With about half of the school year finished, all of the Language Assistants have come to realize just how different the French education system is from our own, especially education in America. This post goes out to all the teachers and people working with young kids reading my blog- Mom, Jennifer, Wake professors, and L Rob to name a few.
The most noticeable difference in the French system is that it is very, well, systematic. The entire primary, middle, and high school experience is geared toward preparing the students for the Baccalaureate exam. The Bac is similar to our SATs, but way more intense and carrying much more weight on your future. One thing I do often with my students is to discuss texts on a variety of topics ranging from consumerism to fashion design to marketing, depending on their concentration. Without fail, every time I ask a student to present an article to me, their Bac training kicks in and their first words, as if scripted and ingrained into their minds, are “This is a news article from (insert source) written by (insert writer) published on (insert date). The title of the article is (insert title) and the subtitle is (insert subtitle).” While this may seem like nails on a chalkboard to many of us in the States, this is the preferred method of presentation when discussing an article in France.
Another major difference is how the teachers are allowed to treat students. While I haven’t experience this firsthand, several friends of mine in primary school have told stories of teachers telling their kids to shut up or even picking them up out of their chair and tossing them in the corner for punishment. Be reminded that this is public school. If that happened in America, teachers would find themselves in court faster than they could say “I am not a crook.”
One difference that I just came across this past week at our Fête de Noël (Christmas party) for all the teachers was that they do not shy away from bringing wine to school. The party was at noon on Thursday, and there were about 10 bottles of red, white, and rosé being passed around the teacher’s lounge. At 1pm, about half of the teachers cleared out to go to their classes while the rest stayed to continue the fête. Let’s try to introduce this to American schools and see what happens...
Different as it may be, each day is an adventure as I walk through the gates of Lycée Ernest Hemingway to see what awaits me . Ah, la France.
Ah...if only, just kidding. :) Too funny about the punishments! If I told one of my kids to shut up, the world would end in my school, I couldn't even imagine throwing them across the room!
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