4000. This is the number of unfilled positions at the end of the National Education competitions this year. A shortage of teachers which encourages rectorates to increasing use of contractors, who have not passed the CAPES (Certificate of aptitude for teaching secondary education). Arnaud, 24, taught for a year under this status in Alsace. It testifies.
Two days of training
Arnaud is 23 years old when he applies in August 2021 to teach in a vocational high school. After obtaining his baccalaureate, he followed the classic path of a history teacher, with a degree in history and a first year of a Master’s degree. The covid then turned his plans upside down, taking him away from the National Education competitions. “Becoming a contract worker was also an opportunity to test my vocation”he explains.
A few days after his candidacy, he was welcomed “with open arms, because there was a great need to teach history in vocational high school”. He did however not a lot of support before appearing in front of his classes. “We had two days of training, with teachers who taught us more about the posture of the teacher, what it is possible or not to do for the students”, he says. If these days of training shows according to him “the will to accompany us”two days is “Completely insufficient. We have group work, sharing of experience, but we do everything on the surface” he laments.
Another downside: it learns only the day before the start of the school year the classes in which he must teach in vocational high school. “Then it was the rush, to prepare for lessons. I didn’t really know what was expected. The first days were very stressful”, he concedes. Luckily, he was familiar with the themes of the first courses he was to give, particularly on the history of the industry. However, it was easier for the second classes than for the final ones “because there we are preparing for the baccalaureate, we feel the students are more stressed”.
I am one of the lucky ones, I have many colleagues who have not been supported like me
It’s not easy to be assertive either, “build a teacher posture in front of students who are 5 or 6 years younger than me”, he adds. Luckily, his first steps in teaching were in small classes of 15 students. This will no longer be the case when he teaches in the middle school class later the same year. “I was in front of 25/30 students who hadn’t had history lessons for a long time. We were also at the end of the year, where it is sometimes harder for students to concentrate.”
Throughout his baptism of fire, Arnaud was able to count on the support of the teaching teams. An essential element for its success. “I am one of the lucky ones, I have many colleagues who have not been accompanied like me”, he believes. He will therefore be back for a year as a contract worker, before trying the CAPES in the future. “It’s a real advantage to be contractual in terms of geographical location in particular. We are not obliged to work in another region for example. But passing the competition allows you to work in less precarious conditions.”