In September, French pupils went back to school in a political limbo that left teachers without any real vision of their educational goals, since, despite a string of different ministers and their reforming ambitions over recent years, no concrete project has emerged. As we are putting this issue of Futuribles to bed, a new minister of education has taken over the role, but for how long and to do what? Following the interview with Fabien Truong in our last issue on the aims and purposes of education, Jean-Pierre Bellier carries the debate forward, delving deeper into the granular detail of education in the French style. What are the established teaching methods now (and which ones have been abandoned)? Has there been progress on the place of ‘soft skills’ in the learning process and in assessment? How are we to view the teacher-learner relation and promote the desire to learn in a genuinely effective universalist perspective? In short what could/should the new educational paradigms be to prepare children today for the society of tomorrow?
The article is downloadable only in French. It is not available in English.
