Job prospects Special Education Teacher - Elementary School in Ontario

Explore current and future job prospects for people working as a "special education teacher - elementary school" in Ontario or across Canada.

Job opportunities in Ontario

These outlooks were updated on November 29, 2023.

Prospects over the next 3 years

The employment outlook will be good for Elementary school and kindergarten teachers (NOC 41221) in Ontario for the 2023-2025 period.

The following factors contributed to this outlook:

• Employment growth will lead to several new positions.
• A moderate number of positions will become available due to retirements.
• There are a small number of unemployed workers with recent experience in this occupation.

What Types of Employers Are Out There?

• Nearly all employed in elementary schools

What are the Main Trends Affecting Employment?

• Demand strongly influenced by population size and student registration
• Enrolment in elementary schools is expected to stabilize despite recent modest declines
• Generally, changes to annual funding amounts can affect employment prospects in school boards
• Commitments to increase the number of French-language teachers should support employment for candidates with this specialization

What Skills Do I Need to Succeed?

• In order to teach in a publicly funded school in Ontario, a teacher must be certified by the Ontario College of Teachers

What Other Information Will I Find Helpful?

• Some positions may be for on-call work
• In private schools, principals and teachers are not required to be certified by the Ontario College of Teachers; however, employers often prefer candidates who are certified
• Work opportunities are usually less abundant in the summer months due to the slowdown in educational activities in this period.

Here are some key facts about Elementary school and kindergarten teachers in Ontario:

• Approximately 143,900 people work in this occupation.
• Elementary school and kindergarten teachers mainly work in the following sectors:
  • Elementary and secondary schools (NAICS 6111): more than 95%
• The distribution of full-time and part-time workers in this occupation is:
  • Full-time workers: 88% compared to 81% for all occupations
  • Part-time workers: 12% compared to 19% for all occupations
• 90% of elementary school and kindergarten teachers work all year, while 10% work only part of the year, compared to 63% and 37% respectively among all occupations. Those who worked only part of the year did so for an average of 49 weeks compared to 43 weeks for all occupations.
• The gender distribution of people in this occupation is:
  • Men: 17% compared to 52% for all occupations
  • Women: 83% compared to 48% for all occupations
• The educational attainment of workers in this occupation is:
  • no high school diploma: less than 5% compared to 9% for all occupations
  • high school diploma or equivalent: less than 5% compared to 25% for all occupations
  • apprenticeship or trades certificate or diploma: less than 5% compared to 8% for all occupations
  • college certificate or diploma or university certificate below bachelor's: less than 5% compared to 22% for all occupations
  • bachelor's degree: 63% compared to 24% for all occupations
  • university certificate, degree or diploma above bachelor level: 30% compared to 13% for all occupations

Breakdown by region

Explore job prospects in Ontario by economic region.

Source Labour Market Information | Prospects Methodology

Labour market conditions over the next 10 years

Explore current and future job prospects for people working as a "special education teacher - elementary school" Elementary school and kindergarten teachers (NOC 41221) or across Canada.

Learn more