What does a Secondary School Teacher do?

Teach one or more subjects to students at the secondary school level. Day to day that includes work like prepare materials and classrooms for class activities and Instruct through lectures, discussions, and demonstrations in one or more subjects, such as English, mathematics, or social studies.

What skills should a Secondary School Teacher put on a resume?

O*NET rates Instructing, Speaking, Active Listening, Learning Strategies, and Reading Comprehension among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.

What software should a Secondary School Teacher list?

Software recorded for this occupation includes ABC programming language, Blackboard software, Common Curriculum, Desmos, and Email software. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.

What other job titles cover Secondary School Teacher work?

O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation, including Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education, English Teacher, Mathematics Instructor, and Math Instructor. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

What qualifications does a Secondary School Teacher need?

In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 53% reported their level of education as "Bachelor's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

Will this resume pass an ATS for a Secondary School Teacher role?

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Secondary School Teacher resume example

A resume for a Secondary School Teacher needs to show the work itself: teach one or more subjects to students at the secondary school level. Day to day that means work like this: prepare materials and classrooms for class activities; instruct through lectures, discussions, and demonstrations in one or more subjects, such as English, mathematics, or social studies. Recruiters and applicant tracking systems both read for the tasks and tools this role actually involves, so the strongest resume names them in your own experience rather than describing the job in the abstract. Below are the tasks O*NET records for this occupation, the software and tools it uses, the titles it is advertised under, and the skills worth naming if they are genuinely yours.

Also advertised as

The same job is posted under many titles. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education
English Teacher
Mathematics Instructor
Math Instructor
Social Studies Teacher
Teacher
Art Teacher
High School Science Teacher
History Teacher
Science Teacher
Secondary Teacher
Spanish Teacher
ESL Instructor
ESL Teacher
High School Math Teacher
Math Teacher
PE Instructor
PE Teacher

O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation in total.

What this work actually involves

Tasks recorded for this occupation, in O*NET's words. If your experience covers one of these, it belongs on your resume in your own words.

Prepare materials and classrooms for class activities.
Instruct through lectures, discussions, and demonstrations in one or more subjects, such as English, mathematics, or social studies.
Establish clear objectives for all lessons, units, and projects, and communicate those objectives to students.
Establish and enforce rules for behavior and procedures for maintaining order among students.
Adapt teaching methods and instructional materials to meet students' varying needs and interests.
Maintain accurate and complete student records as required by laws, district policies, and administrative regulations.
Observe and evaluate students' performance, behavior, social development, and physical health.
Plan and conduct activities for a balanced program of instruction, demonstration, and work time that provides students with opportunities to observe, question, and investigate.
Confer with parents or guardians, other teachers, counselors, and administrators to resolve students' behavioral and academic problems.
Assign and grade class work and homework.
Prepare, administer, and grade tests and assignments to evaluate students' progress.
Prepare students for later grades by encouraging them to explore learning opportunities and to persevere with challenging tasks.

32 tasks are recorded in total; these are the most central.

Example bullets for this role

Built from this occupation's own tasks. The brackets stay empty on purpose: we will not invent a number for you, and a fabricated metric is the fastest way to lose an interview you had already won.

Prepare materials and classrooms for class activities, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Instruct through lectures, discussions, and demonstrations in one or more subjects, such as English, mathematics, or social studies, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Establish clear objectives for all lessons, units, and projects, and communicate those objectives to students, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Establish and enforce rules for behavior and procedures for maintaining order among students, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].

Software used in this role

Recorded for this occupation by O*NET. An applicant tracking system matches the exact product name, so write the tool the way the posting writes it.

ABC programming language
Blackboard software
Common Curriculum
Desmos
Email software
Flipgrid
Geogebra
Google Classroom
Google Drive
Google Meet
Instructional software
Logo design software
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Office software

24 software entries are recorded in total.

Tools and equipment

The physical equipment this occupation is recorded as using. Worth naming when a posting asks for it by name.

Bunsen burners
Computer data input scanners
Computer laser printers
Desktop computers
Digital video cameras
Dissection scalpels
Document cameras
Glass beakers
Interactive whiteboards
Laboratory heating plates
Laptop computers
Liquid crystal display LCD projectors

Skills an ATS reads for

Worth naming only if they are genuinely yours. Keyword overlap is one input to a resume's score, not a verdict.

lesson planning
classroom management
curriculum development
assessment
differentiated instruction

What this job rates as most important

O*NET rates every skill for importance to this occupation. These are the highest rated, in order.

01Instructing
02Speaking
03Active Listening
04Learning Strategies
05Reading Comprehension
06Critical Thinking
07Monitoring
08Social Perceptiveness
09Judgment and Decision Making
10Writing

Knowledge areas

The subject knowledge this occupation draws on, rated by importance.

English Language
Education and Training
Psychology
Computers and Electronics
Customer and Personal Service
Public Safety and Security
Mathematics
Sociology and Anthropology

What qualifications people in this job have

From O*NET's survey of people doing this work. This is what postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

53%Bachelor's Degree
24%Master's Degree
15%Post-Baccalaureate Certificate, awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.

What level this role is pitched at

O*NET places this occupation in “Considerable Preparation Needed”. Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.

Common questions

What does a Secondary School Teacher do?: Teach one or more subjects to students at the secondary school level. Day to day that includes work like prepare materials and classrooms for class activities and Instruct through lectures, discussions, and demonstrations in one or more subjects, such as English, mathematics, or social studies.
What skills should a Secondary School Teacher put on a resume?: O*NET rates Instructing, Speaking, Active Listening, Learning Strategies, and Reading Comprehension among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.
What software should a Secondary School Teacher list?: Software recorded for this occupation includes ABC programming language, Blackboard software, Common Curriculum, Desmos, and Email software. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.
What other job titles cover Secondary School Teacher work?: O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation, including Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education, English Teacher, Mathematics Instructor, and Math Instructor. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Secondary School Teacher need?: In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 53% reported their level of education as "Bachelor's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.
Will this resume pass an ATS for a Secondary School Teacher role?: No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Related roles

Occupations O*NET records as closest to this one, and worth looking at if this search is not moving.

What this page cannot tell you

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer’s ATS is configured, including ours.
This page makes no claim about pay, demand or how many people hold this job. O*NET does not publish that here and we will not estimate it.
Keyword overlap is one input to a resume’s score, not a verdict on you. A resume that names skills you do not have is worse than one that names fewer.

If this is the job you are aiming at, the guide to tailoring a resume covers how to aim one posting properly, and building and exporting a resume here is free.

Occupation data from the O*NET 29.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. SpartanResume is not endorsed by USDOL/ETA.