Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, and English as a Second Language Instructors
Overview
Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, and English as a Second Language Instructors has a national median salary of $61,540 per year, with -13.9% projected job growth from 2025–2035. The Bureau of Labor Statistics lists a bachelor's degree as the typical education needed to enter this occupation.
Description
Teach or instruct out-of-school youths and adults in basic education, literacy, or English as a Second Language classes, or in classes for earning a high school equivalency credential.
Work Values
- Relationships
- Independence
- Achievement
Work Styles
Responsibilities
Tasks
- Observe and evaluate students' work to determine progress and make suggestions for improvement.
- Observe students to determine qualifications, limitations, abilities, interests, and other individual characteristics.
- Establish clear objectives for all lessons, units, and projects and communicate those objectives to students.
- Adapt teaching methods and instructional materials to meet students' varying needs, abilities, and interests.
- Prepare students for further education by encouraging them to explore learning opportunities and to persevere with challenging tasks.
Work Activities
- Thinking Creatively
- Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others
- Coaching and Developing Others
- Training and Teaching Others
- Making Decisions and Solving Problems
- Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
- Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work
- Developing Objectives and Strategies
- Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships
- Working with Computers
Detailed Work Activities
- Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
- Translating or explaining what information means and how it can be used.
- Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills.
- Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
- Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
- Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
- Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
- Establishing long-range objectives and specifying the strategies and actions to achieve them.
- Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
- Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
T-A-S-K
Technology, Abilities, Skills & Knowledge
Technology Skills
- Office suite software
- Computer based training software
- Multi-media educational software
- Spreadsheet software
- Electronic mail software
Abilities
- Oral Expression
- Written Comprehension
- Written Expression
- Oral Comprehension
- Speech Clarity
Skills
- Instructing
- Active Listening
- Learning Strategies
- Reading Comprehension
- Speaking
Knowledge
- English Language
- Education and Training
- Customer and Personal Service
- Administrative
- Administration and Management
Education
Education Levels of Current Workers
The Bureau of Labor Statistics lists a bachelor's degree as the typical education needed to enter this occupation. The chart below shows the highest level of education held by people already working in this field, ages 25 and older. It includes workers who earned more education than the job requires and workers who entered the field under earlier requirements, so the largest bar is not the entry requirement. For example, if someone finished a master's degree and then started working in this field, they are counted under “Master's degree” here, but the job itself typically asks for a bachelor's degree.
Certificates
Certifications applicable to Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, and English as a Second Language Instructors:
| Certificate name | Certifying Organization | Type |
|---|---|---|
| AAPPL Rater Certification | American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages | D |
| ACTFL Limited Oral Proficiency Interview Certification (OPI) | American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages | D |
| ACTFL Listening Proficiency Test (LPT) | American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages | D |
| ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) | American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages | D |
| ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interview - Computer (OPIc) | American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages | D |
| ACTFL Reading Proficiency Test (RPT) | American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages | D |
| ACTFL Writing Proficiency Test (WPT) | American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages | D |
| Citrix Certified Sales Professional (CCSP) | Citrix Systems Incorporated | D |
Income & Employability
Income Percentile
The median (50th percentile) is the middle wage; 10% earn less than the low figure and 10% earn more than the high figure.
| Low (10%) | $41,810 |
| Median (50%) | $61,540 |
| High (90%) | $98,030 |
Income by Experience
How pay typically grows from entry level (0–2 yrs) to expert (8+ yrs).
| Entry (0–2 yrs) | $55,343 |
| Mid (3–5 yrs) | $63,061 |
| Senior (6–8 yrs) | $69,064 |
| Expert (8+ yrs) | N/A |
Employability
There are currently 41,100 jobs in this career path (2025). That number is projected to change to 35,400 by 2035, a -13.9% change.
-13.9% growthVideo Resources
Training Programs
11 programs at 2 schools on Career School App prepare students for a career as Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, and English as a Second Language Instructors, including Teaching (11).
- Art EducationAcademy of Art University · San Francisco, CAMaster Degree · 60 units
- Specialized Career Education, ComprehensiveEmerald Coast Technical College · DeFuniak Springs, FLCertificate · 900 clock hours (approximately 30 weeks)
- Art EducationAcademy of Art University · San Francisco, CAMaster Degree · 36 units
- Specialized Career Education, ExtendedEmerald Coast Technical College · DeFuniak Springs, FLCertificate · 1,800 clock hours (approximately 60 weeks)
- Art EducationAcademy of Art University · San Francisco, CABachelor Degree · 120 units
- Art Education & Art HistoryAcademy of Art University · San Francisco, CABachelor Degree · 138 units
- Art Education & Fine ArtAcademy of Art University · San Francisco, CABachelor Degree · 138 units
- Art Education, Track 1Academy of Art University · San Francisco, CAMaster Degree · three semesters
- Art Education, Track 2Academy of Art University · San Francisco, CAMaster Degree · 36 units
- Art Teaching, Track 1Academy of Art University · San Francisco, CACertificate · two semesters
- Art Teaching, Track 2Academy of Art University · San Francisco, CACertificate · 30 units
Related Careers
This site incorporates information from O*NET Web Services by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). O*NET® is a registered trademark of USDOL/ETA. Used under the CC BY 4.0 license.
Certification, licence and career video information is sourced from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (DOLETA) and the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED).
Wage, employment and outlook figures are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) and the Employment Projections program. Figures describe the occupation, not any particular program or graduate.
Career cluster definitions are from Advance CTE.
Pay-by-experience bands are from Lightcast (as recent as July 2025).