Over the past few years the school week has changed several times as successive ministers introduced reforms aimed at creating a timetable better adapted to children.
France has long holidays but, to compensate, children work more hours in a week than in other European countries.
They work 24 hours in France, 19 in Finland, 15-20 depending on age in Germany and 21-25 depending on age in the UK. Other countries have five day weeks, with most schooling being done in the morning.
Up until 2008, primary children went to school four-and-a-half days a week, and the half day was either a Wednesday or a Saturday morning. In 2008, a four-day week was introduced with school on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.
This changed again in 2013, with the 24 hours a week of school split between nine half days, with the ‘extra’ half day on Wednesday or Saturday. Academic work was mostly done in the mornings.
At the same time, the government decided communes should also finance other cultural or sporting activities and offer them on the school premises. Called Temps d’Activité Périscolaire (TAPS), it was controversial from day one; loved by some, hated by others.
TAPS were run with varying degrees of success: some children enjoyed a variety of new activities while others had something more like a glorified baby-sitting service.
It depended on the finances, the personnel available and the willingness of the commune to set up the service.
The educational argument was that children worked better in the mornings, and without a break in the week.
When President Macron was elected, he and his new education minister Jean-Michel Blanquer decided to leave this controversial decision to communes – and of the 21,375 communes, 43.9% opted to revert to a four-day week at the rentrée 2017. Now, the remaining communes must decide for this year, after local consultation with teachers, parents and the education authorities.
The Association des Maires de France (AMF) surveyed communes last autumn. Of the 30% which replied, 90% said they would go back to the four-day week. However, AMF general secretary Philippe Laurent said the final result was more likely to be 50/50.
He said the four-and-a-half day week had worked well in his town, Sceaux: “Where communes have been able to put on a satisfactory programme of after-school activities, the parents are happy. In my town, we carried out a study and found that 40% of mothers had been able to go out to work on Wednesdays which was better for them.
“It was a positive reform as it increased dialogue between teachers and mairie. It is good communes are so closely involved in running schools.”
“In France we have systems in place which mean children can be looked after from 7.30 in the morning to 6.30 in the evening and we are pleased to be able to provide that service.”
However, he felt giving communes the decision would show huge inequalities as communes which could afford to put on after-school activities would keep a four-and-a-half day week.
In reality, many bigger and richer communes have already decided to revert to the four-day week. Lyon voted for four days, but will offer activities on Wednesdays, and 64% of parents in Lille voted for four days.
Bordeaux consulted widely before deciding on a four-day week with 60% of the 6,000 replies from parents backing a four-day week as did 80% of
conseils d’école, which are made up of councillors, teachers and parents.
Emmanuelle Cuny, the city’s deputy mayor with responsibility for education, said: “The message we got from parents was children showed more signs of fatigue on the four-and-a-half day week. There was less classroom time every day but they spent more time in school because of TAPS and as school finished earlier many had to stay in the garderie and then go to school on Wednesday.
“Parents found it easier to organise childcare with the four-day week. ”
She said organising the TAPS was expensive and a huge task. “I look after 103 schools and it was difficult to find people to run workshops because we could not offer a 35-hour contract and the hours did not easily fit in with other jobs. It cost €3million a year.
“We will still run Wednesday activities but even so we will make savings of between €1m-€1.4m. That, however, was not the reason for our decision. It was based on consultation and it was clear what parents and teachers wanted.
“The government has not carried out any studies to show which system is better for children’s education so this was not a criteria. We have had many changes in the past few years and I hope we will now have a period of stability.”
Claire Roux Moynihan is a teacher and parent. She works in a rural school at Marcillac-Saint-Quentin, Dordogne: “It is a subject where many people have different views. We have opted for the four-day week and our parents were 50/50 either way.
“I think it is best for my five-year-old to have a break on a Wednesday, but it depends on age. I teach nine and 10- year-olds and I got a lot more done with them with five consecutive mornings. Now we are always rushing to get through the syllabus.
“As a teacher, I found the rhythm which worked best some years ago was school on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturday mornings.
“It did not suit families, but it was interesting that, perhaps surprisingly, Saturdays were always really calm in the classroom.
“It would have been helpful if the education minister could have given a decision nationally as there are so many conflicting views on the subject.”
