Teacher skills encompass job-specific abilities, like classroom management, and soft skills, such as communication and creativity. These are necessary for any educator who wants to create an environment conducive to learning and help their students acquire knowledge.
In this article, we will explain what teacher skills are, examine the most important examples of such abilities, and show you how to effectively include them on your CV.
Key Takeaways
Teacher skills allow educators to manage classrooms, build rapport with students, set specific learning goals, assess student knowledge, and resolve conflicts.
Key hard skills for teachers are classroom management, subject expertise, educational tools, lesson planning, assessment and evaluation, computer skills, and data analysis.
Necessary soft skills are communication, patience, critical thinking, creativity, leadership, organisation, and conflict resolution.
All these abilities can be included in the skills section, CV summary, or work experience section.
What Are Teacher Skills?
Teacher skills are the combination of soft and hard skills that educators use when instructing students and managing classrooms. As a rule, they entail interpersonal, organisational, and leadership abilities, along with job-specific competencies related to the curriculum and subject expertise.
These abilities are crucial for helping students acquire knowledge, develop critical thinking, and behave appropriately in class. So, highlighting them on your CV can significantly improve your chances of getting hired for a teaching position.
Top 7 Hard Teacher Skills for Your CV
Top hard teacher skills include classroom management, lesson planning, subject expertise, educational tools, computer skills, assessment and evaluation, and data analysis.
Let’s examine them in more detail:
#1. Classroom Management
Classroom management skills entail behaviours that establish clear rules, expectations, and procedures in the classroom to ensure that learning can effectively take place. It’s not just about discipline and authority, though; teachers must employ strategies to maintain positive and respectful relationships with their students.
Classroom management skills may include the following:
Preventive discipline
Seating arrangement
Positive reinforcement
Monitoring student participation
Time management during lessons
Planning for diverse learning styles
Establishing rules and expectations
Behaviour tracking and documentation
Incorporating student choice and autonomy
Developing a consistent consequence system
And here is how you may write about these skills on your teacher CV:
Good Example
Improved students’ focus on tasks by 30% by introducing clear expectations and individualised motivation plans.
#2. Lesson Planning
Lesson planning means outlining exactly what a lesson should look like to maximise its benefits for the students. Most teachers have to plan each of their classes, which ensures that they follow the curriculum and simultaneously address student needs.
An effective lesson plan consists of the following parts:
Learning objectives
Materials and resources
Step-by-step procedure
Assessment
Timeframe for each exercise
Optional exercises
Here is how to talk about your lesson planning skills on a CV:
Good Example
Designed over 100 differentiated lesson plans aligning with the national standards, resulting in a 17% increase in student test performance.
#3. Subject Expertise
Subject expertise refers to the understanding of concepts and theories of a particular subject. So, for example, a maths teacher is expected to be knowledgeable about mathematics, while a language teacher has an excellent command of grammar rules and vocabulary.
Here are some teaching skills examples, divided into categories according to the subject:
Science: experimentation design, lab safety, data interpretation, scientific concepts
Languages: grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation instruction, cultural immersion, conversational activities
Mathematics: problem-solving methods, data analysis, mathematical concepts and theories
English: essay structuring, literary analysis, creative writing instruction
Art & Music: creative project planning, composition, technique instruction, art history
This is how you can write about subject expertise on your CV:
Good Example
Delivered high-quality instruction in mathematics, leading to a 23% improvement in average student assessment scores.
#4. Educational Tools
Educational tools are vital for successful teaching, as they make the classes more immersive and engaging for students with various learning styles. Nowadays, there are many online platforms you can use to complement more traditional tools and support knowledge acquisition.
Common educational tools include:
Props
Quizlet
Kahoot!
Moodle
Projector
Flashcards
Video tutorials
Messaging apps
Digital whiteboard
Google Classroom
Here is how you can describe these teacher skills on your CV:
Good Example
Designed and implemented interactive lessons using Kahoot! and Quizlet, which boosted student engagement by 33%.
#5. Computer Skills
Computer skills have some crossovers with educational tools, since many of these tools are digital platforms and software. However, teachers must possess computer literacy that goes beyond that; for instance, to organise their schedules, keep track of student progress, and analyse grade-related data.
With that in mind, here are some professional computer skills for teachers:
Outlook
Google Drive
Digital literacy
Google Workspace
Microsoft Office Suite
Excel or Google Sheets
School management systems
And this is how you may talk about these skills on your teacher CV:
Good Example
Used Excel to track and analyse student progress, improving academic performance insights by 22%.
#6. Assessment and Evaluation
Assessment and evaluation involve skills related to testing and grading students after they’ve completed a unit. When a teacher can successfully evaluate their students’ progress, they can get valuable insight into how effective their teaching methods are and which concepts should be clarified further.
Here are some key assessment and evaluation skills teachers must possess:
Grading consistency
Student progress tracking
Standardised test preparation
Reporting and record-keeping
Formative and summative test design
Feedback and performance evaluation
Curriculum alignment with assessment criteria
Now, this is how you can include these skills on your CV:
Good Example
Used data-driven evaluation methods to identify learning gaps and improve class performance by 33%.
#7. Data Analysis
Teachers should possess rudimentary data analysis skills to help them collect and interpret information about their students’ learning and progress. Then, they can use these insights to improve their instruction, try different teaching approaches, or address individual student needs.
These are some crucial data analysis skills for teachers:
Data visualisation
Statistical analysis
Trend identification
Data cleaning and validation
Evaluating teaching strategies
Applying insights to instruction
Communicating data to parents and colleagues
Creating intervention plans for underperforming students
To include these skills on your CV, consider the following approach:
Good Example
Interpreted data to design individualised intervention plans and improve student performance by 13%.
7 Important Soft Teacher Skills to Highlight in Your CV
Important soft teacher skills include communication, organisation, critical thinking, patience, leadership, creativity, and conflict resolution.
Let’s take a closer look at the soft skills to include on a teacher resume.
#1. Communication
Communication is perhaps the most essential skill for a teacher, as the majority of their job entails interacting with students, colleagues, and parents. As a result, they must be able to adjust to different groups, gauge the appropriate approach, and employ emotional intelligence.
In general, teachers should possess the following communication skills:
Empathy
Collaboration
Active listening
Cultural sensitivity
Building a good rapport
Non-verbal communication
Constructive feedback and encouragement
Add these skills to your CV by saying something along these lines:
Good Example
Provided constructive, personalised feedback to students, which encouraged them to improve and increased their academic confidence.
#2. Organisation
Teachers are, essentially, classroom managers, and all managers require excellent organisational skills to maximise efficiency and performance. Making and executing effective plans is the first step towards this, but adaptability and responding to issues as they arise are equally important.
Here are some useful organisational skills for teachers:
Multitasking
Task prioritisation
Time management
Pacing the instruction
Meeting curriculum deadlines
Organising teaching materials
Coordinating with support staff
Keeping a distraction-free classroom environment
And this is how you can write about these skills on your CV:
Good Example
Organised student records, lesson resources, and assessment data to maintain accuracy and compliance with school policies.
#3. Critical Thinking
Teachers need critical thinking skills to evaluate learning sources adequately, especially when supplementing official ones with their own. Furthermore, critical thinkers tend to inspire others to question and seek answers, which is a necessary trait to have when teaching others.
Critical thinking encompasses the following skills:
Analytical thinking
Assessing teaching strategies
Teaching evidence-based reasoning
Encouraging discussion and dialogue
Comparing different teaching approaches
Designing inquiry-based learning activities
Here’s how to incorporate critical thinking into your CV:
Good Example
Designed inquiry-based learning activities to promote independent thinking, boosting student engagement by 22%.
#4. Patience
Excellent teachers are usually characterised by patience and a willingness to be tactful, thoughtful, and diplomatic. They need to exhibit this skill both in the classroom, when working with students, and outside of it, when communicating with colleagues and parents.
Patience usually manifests in the following ways:
Handling parent concerns diplomatically
Remaining calm even during disruptions
Giving students time to absorb new concepts
Managing complex projects without frustration
Supporting students with slower learning paces
Maintaining composure in high-stress situations
Guiding students as they learn through trial-and-error
Here’s how you can include this soft teacher skill on your CV:
Good Example
Managed behavioural challenges with composure, reducing classroom disruptions by 10%.
#5. Leadership
Teachers must possess leadership skills that allow them to encourage and inspire students, as well as define clear goals for them to pursue. They are in charge of their class, so they need to position themselves as role models and guide their students towards successful learning.
These behaviours are characteristic of a teacher with good leadership skills:
Fostering collaboration
Leading group activities
Setting clear expectations
Motivating students’ learning
Maintaining a positive classroom environment
Making decisions about classroom resource allocation
Now, here’s how to discuss your leadership skills on a CV:
Good Example
Created a positive classroom environment that contributed to a 15% increase in student participation.
#6. Creativity
The impact of creativity on education is well-known; creative approaches to teaching foster critical thinking and help students apply their knowledge in real life. As a result, teachers should think outside the box when planning their lessons and determine how to best describe various concepts to account for different learning styles.
So, creative teachers might do the following:
Encourage self-expression
Foster critical thinking and problem-solving
Come up with strategies to improve student motivation
Think outside the box to overcome classroom challenges
Integrate technology and other educational tools into teaching
Create original learning materials according to their students’ interests
If you want to elaborate on your creativity, you may say something like this on your CV:
Good Example
Designed innovative lesson plans incorporating original learning materials, increasing student engagement by 40%.
#7. Conflict Resolution
Conflicts can be expected in a classroom, so teachers must be prepared to deal with them effectively and minimise disruptions. To do that, they must build a good rapport with the students and employ appropriate strategies to de-escalate the situation and resolve issues.
Here are some conflict resolution skills teachers should possess:
Negotiation
Active listening
Establishing clear classroom rules
Promoting respect and cooperation
Mediating disputes between students
Implementing fair disciplinary measures
Anticipating and preventing potential issues
This is how you can add these skills to your CV:
Good Example
Implemented consistent disciplinary measures, reducing student misbehaviour by 19%.
How to Showcase Teacher Skills on Your CV
To showcase teacher abilities on your CV, you can include them in the skills section, CV summary, and work experience section. However, the exact approach differs depending on where you’re adding them, and we’ll cover the most common ways below.
When listing teacher skills in the skills section, simply add them as bullet points without any additional explanations. That should look like this:
Teaching Skills Section
Skills
Grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation instruction
Google Classroom
Google Workspace
Excel
Communication
Organisation
Creativity
Leadership
However, things aren’t so straightforward in the other two sections. Namely, when adding teacher skills to your work experience section, you’ll need to highlight the achievements that demonstrate them in bullet points under each entry.
So, for instance, you could say something like this:
Teaching Skills in Your Work Experience Section
Work Experience
English Teacher XYZ Secondary School June 2017–July 2024
Delivered high-quality instruction on literature and creative writing, leading to a 17% improvement in average student assessment scores.
Designed innovative lesson plans incorporating original learning materials, increasing student engagement by 20%.
Improved students’ focus on tasks by 35% by introducing clear expectations and individualised motivation plans.
Finally, you can take a similar approach in your CV summary and highlight your most significant achievement, showcasing your teacher skills. You can also use soft skills as traits and sprinkle them throughout the rest of the summary.
So, for example:
Teaching Skills in CV Summary
CV Summary
Creative and organised English teacher with 7 years of experience delivering high-quality instruction to secondary school students. Designed innovative lesson plans incorporating original learning materials, increasing student engagement by 20%. Known for my patience, leadership, and conflict resolution.
And if you want to elaborate on your skills further, do so in a teacher cover letter; you’ll have more space to discuss your abilities and accomplishments here.
Create a Submission-Ready CV Within Minutes
If you need additional help incorporating teacher skills into your application, use our CV builder for assistance. All you need to do is follow the instructions, enter the required information, select a template, and finalise your CV. Then, you can submit it to your employer immediately!
Final Thoughts
Teacher skills are crucial for those working in the educational field, so make sure to highlight them on your CV and boost your chances of getting hired. Hopefully, our article has helped you understand how to do that effectively enough to stay ahead of the competition; all you should do is remember our tips, and you’ll be scheduling an interview in no time!
Teacher Skills FAQs
#1. How do I list teacher skills on my CV?
You can list your teacher skills on your CV in the UK by including them in the skills section, work experience section, or CV summary. Outside of the skills section, the best way to do that is to demonstrate them through measurable achievements.
#2. How do I improve my teacher skills?
You can improve your teacher skills by seeking feedback, deepening your understanding of your subject and profession, and attending workshops, seminars, and courses. Furthermore, you should try out different teaching methods and track your students’ responses; ultimately, practice makes perfect.
#3. What are the seven personal qualities of a teacher?
The seven personal qualities of a teacher are communication, organisation, patience, leadership, adaptability, creativity, and empathy. Teachers who possess all seven are typically the most effective at their job, so you should strive to develop them, too.
