Friday, July 1, it will be the last chance meeting for the school map in Creuse. The last technical committee of the year will record the resources allocated to schools in the department for the start of the new school year. Last week, the unions came out furious from the last meeting. They claim at least four class creationswhile the DSDEN (director of the departmental services of National Education of the Creuse) offers only one in Monteil-au-vicomte.
A few hours from the technical committee, families, teachers and mayors have therefore mobilized. In Felletin, for example, on Wednesday, around fifty parents, children, teachers and elected officials demonstrated to demand the opening of a fifth primary class. A petition which has gathered nearly 300 signatures will circulate on the market on Friday.
26 students per class: “unmanageable” with several levels
Felletin is one of the municipalities for which the unions are asking for the opening of a class. In addition to Monteil-au-vicomte, they would also like the creation of a post at Mainsat and Bonnat, to follow the increase in staff. In Felletin, the school will host seven more children at the start of the next school year. The number of students will therefore increase to 104: “We arrive on average at 26 students per class, which already seems enormous, but we must also take into account the fact that these are double-level classes, which accommodate several children who do not speak French, and students in situation disability thanks to the ULIS system”sighs Fanny Lannes, delegate of parents of students.
She believes that teaching conditions will deteriorate. However, when we compare our statistics to the rest of France, the Creuse classes are not overloaded. But for David Schmidt, the mayor of Mainsat, it’s not not just a question of numbers : “When you find yourself with a class with five levels, can you imagine the work for the school teacher? In other departments, in urban areas, there may be a larger number of students, but they are all of the same level!
The school at the heart of community life
In his town, there are only two classes from kindergarten to CM2 while the number of students will increase at the start of the next school year and go from 36 to 47. The third class had closed in 2019 “even though we had asked to keep it at the time”, annoys David Schmidt. For him, the attractiveness of the town is at stake : “At Mainsat we have a doctor, a nurses’ office, an Ehpad, a Vival, a butcher’s… Maintaining this dynamic is difficult. We are absolutely not helped by National Education!”
In Felletin, several families have recently settled, especially since the health crisis. But the risk of to see the parents abandoning the school of the commune is big, explains Fanny Lannes: “Many parents have already let it be known that they would take their children out of school if there were no class openings. unacceptable!”