The teaching profession.

Summary How do French teachers perceive their profession and its conditions of practice? We use survey data collected from nationally representative samples of middle school teachers in 2013 and 2018 to describe the evolution of their feelings about key aspects of the profession. The diversity of the students appears to be a factor that complicates the conditions of practice and reinforces the need for training around the individualization of teaching. Teachers also appear to be highly committed professionals, expressing high expectations, among the highest in terms of European comparison, with regard to student success. The proportion who say they are very stressed at work is lower than the European average. Nevertheless, classroom management and maintaining discipline are a major source of stress for teachers, especially for those who consider themselves to be the least effective in their work and for those who report a low level of job satisfaction. The Talis data also highlight the characteristics of professional environments (staff involvement in decision-making processes, collaboration within teams, autonomy, etc.) that promote teacher satisfaction.