11/2018/07/2010 The French school system overview

2 Founding principles Mandatory schooling : from 6 to 16 Free education Secularity: religious, political and phisosophical neutrality

3 The French education system Stuctures Organisation School year organisation

4 Structures The role of the state: Departement of Education  Defining the syllabus at every school level  Organizing exams, delivering certificates, diplomas and degrees  Recruiting, training, assigning, paying and managing the teaching and administrative staff Sharing out responsabilities:building and maintenance  State  Region council  ‘Département’ council (chief admisnistrative division)  Town council UNIVERSITE LYCEE COLLEGE ECOLE

5 ‘30 académies’ school districts / Regional authorities Head of ‘académie’ the ‘Recteur’ (commissioner of Education), enforces the decisions taken by the Department of Education

6 Regions, administrative divisions and districts ‘DAREIC’ is Delegation for European and International Relations & Cooperation In the administrative division ‘inspections académiques’ are in charge of the enforcement of teaching methods The National education inspectors note the teachers and are assisted by Education counselors

7 Departement of Education Most members of the workforce are civil servants schools belong to the private system of education (17% of the school population) Primary schools TeachersPupils Secondary schools Teachersstudents junior secondary students senior secondary students vocational college students

8 Organisation ObjectivesClassEntitled Age (average) Deeper approach a foreign language learned ‘Ecole primaire’ Primary (mandatory) Middle 2nd form CM Middle 1st form CM Elementary 2nd form CE2 8-9 Elementary 1st form CE1 7-8 Fundamental learning Reading, writing, arithmetic Preparatory form CP 6-7 ‘Ecole maternelle’ Nursery school (optional) High section GS5-6 Basic learning Middle section MS4-5 Nursery school PS 3-4

9 ObjectivesClassEntitled Age (average) ‘Lycée’ senior high school (optional) Common teaching & know-how ‘Collège’ Junior high school 3 rd class th class th class th class Organisation ‘Brevet des collèges’ Road safety certificate (level 2) & ‘B2i’ Data-processing and Internet certificate A-level, SATs, ACTs, leaving Certificate, Abitur ‘Terminale’ ‘1 st ’ ‘2 nd ’ Final assessment Final Diploma ‘Baccalauréat’

10 Specifics GENERAL: ‘L’: literature ‘ES’: economy & social studies ‘S’ : sciences TECHNOLOGY: ‘STG’: Science and Technology Management ‘ST2S’: Science and Technology Health and Social ‘STI’ : Industrial Science and Technology ‘STL’: Science and Technology Laboratory ‘STVA’: Science and Technology of agronomy and life

11 Vocational and professional high school 2 training programmes 2 years Vocational diploma (BEP) Vocational training certificate (CAP) 1 training programme 3 years ‘Baccalauréat professionnel’: Professional secondary-school-leaving certificate

12 School year organisation Students’ timetable Teachers’ timetable High school organization chart Schooling organization Foreign languages in Nantes district

13 Students’ timetable Primary school 26 hours a week, 4 days a week (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday). 8:30-11:30 & 1:30-4:30 with breaks at 10:30 & 3:00 Secondary school Between 28 and 35 hours per week maximum: 8 hours a day Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday a.m., Thursday, Friday Some classes on Wednesday afternoons or Saturday mornings or

14 Teachers’ timetable Primary school teachers : 27 hours per week Secondary school teachers (certifiés): 18 hours per week except librarian teachers : 30 hours & sport teachers : 20hrs Successful candidates of advanced professional competitive examinations (agrégés): 15 hours per week

15 High school organization chart Headmaster or Principal Bursar Deputy headmaster or principal Documentation and information department Students Teachers Students Careers officer Psychologist Students School life: Education counselor School assistants Students SecretariatSocial worker Nurse

16 Schooling organization A school year starts at the beginning of september and ends at the the beginning of july Holidays: after 7 weeks at school / 2 week- holidays A school year divided in 3 terms Class meeting at the end of each term:  President: headmaster or deputy headmaster  The teachers of the class,  The students’ delegates,  The parents’ delegates,  Others: nurse / counselor…  Report sent to parents

17 Foreign languages in Nantes district Pupils start learning a foreign language in primary school, mostly English 96%, German 3,8%, Spanish 0.13%. Pupils start learning a 2 nd FL in 4 th class of secondary school. In Nantes school district 4200 pupils start learning an 3rd FL 3 rd foreign language2 nd foreign language 43%

18 European class 9% of the pupils start learning a 2 nd FL at the age of 11 in ’bilangue section’. 212 schools open CLIL called ‘European class’ FL in European class

19 Updating 2010 adapted from 3 original slide shows by: Amelie Castet (British council) Olivier Boissière ( Académie de Strasbourg) Website Académie Lyon ( lyon.fr/assistants-etrangers/systeme-educatif-francais.html ) lyon.fr/assistants-etrangers/systeme-educatif-francais.html

20 Thank you for your attention