The Conversation:
Why French school curriculum and timetable reforms forced teachers onto the streets
22 May 2015
French teachers went on strike on May 19 to voice their disapproval of two major reforms that have been proposed by Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, the French education minister. The two reforms are very different: one centres on changes to the history and language curriculum and the other on schools' autonomy to manage the organisation of teaching. Yet both have sparked criticisms from teachers, unions and French intellectuals. Reforming secondary education has emerged as a recent priority in France. The most recent results of the OECD's Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), which rank countries around the world based on tests of 15-year-olds and released last December, highlight increasing inequalities in achievement between low and high achievers in France. More disturbing is the fact that, among OECD countries, France is one of the countries where a pupil's social background is one of the strongest predictors of his or her subsequent achievement.
This article was published online by The Conversation on May 22, 2015
Link to article here
Related links
Camille Terrier webpage
Education and Skills Programme webpage