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RESEARCH PRODUCT

L'attribution des classes aux enseignants : le cas des écoles primaires

subject

description

Assigning teachers to classrooms: The case of French primary schools - This paper reports a study which focused on teachers'assignment in French elementary school whose headmasters have no decision-making powers. Using both in-depth interviews with 18 headmasters and data about teachers and classrooms within their schools, the analysis shows that the potential for problems is significant as far as teachers are sorted into classrooms based on their preference first. When those individual preferences compete, a few basic rules apply and some arrangements should be found amongst members of the staff. Actually, this study reveals that bargaining, or at times yielding to teachers'preferences about their assignment, is the way headmasters seek to maintain organizational stability and collegiality, more than efficiency in matching teachers with classrooms.