France braces for fresh school protests as student movement tests momentum

Following several school blockades on Monday morning, students are planning a “fifth act” of protests on Tuesday, in what could prove a decisive moment for a movement that the government is hoping will lose momentum, especially ahead of a two-week school break that starts next week.

Since the first protests on 17 September, high school students have been blocking their schools to demand better learning conditions, the renovation of school buildings and the scrapping of the Parcoursup university admissions platform.

After initially focusing the maintaining public order and shutting down the blockades, the government has started to respond to the complaints in particular, though they have failed to convince student organisations.

France's Prime Minister Lecornu to address the nation over student protests

'Disconnected' solutions

After last week's demonstrations, Education Minister Édouard Geffray announced that3,000 substitute teachers would soon be deployed to more than 500 high schools facing the most severe staff shortages.

The announcement was “disconnected from the realities on the ground”, said Sophie Vénétitay, secretary-general of the Snes-FSU, the main union representing secondary school staff, speaking on France 2 television on Monday.

She noted that some teachers “had been asked to cover lessons in a subject other than their own”.

According to the government, the measures presented so far will cost several tens of millions of euros this year.

“As long as there isn't €10 billion on the table, we will continue to mobilise,” said Sabrine Kharbach, spokesperson for the Union Étudiante student union.

French students return to streets despite government bid to ease crisis

Pricing out changes

On Sunday Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said that the consultation platform the government set up for secondary school students on 5 October had received 76,500 submissions so far.

Of those, 71 percent pointed to difficulties with scheduling, while half cited problems with the school buildings, like leaks, mould or lack of insulation.

"These are concrete concerns. They call for equally concrete responses,” Lecornu wrote on X.

He said the government would table amendments to the 2027 draft budget, which is being debated in parliament this week, to incorporate “some of the proposals put forward” on the platform.

The submissions would also be reviewed district by district and then school by school, with the aim of providing “tailored responses”, he sad.

The consultation platform echoes the Great Debates organised during the Yellow Vest protests, which generated grievance registers, whose contents were not immediately reported back to the public.

Hundreds of French schools closed as students maintain protest pressure

Strikes and marches

Six education unions have accused Lecornu of having announced “nothing concrete” after the student protests last week, and are calling on staff to take action Tuesday.

In their view, “the social movement is now in a strong position”.

The CGT union will once again “be there to protect this mobilisation, which is in the public interest”, said leader Sophie Binet.

In higher education and research, a separate alliance of unions is also calling for strike action on Tuesday, urging staff to demonstrate “alongside young people across France”.

The FSE staff union called in a post on X for demonstrators in Paris to march from 2pm from the Hôtel de Ville to the Prime Minister's residence at Matignon.

Another demonstration, organised by Unef student union, has been announced for Sunday at Place d'Italie.

Demonstrations are also planned in other French cities and school blockades are also expected to continue.

(with newswires)