — staying in the loop rather than handing the task off.

  • Adapt teaching methods and instructional materials to meet students' varying needs and interests. · 1.5%
  • Collaborate with other teachers and administrators in the development, evaluation, and revision of preschool programs. · 0.9%
  • Confer with other staff members to plan and schedule lessons promoting learning, following approved curricula. · 0.3%
See collaboration patterns →

Keep a human in the loop

Task areas where a human was still judged necessary in a large share of observed conversations — not a safety ruling, an observed-need signal.

  • Confer with other staff members to plan and schedule lessons promoting learning, following approved curricula. · 100.0% need a human
  • Prepare reports on students and activities as required by administration. · 97.8% need a human
  • Organize and lead activities designed to promote physical, mental, and social development, such as games, arts and crafts, music, storytelling, and field trips. · 93.9% need a human
See the boundary tasks →

46th-percentile task overlap — yet about 65,500 openings a year (+4.1% projected, BLS), and observed AI use leans 4564% copilot, not hand-off (AEI) . What exposure means →

AI & job outlook

What today's research says about this occupation's exposure to AI, how AI is actually being used in it, and where employment is headed. These are positions within published studies — measures of exposure and usage, not predictions that this job will disappear.

Exposure to current AI

Each study uses its own scale, so the raw scores are not comparable across rows — the percentile (this job's rank among all U.S. occupations with data) is the comparable figure, and sizes the bars.

Measure Rank vs all occupations Percentile Score
Overall AI exposure (Felten et al.) Moderate 48th 0.0
LLM task exposure, γ (OpenAI / Eloundou) Moderate 38th 0.4
AI assistant applicability (Microsoft) Moderate 54th 0.2

OpenAI's exposure study scores tasks three ways: with a language model alone (α 0.1), with simple added tooling (β 0.2), and including AI-powered software (γ 0.4). Higher means more of the job's tasks could be done at least twice as fast — not that they will be automated away.

Most of this job's tasks can be done remotely (Dingel–Neiman), which tends to track with higher digital and AI exposure.

Historical automation estimate (2013)

A pre-LLM (2013) estimate of how automatable this job is by computerization and robotics. Shown for historical context only — it is not part of any current AI ranking.

Frey–Osborne probability 0.0 · 5th percentile among occupations · Low

How AI is actually used in this job

Among measured AI assistant conversations mapped to this occupation (Anthropic Economic Index, 2026-01-15), these task types came up most. These are shares of observed AI conversations — not shares of the job, of worker time, or of what could be automated.

Adapt teaching methods and instructional materials to meet students' varying needs and interests. 12.9%
Prepare and implement remedial programs for students requiring extra help. 1.9%
Prepare materials and classrooms for class activities. 1.4%
Plan and conduct activities for a balanced program of instruction, demonstration, and work time that provides students with opportunities to observe, question, and investigate. 0.6%
Prepare reports on students and activities as required by administration. 0.6%
Collaborate with other teachers and administrators in the development, evaluation, and revision of preschool programs. 0.6%

Job outlook

Independent U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics employment projection for 2024–2034 — a labor-market forecast, not an AI-impact forecast.

Outlook About average · +4.1% by 2034
Projected annual openings 65,500
Employment 2024 → 2034 555,100 → 578,100

“Annual openings” counts new jobs plus replacements for workers who leave the occupation, so it can be large even when growth is modest.

Where this work sits on the global GenAI gradient

The ILO's 2025 global study scores generative-AI exposure on the international ISCO-08 occupation system, not US SOC. Bridged through the published (and approximate, many-to-many) IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 crosswalk, this US occupation corresponds to the international occupation below. Exposure here means how much of the work's tasks today's AI can attempt — task overlap, not automation, adoption, or jobs lost.

21% mean task exposure (2025)
36th percentile of 427 placed occupations
+4 pts shift 2023 → 2025
International occupation (ISCO-08) Task exposure (2025) Most tasks fall in
Early Childhood Educators · 2342 21% Not exposed

Read the whole six-band gradient on the GenAI exposure gradient page. The crosswalk is approximate: a US occupation can map to several international ones, and the ILO scores describe the international occupation, not this exact US role.

Working with AI in this job

How people actually apply AI to this occupation's tasks, from Claude.ai (Free and Pro) conversations in the Anthropic Economic Index, 2026-01-15. This is one AI assistant's consumer sample — not all AI, not the whole workforce. Autonomy and the collaboration mix are model-rated estimates; figures below the sample floor are hidden.

Augmentation vs. automation 45.6% working with AI · 41.8% handed to AI
Most common way people use AI here Directive · AI does it; you give the instruction
Typical AI autonomy 4.0 / 5 · higher = AI acts more independently
Used for work (vs. personal / coursework) 57.8%

What people delegate to AI

The role's most common tasks in AI conversations, each tagged with how people work with the AI on it. “Usage” is the share of observed conversations, not of the job.

Task How Usage
Prepare materials and classrooms for class activities. Directive 2.2%
Plan and conduct activities for a balanced program of instruction, demonstration, and work time that provides students with opportunities to observe, question, and investigate. Directive 2.0%
Adapt teaching methods and instructional materials to meet students' varying needs and interests. Iteration 1.5%
Collaborate with other teachers and administrators in the development, evaluation, and revision of preschool programs. Iteration 0.9%
Organize and lead activities designed to promote physical, mental, and social development, such as games, arts and crafts, music, storytelling, and field trips. Directive 0.5%
Prepare reports on students and activities as required by administration. Directive 0.5%
Teach basic skills, such as color, shape, number and letter recognition, personal hygiene, and social skills. 0.3%
Confer with other staff members to plan and schedule lessons promoting learning, following approved curricula. Iteration 0.3%

Where a human is still needed

Tasks where the model most often judged that a person remained necessary — a useful read on the current boundary, not a guarantee.

Confer with other staff members to plan and schedule lessons promoting learning, following approved curricula. 100.0%
Prepare reports on students and activities as required by administration. 97.8%
Organize and lead activities designed to promote physical, mental, and social development, such as games, arts and crafts, music, storytelling, and field trips. 93.9%
Prepare materials and classrooms for class activities. 93.2%
Collaborate with other teachers and administrators in the development, evaluation, and revision of preschool programs. 92.4%
Plan and conduct activities for a balanced program of instruction, demonstration, and work time that provides students with opportunities to observe, question, and investigate. 91.5%

What people most often hand AI here

Example prompts phrased from the tasks people most often delegate to AI in this occupation (Anthropic Economic Index). Each shows the underlying measured task and its share of observed AI use. They are suggested phrasings of real tasks — starting points, not endorsed instructions.

  • Help me prepare materials and classrooms for class activities.

    From: Prepare materials and classrooms for class activities. · 2.2% of measured AI use · directive

  • Help me plan and conduct activities for a balanced program of instruction, demonstration, and work time that provides students with opportunities to observe, question, and investigate.

    From: Plan and conduct activities for a balanced program of instruction, demonstration, and work time that provides students with opportunities to observe, question, and investigate. · 2.0% of measured AI use · directive

  • Help me adapt teaching methods and instructional materials to meet students' varying needs and interests.

    From: Adapt teaching methods and instructional materials to meet students' varying needs and interests. · 1.5% of measured AI use · task iteration

  • Help me collaborate with other teachers and administrators in the development, evaluation, and revision of preschool programs.

    From: Collaborate with other teachers and administrators in the development, evaluation, and revision of preschool programs. · 0.9% of measured AI use · task iteration

Tasks

All 34 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, ordered by importance. Each links to its own page with AI-exposure and observed-use detail.

Work activities

Knowledge, skills & abilities

O*NET importance rating, from 1 (not important) to 5 (extremely important).

Essential skills

Speaking 4.0
Active Listening 3.9
Learning Strategies 3.9
Reading Comprehension 3.8
Critical Thinking 3.8
Monitoring 3.8
Active Learning 3.1
Writing 3.0

Transferable skills

Instructing 4.0
Social Perceptiveness 3.8
Coordination 3.8
Service Orientation 3.6
Judgment and Decision Making 3.1
Persuasion 3.0
Complex Problem Solving 3.0
Time Management 3.0
Negotiation 2.9
Management of Personnel Resources 2.9

Abilities

Oral Comprehension 4.0
Oral Expression 4.0
Speech Clarity 4.0
Problem Sensitivity 3.9
Originality 3.8
Written Comprehension 3.6
Fluency of Ideas 3.6
Speech Recognition 3.6
Deductive Reasoning 3.5
Information Ordering 3.3
Near Vision 3.3
Written Expression 3.1
Inductive Reasoning 3.0
Far Vision 3.0
Category Flexibility 2.9
Flexibility of Closure 2.9
Selective Attention 2.9

Knowledge

Education and Training 4.0
English Language 3.8
Public Safety and Security 3.3
Customer and Personal Service 3.2
Psychology 3.1

Skills in demand

Skills employers ask for in job postings for this occupation (Lightcast), with whether each is a common or specialized skill.

Tools & technology

Example Category
Microsoft Excel Spreadsheet software Hot technology
Microsoft Office software Office suite software Hot technology
Microsoft Word Word processing software Hot technology
Appletree Computer based training software
Bloomz Desktop communications software
Children's educational software Computer based training software
ClassDojo Desktop communications software
Common Curriculum Computer based training software
EasyCBM Computer based training software
Edmodo Desktop communications software
Email software Electronic mail software
Flipgrid Video creation and editing software
Google Classroom Project management software
Google Meet Video conferencing software
Intrado SchoolMessenger Mobile messaging service software
Nearpod Multi-media educational software
Padlet Computer based training software
Schoology Computer based training software
Seesaw Multi-media educational software
Tadpoles Desktop communications software

Work context

How characteristic each condition is of the job, on O*NET's 1–5 context scale (higher = more present in day-to-day work). Each condition links to how it varies across all occupations.

Contact With Others 4.8
Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team 4.4
Indoors, Environmentally Controlled 4.3
Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams 4.3
Physical Proximity 4.0
Coordinate or Lead Others in Accomplishing Work Activities 3.8
Spend Time Standing 3.6
Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results 3.6
Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals 3.6
Freedom to Make Decisions 3.5
Frequency of Decision Making 3.5
Exposed to Sounds, Noise Levels that are Distracting or Uncomfortable 3.5
Conflict Situations 3.4
Written Letters and Memos 3.4
Importance of Being Exact or Accurate 3.4
Deal With External Customers or the Public in General 3.3
Dealing With Unpleasant, Angry, or Discourteous People 3.2
Outdoors, Exposed to All Weather Conditions 3.1
Spend Time Walking or Running 3.1
Spend Time Kneeling, Crouching, Stooping, or Crawling 3.1
Consequence of Error 3.1
Exposed to Disease or Infections 3.1
Time Pressure 3.1
Health and Safety of Other Workers 3.0
Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls 3.0
Spend Time Bending or Twisting Your Body 3.0
Telephone Conversations 2.7
Work Outcomes and Results of Other Workers 2.7
Public Speaking 2.5
Spend Time Making Repetitive Motions 2.5
Level of Competition 2.5
E-Mail 2.3
Spend Time Keeping or Regaining Balance 2.1
Spend Time Sitting 2.1
Exposed to Minor Burns, Cuts, Bites, or Stings 2.0
Importance of Repeating Same Tasks 2.0
Dealing with Violent or Physically Aggressive People 2.0
Exposed to Very Hot or Cold Temperatures 2.0
Outdoors, Under Cover 1.8
Exposed to Extremely Bright or Inadequate Lighting Conditions 1.6

How to get in

Job zone
Zone 3 — Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed
Education
Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
Typical entry-level education
Associate's degree · BLS, the typical path — not a requirement
Related experience
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
Preparation level
SVP (6.0 to < 7.0) — total schooling plus on-the-job experience.

What to study: Education , Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences . Fields of study crosswalked to this occupation (NCES CIP–SOC), not a requirement.

Education of current workers

Share of people in this occupation at each level of education.

High School Diploma 28.8%
Bachelor's Degree 17.2%
Some College Courses 12.2%
Master's Degree 12.0%
Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree) 11.6%
Post-Secondary Certificate 10.3%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate 7.9%

Interests & work styles

The interests and personal qualities O*NET associates with people who do this work.

Work styles

Dependability 8.0
Integrity 7.0
Cooperation 6.0
Social Orientation 5.0
Self-Control 4.0
Empathy 3.0

Career interests (Holland / RIASEC)

Social 7.0
Artistic 4.0
Conventional 3.6
Realistic 2.9
Investigative 2.8

Interest areas

Teaching/Education 7.0
Social Service 6.0
Personal Service 3.7
Public Speaking 3.0
Professional Advising 2.8

Wages & employment

U.S. · annual wages (BLS OEWS)

$28k10th$31k25th$37kMedian$47k75th$60k90th
Annual wages by percentile — U.S. (BLS OEWS). The light band spans the 10th–90th percentile; the darker band is the middle half (25th–75th); the line is the median.
555k2024578k2034 (proj.)+4.1% · About average
Projected U.S. employment, 2024–2034 (BLS Employment Projections). A labor-market forecast for the occupation, not an AI-impact forecast.
10th percentile $28,300
25th percentile $31,250
Median (50th) $37,120
75th percentile $46,550
90th percentile $60,070
People employed 445,080

Industries that employ this occupation

Where these workers are employed, by number of jobs (national, BLS OEWS). Pay shown is the occupation's national median, not industry-specific.

Industry Workers National median pay
Health Care and Social Assistance · Sector 332,580 $36,180
Educational Services · Sector 84,390 $50,710
Other Services (except Public Administration) · Sector 17,310 $42,340
Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation · Sector 2,370 $35,710
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers · National industry 1,720 $33,670
Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities · National industry 990 $41,470
Management of Companies and Enterprises · Sector 600 $40,300
Offices of Physical, Occupational and Speech Therapists, and Audiologists · National industry 220 $42,070
Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Abuse Centers · National industry 190 $39,890
Residential Mental Health and Substance Abuse Facilities · National industry 90 $45,740
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services · Sector 60 $39,130
Residential Intellectual and Developmental Disability Facilities · National industry 60 $38,120

Where this work is most concentrated

Industries where this occupation is far more common than in the economy as a whole. The location quotient is how many times more concentrated it is here (a value of 5 means five times its economy-wide share).

Industry Concentration Workers
Health Care and Social Assistance · Sector 4.99× 332,580
Educational Services · Sector 2.14× 84,390
Other Services (except Public Administration) · Sector 1.35× 17,310
Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers · National industry 0.95× 1,720
Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation · Sector 0.31× 2,370
Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Abuse Centers · National industry 0.21× 190
Offices of Physical, Occupational and Speech Therapists, and Audiologists · National industry 0.16× 220
Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities · National industry 0.14× 990

Part of the Education career cluster.

Exposure quadrant: AI task-overlap percentile vs Median pay Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education sits at the 46th percentile of AI task-overlap and the 7th percentile of median pay, placed here against 8 adjacent occupations on the same two axes. Lower overlap · higher pay Higher overlap · higher pay Higher overlap · lower pay Lower overlap · lower pay Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education Childcare Workers Special Education Teachers, Preschool Special Education Teachers, Middle School Special Education Teachers, Secondary School Education and Childcare Administrators, Preschool and Daycare AI task-overlap percentile → ↑ Median pay
AI task-overlap percentile (horizontal) vs. median-pay percentile (vertical), across all scored occupations. This occupation is highlighted; related occupations are plotted alongside it. Overlap measures shared tasks with AI, not automation.

Side-by-side comparisons place two occupations’ pay, preparation, skills, and AI exposure on the same page — same data, same scale, no forecast.

What you can do with this

Options the data surfaces for Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education — not advice or a forecast. Each is a real cross-link you can follow into the evidence.

Skills that travel

Capabilities this work builds that are used across many other occupations.

Paths in

How people typically prepare for this work.

Zoom out

On the global GenAI exposure gradient this work sits around the 36th percentile of 427 international occupations.

Write a report on thisheadline · factoids · citation

Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education show 46th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 65,500 annual U.S. openings

  • Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education rank in the 46th percentile (Moderate band) for AI task overlap across U.S. occupations — a measure of how much of the work today's AI can attempt, not how much is automated.Eloundou et al. (GPTs are GPTs) + Felten AIOE
  • The occupation is projected to see about 65,500 U.S. job openings per year (2024–34), counting growth and replacement — a labor-demand projection made independently of AI.BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
  • BLS projects employment to be about average (+4.1%) from 2024 to 2034.BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
  • Median annual pay is $37,120, across about 445,080 U.S. workers.BLS OEWS (May 2024)
  • Of the AI use actually observed for this work, 46% looks like augmentation (drafting, iterating, checking) rather than hands-off automation — from a Claude.ai usage sample, not a census.2026-01-15-v4-plus-2025-03-27-v2
Copy the whole kit
Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education show 46th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 65,500 annual U.S. openings

• Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education rank in the 46th percentile (Moderate band) for AI task overlap across U.S. occupations — a measure of how much of the work today's AI can attempt, not how much is automated. (Eloundou et al. (GPTs are GPTs) + Felten AIOE)
• The occupation is projected to see about 65,500 U.S. job openings per year (2024–34), counting growth and replacement — a labor-demand projection made independently of AI. (BLS Employment Projections 2024–34)
• BLS projects employment to be about average (+4.1%) from 2024 to 2034. (BLS Employment Projections 2024–34)
• Median annual pay is $37,120, across about 445,080 U.S. workers. (BLS OEWS (May 2024))
• Of the AI use actually observed for this work, 46% looks like augmentation (drafting, iterating, checking) rather than hands-off automation — from a Claude.ai usage sample, not a census. (2026-01-15-v4-plus-2025-03-27-v2)

Source: Singulariki — "Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education". https://singulariki.com/roles/role-25-2011-00
Note: AI task overlap measures what today's AI can attempt, not automation, job loss, or a forecast.

AssetsShare imageMethodology & sourcesPress & newsroomThe newsroom

Every line is built only from figures this page already shows and cites. AI task overlap means what today's AI can attempt — not automation, job loss, or a forecast.

Sources for this page

Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

Cite this page
Plain

Singulariki. "Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/roles/role-25-2011-00

APA

Singulariki. (2026). Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/roles/role-25-2011-00

BibTeX
@misc{singulariki-role-25-2011-00,
  title  = {Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/roles/role-25-2011-00}
}

Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.

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