Kindergarten teachers in Louisiana averaged $46,690 per year as of 2010, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This average included 3,850 kindergarten teachers, but not special education teachers, whose salary the BLS reports separately. Elementary school teachers in Louisiana had an average annual income of $46,530 per year, excluding those teaching special education.
Excluding special education and career education teachers, the average Louisiana middle school teacher earned $46,710 as of 2010, according to the government report. Secondary school teachers in mainstream classes earned an average of $48,090 per year.
Special education teachers earned more on average than those teaching in regular programs. For special education, the government combines preschool, kindergarten and elementary teachers in its 2010 survey. These 3,990 teachers in Louisiana had average annual pay of $47,830 per year. Special education teachers in middle schools averaged $48,270 per year, while those in secondary schools averaged $49,000 per year.
Career and technical education teachers in Louisiana also earn more on average than those teaching other classes. At the middle school level, such teachers averaged $48,320 per year, while at the high school level, their average annual pay came to $52,260, according to the 2010 government survey.
In the greater New Orleans area, wages for kindergarten teachers in regular classrooms averaged $48,190 as of 2010. Elementary school teachers averaged $48,490, and middle school teachers averaged $46,810. Secondary school teachers in regular classrooms averaged $49,640 per year. At the high school level, special education teachers averaged $52,340 per year, while career and technical education teachers had the highest pay of all, an annual average of $54,820.
The typical teacher in Louisiana earns less than the national average. As of 2010, the average kindergarten teacher in mainstream programs nationwide took home an annual salary of $51,550, according to the BLS. The average elementary school teacher earned $54,330 per year, and the average middle school teacher earned $54,880 per year. The average secondary school teacher earned $55,990 per year in the nation as a whole.