Will AI replace Teaching Assistants, Preschool, Elementary, Middle, and Secondary School, Except Special Education?

The core of your work stays human. For you, AI is mainly an amplifier.

Task exposure to today's AI

23/100

Low exposure

This is the occupation's typical task mix. Your own score can be up to 30 points higher or lower depending on how you work: routine share, people contact, judgment and how much you already use AI.

Get your personal score

Will AI replace Teaching Assistants, Preschool, Elementary, Middle, and Secondary School, Except Special Education?

Not entirely. Today's AI tools can take on about 23% of the typical work in this occupation, mostly: prepare lesson materials, bulletin board displays, exhibits, equipment, and demonstrations. The parts that stay human include: Tutor and assist children individually or in small groups to help them master assignments and to reinforce learning concepts presented by teachers.; Supervise students in classrooms, halls, cafeterias, school yards, and gymnasiums, or on field trips.; Present subject matter to students under the direction and guidance of teachers, using lectures, discussions, supervised role-playing methods, or by reading aloud..

People who learn to use AI for the automatable parts keep the edge. The 3-phase plan below shows where to start.

Which tasks AI can take on

The largest tasks in this occupation, their share of the working week, and how much of each today's AI tools can do.

TaskAutomatable

Prepare lesson materials, bulletin board displays, exhibits, equipment, and demonstrations. 70%

Tutor and assist children individually or in small groups to help them master assignments and to reinforce learning concepts presented by teachers.AI already used 17%

Present subject matter to students under the direction and guidance of teachers, using lectures, discussions, supervised role-playing methods, or by reading aloud. 17%

Discuss assigned duties with classroom teachers to coordinate instructional efforts. 17%

Enforce administration policies and rules governing students. 12%

Supervise students in classrooms, halls, cafeterias, school yards, and gymnasiums, or on field trips. 7%

+ 22 more tasks (38% of the week) in the full test.

Your human edge

Tutor and assist children individually or in small groups to help them master assignments and to reinforce learning concepts presented by teachers.
Supervise students in classrooms, halls, cafeterias, school yards, and gymnasiums, or on field trips.
Present subject matter to students under the direction and guidance of teachers, using lectures, discussions, supervised role-playing methods, or by reading aloud.

AI tools to try

ChatGPT / Claude for lesson materialsAI quiz and feedback toolsPresentation and image generators

Related roles

A 3-phase AI learning plan

Phase 1

Materials and preparation

Lesson plans, tasks and differentiated materials with AI.
Quizzes and answer keys.
Check facts and age-appropriateness yourself.

Project

Use AI to build one week of small-group tutoring materials at three reading levels plus a 10-question quiz with answer key, fact-check every item, and log hours saved versus last term.

Phase 2

Feedback and assessment

Rubrics and feedback drafts with AI.
Spotting common mistakes across student work.
Rules for student AI use and academic honesty.

Project

Draft an AI-assisted rubric and feedback comments for one anonymised class set of 25 assignments, list the 5 most common mistakes for the teacher, and compare your marking time before and after.

Phase 3

Teaching with AI

Teach students to use AI critically.
Assignments that work with AI, not against it.
Share materials and practice with colleagues.

Project

Design and run a 30-minute lesson teaching students to fact-check AI answers, plus one AI-resistant assignment, then share both with 3 colleagues and collect their feedback.

Take the free 11-question test