TABLE OF CONTENTS
Teacher Resume
Summary Examples
Your resume summary sits at the top of your resume and is often the first information a hiring manager reads about you. So, make it count!
Recruiters spend an average of seven seconds viewing your resume. Your professional summary must make a quick but convincing case for why you deserve the job.
A well-crafted resume summary includes two to four sentences highlighting your unique organizational contributions. Consider it a sales pitch that showcases your key qualifications.
By emphasizing your most relevant skills and experience, you demonstrate to potential employers the value you can add if hired.
Teachers with over three years of work experience should use a resume summary.
If you’re a less experienced teacher, fresh out of school or with fewer than three years in the classroom, use a resume objective statement instead.
Next, we’ll review some teacher professional summary examples — one failing and one passing — to give you some advice on how to perfect yours:
Good example:
“Inspired teacher brings 11+ years experience as a high school history teacher with a track record of helping AP students. As evidenced, 83% of my AP European History students scored a four or higher on their exams over the past three years. Student motivation, interactive lessons and parent engagement have been the foundation of my success.”
Why this example passes:
- Feature candidate’s success statistic to grab attention. Numbers add detail about how big the results you deliver are, e.g., test scores, passing rate and more.
- Shows career length, 11 years.
- Mentions employer-desired skills: student motivation and interactive lessons.
Bad example:
“Dedicated teacher with a kind presence and a great knack for connecting with fourth graders. My lesson-planning skills are top-notch, and I use positive discipline methods. I’m great about communicating to parents and improving poor student performance.”
Why this example fails:
- Doesn’t include any numbers that quantify teacher’s performance
- Uses vague descriptions and skills.
- Doesn’t include years of teaching experience.
The Fastest Way to Write Your
Teacher Professional Summary
Most teachers have excellent communication skills, so if you want to stand out, you must demonstrate this with an attention-grabbing professional summary. For expert guidance in writing a compelling professional summary, try LiveCareer’s Resume Builder. It’s an automated tool that can help you complete a resume in 15 minutes!
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Enter the details about the job title you held. The builder comes preloaded with auto-suggested content written by certified professional resume writers (CPRW).
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All you have to do is choose the summary phrases that best frame your experience. It’s like having a professional do it for you!
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Teacher Resume Work
Experience Examples
The most important part of a teacher’s resume is the work experience section. It’s essential to nail this section to write a good resume. Hiring managers want to know where you’ve taught and what you achieved in the classroom. This is where you get down to what you’ve accomplished in past roles. Use resume action verbs to describe your resume accomplishments and bring them to life. See good and poor work experience samples:
Good example:
Rolling Meadows Middle School I Rolling Meadows, IL I 8/2018-current
- Improve average student IAR English Language Arts test scores 4% overall since my first year.
- Instruct 7th-grade language arts classes with sizes ranging from 20-25 students.
- Create highly individualized lesson plans to accommodate different learning styles.
- Recognized with the 2021 D214 “Innovator Award” for multimedia student essay project.
Why this example passes:
- Numbers and statistics add detail and quantify the results this teacher delivers: 4% improvement and a class size of 20-25.
- Good use of strong words and active language.
- References specialized value teacher provides with “individualized lesson plans.”
Bad example:
Emily Dickinson Elementary I Redmond, WA I 4/2022-present
- Led second-grade classroom in lessons, activities and assignments.
- Held after-school tutoring sessions for underperforming students.
- Communicated student improvement needs to parents.
- Assigned homework and daily tasks to reinforce material.
Why this example fails:
- Lacks numbers or statistics.
- Describes general tasks, not teaching achievements or career highlights.
- Uses active verbs, but doesn’t focus on results.
Teacher Resume Skills Examples
Here are 18 sample resume skills for teachers:
- Enthusiasm
- Computer skills
- Communication
- Leadership
- Respectfulness
- Empathy
- Lesson planning
- Cultural competency
- Spreadsheet proficiency
- Discipline
- Critical thinking
- Positive reinforcement
- Stamina
- Patience
- Creative lessons
- Digital literacy
- Classroom management
- Attention to detail
You should sprinkle hard skills, soft skills and interpersonal skills throughout your resume. Include them in your professional summary, work experience blurbs and a dedicated skills section.
Examples of Additional Teacher Resume Sections
Your resume must include the five main sections: contact information, professional summary, work experience, skills and the education section. However, you can also add different sections to show off more achievements.
Here are some examples of optional teacher resume sections that you could add to provide greater detail:
- Certifications
- References
- Awards and honors
- Accomplishments
- Overview
- Professional skills
- Technical skills
- Hobbies and interests
- Languages
- Projects
- Volunteer work
Extra sections help you accurately showcase all the qualifications that make you an excellent teacher. Nevertheless, stuffing your resume with irrelevant details will diminish the impact of your relevant experiences.
How to choose a resume format
0-3
Years of experience
Functional formats
- Focus on skills.
- Best for first-time teachers who lack work experience.
- Good for people re-entering workforce.
- May omit dates in the work history section.
Organization:
- Skills listed above work experience.
3-10
Years of experience
Combination formats
- Balance skills and work history.
- Ideal for mid-career teachers.
- Suitable for career changers and people seeking promotion.
Organization:
- Skills next to or above work experience.
10+
Years of experience
Chronological formats
- Put the most focus on work history.
- Best for teachers with a long, steady career.
- Most popular format.
- Preferred by recruiters.
Organization:
- Work experience listed above skills.
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