“My desire is to make all students succeed,” says Nicole Belloubet, Minister of National Education

Teachers’ unions are still very angry against the creation of “level groups” in college. The Prime Minister, Gabriel Attal, confirmed that there would be three “level groups” in sixth and fifth grade for French and mathematics of the next school year.

“My desire is to make all students succeed. This is the only purpose of the school, it is to improve their academic performance to give them more chances in life”asserts, Monday April 22, Nicole Belloubet, Minister of National Education and Youth, in “4 Vérités” on France 2. “In this context, we thought that in sixth and fifth grade, we could provide more support to all the students”especially to those “who have the most difficulty learning this or that skill”she explains. “So, we are setting up need groups that will take care of these students”continues the minister.

“I refuse social sorting”

Asked about the fears of some teachers about the fact that these groups could sideline the weakest students, Nicole Belloubet replied: “It’s not that at all, really. I say it clearly: I refuse social sorting, I refuse that a student be definitively assigned to this or that situation.” The minister assures that the students will not be “in homogeneous groups permanently” and that they “may change groups”. “And this is an autonomy that we leave to educational establishments”she specifies.