Now well-established with nearly 7,000 participants in 7 different countries, the history of the European Teacher Survey (ETS) initiative started in 2015. Over the years, the methodology has evolved to embrace changes in the educational landscape and make it possible to compare the results among different regions. In this post, we dive into the history, methodology, and motivation behind the ETS. 

When the first survey with our teachers was conducted in 2015, the goal was to understand how some of our methods help teachers and how they could be improved. The three dimensions of learning outcomes, student engagement, and teacher efficiency – that we still see nowadays – were already present back then.  Our interest in getting closer to our teachers never changed and the initiative has transformed over the years into a strategic, high-level study covering all countries where Sanoma Learning operates. 

Since 2021, we have been using a consistent methodology, enabling fair comparisons among counties and segments, such as primary, secondary, and vocational schools. Piotr Labenz, Strategy Director at Sanoma Learning, sees outlying the similarities and differences between European countries as a key objective of ETS. 

“This is one of the strengths of the European Teacher Survey. It has been consistent for several years, covering a large number of teachers, while the three key metrics have remained the same. Changing the methodology made it easier to compare countries, which is a benefit. Before, comparing only methods was hard, but now we can compare both methods and countries.” 


Piotr Labenz, Strategy Director


The survey consists of approximately 20 questions and is conducted in January by the external consultancy GfK (Growth from Knowledge), reflecting our teachers' experiences from the previous year. The questions are shaped by the Sanoma Learning Strategy team, taking into account relevant topics in local markets and trends in the educational landscape. Once the answers are available, the European cross-country averages are weighted according to the number of primary and secondary teachers in each country. 


The participants are teachers in our learning companies' contact database in countries in which Sanoma Learning operates. 

And how does Sanoma Learning utilise the results? With the insights provided, our teams can identify the most appreciated aspects of methods and learning content across different locations. "This allows us to focus on successful solutions and apply them to benefit other markets. We identify which solutions are most supportive for teachers and disseminate those solutions to other countries.", explains Labenz. A selection of the most relevant results and trends observed is published by Sanoma Learning and available to the entire educational community. 

The participation of our teachers in the initiative is fundamental. Through their responses, it is possible to better understand teachers' work environment, needs, and opinions on key topics shaping the future of education. As a significant opportunity to collaborate, teachers' voices influence how the future of learning materials and education itself will evolve: 

"It's a chance to make a small but significant contribution by collaborating with teachers in other countries. This survey shows that teaching is a unique profession with many commonalities across borders, despite working in different cultures and educational systems. This could very well be the biggest study of its kind in Europe.", highlights our strategic director. 

About the 2025 European Teacher Survey report 

Sanoma Learning European Teacher Survey 2025 represents the voice of nearly 7,000 teachers across 7 countries. The annual survey reveals the main drivers and challenges in primary, secondary and vocational education across Europe. In this year’s edition, the report showed a clear challenge with students performing below expectations, a strong preference to use printed and digital materials together and shifting views on generative AI.

Learn more about the 2025 European Teacher Survey results: 
https://www.sanomalearning.com/en/our-solutions/european-teacher-survey/.

The report is also available in Spanish, on the website from our learning company ClickEdu: https://clickedu.net/noticias/publicado-el-informe-de-sanoma-learning-con-los-resultados-de-la-encuesta-anual-al-profesorado/