The controversy arising from the private enrollment of the children of the new Minister of National Education, Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, has relaunched the debate on this choice, which concerns nearly one in five students in France.
A textbook case for the new government. Just appointed Minister of National Education, Amélie Oudéa-Castéra is at the heart of a controversy linked to the registration of her children at the Stanislas school, a private Catholic establishment in Paris, also targeted by an administrative investigation, notably for suspicions of homophobia. To justify her choice, the minister first mentioned “lots of hours not seriously replaced” during the six months his eldest spent in a public school. A version quickly undermined. Guest of France 2, Wednesday January 17, the minister recognized that “the statistical reports of the rectorate” And “the speech” of his son’s ex-teacher, who defended himself against any absence, “were wrong”.
This controversy has shone the spotlight on a practice that is far from anecdotal: in 2022, in France, more than two million students, or 17.6% of school children, were welcomed in some 7,500 private establishments under contract, according to a report from the Court of Auditors. A slightly increasing trend in recent years, since the proportion of students educated in the private sector was only 16.6% in 2011, notes the institution. But why does private education appeal to so many parents?
Vacancies and contractual replacements as foils
“Among their motivations, we can actually see the lack of replacements among the public increasing” , confirms to franceinfo Marie Duru-Bellat, sociologist specializing in education issues. In her eyes, beyond the controversy, Amélie Oudéa-Castéra raised “a real problem”. “We have the impression that public schools are sinking”points out Justine, a civil servant, to justify the registration of her 3-year-old daughter in a private school in Villeurbanne (Rhône). “Teachers are exhausted and perhaps less invested than before, or their working conditions are more difficult, so that creates absences”she believes. “The private sector is much less affected by strikes by teachers, canteen and daycare staff”adds Anne-Sophie, mother of three children, including one in the private sector. “Even if we can understand their motivations, when you are a working parent, after a while, it wears you down.”
“Private education is used strategically by parents when they encounter difficulties in public.”
Marie Duru-Bellat, sociologistat franceinfo
“There are more vacancies in the public sector than in the private sector, because working conditions there are more difficult”explains Pierre Merle, sociologist specializing in school issues and educational policies. “When you take the competitive exam to become a teacher, you are almost sure to find yourself in a priority education establishment, with students in difficulty, far from home”, explains this professor emeritus at the National Higher Institute of Teaching and Education of Brittany. Gold “the more difficult the working conditions of teachers, the more sick leave there is”, he emphasizes. Conversely, “in the private sector, you have students of a better level and an assignment often closer to where you live”.
To try to remedy the shortage of teachers, which is glaring at the start of each school year, the Ministry of National Education largely resorts to the employment of contract workers, but this solution acts as a repellent for many of the parents interviewed: “To respond to a vocational crisis, we open positions to people who have never studied for it, it’s nonsense”Anne-Sophie is indignant.
An image of excellence maintained by sorting students
Families also adopt “avoidance strategies” of certain establishments whose level they consider insufficient for their children, notes sociologist Marie Duru-Bellat. Laurie-Anne and her husband thus chose to enroll their two children, aged 8 and 13, in the private sector when they left Pau (Pyrénées-Atlantiques) for Versailles (Yvelines). “The home school had a low academic level and an unsatisfactory general student attitude”justifies the mother, who then plans to return her children to a public high school.
Recourse to the private sector is then perceived by parents as an investment in the educational and professional future of their children. “I’m not looking for them to go to Polytechnique, I just want them to have the right foundations, to give them every chance”testifies Sandra, mother of three children in Bois-d’Arcy (Yvelines).
“We wanted to give them the best chance, so that they could develop good work habits.”
Laurie-Anne, mother of two children in private schoolat franceinfo
“The academic results of private education under contract appear, on the whole, more favorable than those of public education”, confirms the Court of Auditors in its report. But this success is mainly linked to “the social origin of students, more favorable in private establishments” this being “strongly correlated” with school results. If we ignore this factor, the performance of establishments “is relatively close in the public and in the private sector under contract”notes the Court of Auditors.
“It’s easier to get good results when you select good students”, summarizes Pierre Merle. Unlike public establishments, which have the obligation to welcome all children in their geographical area, those in the private sector can in fact choose which ones they accept. This sorting at registration continues throughout schooling, “students at a slightly weak level are sometimes accepted in the final year subject to taking the baccalaureate as a free candidate”so as not to lower the results of their establishment, specifies the sociologist.
This image of excellence put forward by the private sector convinces certain parents to enroll their children there from kindergarten, like Justine or Sandra. A practice encouraged by the Blanquer law, which has made education compulsory from the age of 3 since 2019, and allowed private education to claim financial aid from the municipalities from this age, and no longer only from the age of 6 , recalled Release from the announcement of this reform in 2018. Private schools which until then did not offer kindergarten education, due to lack of profitability, were thus able to launch themselves and attract families from their first steps at school. children.
Between oneself and the promise of “good company”
In addition to an increased presence of teachers and a good academic level, families who use private education also come to look for a social space, notes Marie Duru-Bellat: “Parents want their children to have good company. In private education, they come to find their audience, which is an audience that resembles them.” Alexandra, whose daughter goes to a private school in Versailles, recognizes that she and her husband have “the feeling of being a little more between us” than at public school, and to rub shoulders with “parents who have an education similar to ours”.
This homogeneity is also reflected in the teaching provided. The private school where Sarah enrolled her eldest daughter, in Lyon, is a Catholic establishment (like the vast majority of the private sector under contract), with which she believes she shares “the same values”. For her part, Sandra is delighted that her children’s teachers practice “an old-fashioned education, with real books and not tablets”. Many parents interviewed themselves spent at least part of their schooling in the private sector.
“We come from two fairly Catholic families. For us, it was extremely important that our children could grow up in a school where we open them to the faith.”
Sarah, mother of a daughter who attends a private schoolat franceinfo
For other parents, particularly in the west of France where private schools are historically very numerous, the departure of the public is sometimes simply a question of practicality. “The distance between our house and the school was the same for public and private, but the private school was next to a tram stop, and in the direction of my husband’s work”underlines Maud, whose youngest daughter, aged 13, attends a private college in Nantes. “The private schools in my town did not have classes on Wednesday mornings: it was easier for me to find an all-day care solution than to have to run at midday to pick up my daughter”argues Stéphanie, who lives in Guyancourt (Yvelines).
Private school, however, remains an economic privilege – even if many establishments scale their tuition fees according to parents’ income – and geographical. “In Paris and the West, the offer is very dense. But in the provinces, families do not always have the choice”underlines Marie Duru-Bellat.
Between public and private, some parents nevertheless remain torn. “I am convinced of the importance of public service, my work leading me to work in local authorities”says Jessica, cultural actions coordinator, whose daughter attends a private school in Meudon (Hauts-de-Seine). “But I cannot jeopardize his school education, under the pretext that the means are not up to what the public expects.” And to recognize: “That said, it’s certain that if everyone sends their children to private school, it’s the end of public school…”