Schools in France: What is changing in 2026-27
The focus this year is on basic skills
The 2026-27 school year will focus on consolidation and a ‘back to basics’ approach, with the government seeking to strengthen pupils’ core skills while introducing new rules on mobile phones and school safety.
Education Minister Edouard Geffray has said schools should concentrate on reading, writing and mathematical reasoning.
The new school year begins on September 1.
Focus on core skills
Teachers are being encouraged to emphasise vocabulary and extended writing throughout primary education, moving away from fill-in-the-gap exercises in favour of complete sentences and longer texts.
The government argues these skills are increasingly important as pupils use artificial intelligence, saying strong language skills will help them use AI critically rather than become dependent on it.
Revised programmes in French, maths, citizenship education and modern languages are also being introduced across different year groups.
Primary schools are expected to strengthen mental arithmetic and problem-solving, while secondary schools are to encourage more girls to pursue science and engineering.
Schools are being invited to examine whether unconscious bias in classroom participation, assessment and careers advice contributes to the gender gap in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects.
Phones banned in lycées
The government is also extending restrictions on mobile phones.
After bans in primary schools and the ‘digital pause’ arrangements in collèges, pupils in lycées will now be expected to complete their schooling without using phones during the school day.
President Emmanuel Macron has promulgated the law containing the lycée phone ban, meaning it can take effect from the start of the new school year.
Pupils will still be able to carry phones, but they must be switched off and kept in their bags. Phones can be confiscated if the rule is broken.
Schools can provide exemptions where phones are needed for educational purposes or for the proper running of the school. They can also adapt the rules in their internal regulations for specific circumstances, such as use of phones for paying for school meals or by boarders outside teaching hours.
The measure follows the introduction of similar restrictions in primary schools and collèges.
However, school leaders have warned that some establishments are not ready to enforce the new rules. Schools must amend their internal regulations and some have had little time to prepare.
The government had also planned to ban social media access for under-15s, but the Constitutional Council rejected that part of the legislation earlier in August. The government says it will work on a new law and aims to have a legal framework in place by spring 2027.
New questions on sexual violence
A new section on sexual and gender-based violence will be added to the annual school bullying questionnaire.
The questionnaire will be given to about 10 million pupils, from grande section of maternelle through to terminale.
Initially, responses will be anonymous, but pupils will be able to give their name if they want to speak to a trusted adult.
Geffray said the questionnaire would be developed with school staff, parent organisations and experts including child psychiatrists.
He said the move reflected the scale of the problem, noting that one in 10 children in France is a victim of sexual violence.
The Education Ministry is already the country's largest source of reports concerning violence against minors, with about 88,000 reports of sexual violence or parental failings made during the previous year.
More authority for teachers
The ministry is also calling for stronger relationships between schools and parents, while reaffirming teachers’ authority and warning that threats or abuse of staff will not be tolerated.
Teaching unions, however, argue that the absence of major headline reforms does not mean fewer demands on teachers.
The FSU-SNUipp union said the promise of stability masked “a multiplication of contradictory instructions” and greater central control, with teachers expected to implement new priorities without additional staff or funding.
It has also criticised the focus on vocabulary as a response to educational inequality.
Unions have called for smaller classes, better teacher training and more resources for inclusive education.
