PAmid the many measures put forward by the Minister of National Education Jean-Michel Blanquer at the end of his “educational five-year period” rue de Grenelle, the duplication of classes of CP and CE1 is undoubtedly a standard. Did he not just recently declare in the Senate and in all modesty that in terms of duplication, “We have reached an ‘educational grail’ in certain areas” ?
At the start of the 2019 school year, all CPs and CE1s in a priority educational network (REP) and REP + [là où se concentrent les plus grandes difficultés sociales] were split in two, to which are gradually added the classes of the large kindergarten section. Beyond the communication effects, this measure nonetheless hides a reality that should seriously temper ministerial enthusiasm.
The consequences on the numbers in the other classes are concealed by a ministerial speech which is akin to propaganda. Despite what is stated in a note from the department of evaluation, foresight and performance (DEPP, which depends on the Ministry of Education) – “The duplication (…) have not been implemented to the detriment of other levels. Nor have they been carried out at the expense of rural schools, where the number of pupils per class is also decreasing ” -, the observations of territorial inspectors as generals testified to the existence of CM1 or CM2 abnormally responsible for priority education.
Stop of the system “more teachers than classes”
During missions carried out by these same inspectors, significant consequences were observed on the learning of these older students, on the teachers responsible for them (severe fatigue, repeated illnesses, etc.) as well as on the atmosphere. within schools (tensions between teachers due to a badly experienced “competition” between those who teach twelve pupils and those who teach twenty-four or more).
Classes at other levels no longer benefit from the “more teachers than classes” system. allowing, according to the needs of the whole school, to be two in a class to implement differentiated pedagogy practices, to give the possibility to students to work in small groups under the guidance of an expert teacher .
This device has been removed arbitrarily, without preliminary assessment, for the sole benefit of the split CP and CE1 classes. Set up under the previous five-year term, it had caused in all departments and all constituencies a strong commitment from the various players in training and in doing so, had been at the origin of a real professionalization of teachers on the issue of pedagogical differentiation and on practices promoting better care for students with special needs.
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