History of education in France
Encyclopedia
The education system in France can be traced back to the Roman Empire
. Schools may have operated continuously from the later empire to the early Middle Ages
in some towns in southern France.
traveling in the celtic Western Europe
.
Latin schools were then established by wealthy patricians.
, literacy was mainly in Latin
. Church schools associated to abbeys and cathedrals developed from the 8th century onwards and were controlled by the Catholic Church. The University of Paris
was one of the first universities in Europe, created possibly as early as 1150. Grammar school
s, often situated in cathedrals, taught the Latin language and law.
Universities were formally established in the 12th century onwards, including Université de Paris (1150), Université de Toulouse (1229), Université d'Orléans (1235), Université de Montpellier (1289), Université d'Avignon
(1303), Université de Cahors
(1331), Université de Grenoble
(1339), Université de Perpignan (1350), Université d'Angers
(1364), Université d'Orange
(1365), Université d'Aix
(1409), Université de Dole (1423), Université de Poitiers (1431), Université de Caen (1432), Université de Valence
(1452), Université de Nantes (1461), Université de Bourges
(1464), Université de Douai
(1559) and others.
(1789), the Ancien Regime universities were closed, church-controlled faculties were dismissed and the French education system was fully re-organised. Condorcet drew up plans for universal schooling. Widespread secondary education was established in most large cities of France. While higher education was a noble privilege under Ancien Regime, the republican regime removed all prior barriers to access to university studies. Liberal education, including especially modern sciences, became possible and widespread.
Faculties of the Université de France were organised as four categories (law, medecine, sciences, humanities), under the strict supervision from the government.
As a replacement for faculties of arts from the Ancien Regime universities, lycées were established in 1802 as the main secondary education establishments targeting baccalauréat examinations. They taught French, Latin, Ancient Greek and sciences. A law of 1808 fixed the syllabus as "ancient languages, history, rhetoric, logic and the elements of mathematical and physical sciences". They were usually boarding schools under military-like discipline.
In parallel to faculties of law, medecine, sciences, humanities in the universities, Grandes écoles
were established as specialized higher education
institutions focusing on sciences and engineering. The term came after the French revolution, in 1794 with the creation of the École Normale Supérieure
by the Convention
and the École Polytechnique
. Actually, their forerunners were civil servant schools aimed at graduating mine supervisors (École des mines de Paris
established in 1783) , bridge and road engineers (École royale des ponts et chaussées
established in 1747), shipbuilding engineers (École des ingénieurs-constructeurs des vaisseaux royaux
established in 1741) and five military engineering academies and graduate schools of artillery
established in the 17th century in France, such as the école de l'artillerie de Douai
(established in 1697) and the école du génie de Mézière (established in 1748), wherein mathematics, chemistry and sciences were already a major part of the curriculum taught by first rank scientists such as Pierre-Simon de Laplace, Charles Étienne Louis Camus
, Étienne Bézout
, Sylvestre-François Lacroix, Siméon Denis Poisson
, Gaspard Monge
.
After the Bourbon Restoration
the lycées were called collèges royaux, but were renamed lycée in the Second Republic
. This was confirmed by the loi Falloux (texte). At this time the lycées included junior classes.
During the 19th century, a number of higher education Grandes écoles
were established so as to support industry and commerce, including Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Paris (today ESCP Europe, founded in 1819), École Centrale des Arts et Manufactures
(École centrale de Paris) in 1829, École des arts industriels et des mines (École centrale de Lille
) in 1854 and École centrale lyonnaise pour l'Industrie et le Commerce
(École centrale de Lyon
) in 1857.
An act proposed by Camille Sée
in 1880 brought secondary schools for girls. There were 36 such schools in 1896. Secondary schooling became free of charge between 1926 and 1930.
The Jules Ferry laws
are a set of French laws, which established first free education
(1881) then mandatory and laic
education (1882). Proposed by the (Republican
) Minister of Public Instruction Jules Ferry
, they were a crucial step in the grounding of the Third Republic
(1871–1940).
During the latter part of the 19th centuries, new Grandes écoles
were established so as to further develop education in new fields of sciences and technologies, including Hautes Études Commerciales
(HEC Paris), École nationale supérieure des télécommunications
(TELECOM ParisTech), the École supérieure d'électricité (Supélec).
En 1985, the then education minister, Jean-Pierre Chevènement
, announced a target of "80% of an age group to reach baccalauréat level". This aim was taken up by his successor, René Monory
and informed an act of parliament in 1989 proposed by Lionel Jospin
. In the next decade lycées and higher education grew rapidly. The baccalauréat professionnel was created in 1987. It allowed the holder of a Brevet d'études professionnelles or a Certificat d'aptitude professionnelle to complete their secondary education and perhaps be able to undertake higher study. Between 1987 and 1995, the number of baccalaureate holders rose from 300,000 to 500,000.
Until 1994, the streams in the lycée were called A (literature, philosophy and languages), B (economics and society), C (mathematics), D (biology), E (mathematics and technology), F1, F2, F3, F4… F12 (technology), G1, G2, G3 (administration, secretarial work, business studies, accounting) et H (hospitality). These streams were then regrouped as the three routes: general, technological and vocational.
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
. Schools may have operated continuously from the later empire to the early Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
in some towns in southern France.
Gaul and Roman empire
Prior to the establishment of the Roman empire, education in Gaul was a domestic task or provided by itinerant druidsDruid
A druid was a member of the priestly class in Britain, Ireland, and Gaul, and possibly other parts of Celtic western Europe, during the Iron Age....
traveling in the celtic Western Europe
Western Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the...
.
Latin schools were then established by wealthy patricians.
Middle ages
As in other parts of medieval Western EuropeWestern Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the...
, literacy was mainly in Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
. Church schools associated to abbeys and cathedrals developed from the 8th century onwards and were controlled by the Catholic Church. The University of Paris
University of Paris
The University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
was one of the first universities in Europe, created possibly as early as 1150. Grammar school
Grammar school
A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and some other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching classical languages but more recently an academically-oriented secondary school.The original purpose of mediaeval...
s, often situated in cathedrals, taught the Latin language and law.
Universities were formally established in the 12th century onwards, including Université de Paris (1150), Université de Toulouse (1229), Université d'Orléans (1235), Université de Montpellier (1289), Université d'Avignon
Avignon
Avignon is a French commune in southeastern France in the départment of the Vaucluse bordered by the left bank of the Rhône river. Of the 94,787 inhabitants of the city on 1 January 2010, 12 000 live in the ancient town centre surrounded by its medieval ramparts.Often referred to as the...
(1303), Université de Cahors
Cahors
Cahors is the capital of the Lot department in south-western France.Its site is dramatic being contained on three sides within an udder shaped twist in the river Lot known as a 'presqu'île' or peninsula...
(1331), Université de Grenoble
Grenoble
Grenoble is a city in southeastern France, at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère...
(1339), Université de Perpignan (1350), Université d'Angers
Angers
Angers is the main city in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France about south-west of Paris. Angers is located in the French region known by its pre-revolutionary, provincial name, Anjou, and its inhabitants are called Angevins....
(1364), Université d'Orange
Orange, Vaucluse
Orange is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.It has a primarily agricultural economy...
(1365), Université d'Aix
Aix-en-Provence
Aix , or Aix-en-Provence to distinguish it from other cities built over hot springs, is a city-commune in southern France, some north of Marseille. It is in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, in the département of Bouches-du-Rhône, of which it is a subprefecture. The population of Aix is...
(1409), Université de Dole (1423), Université de Poitiers (1431), Université de Caen (1432), Université de Valence
Valence, Drôme
Valence is a commune in southeastern France, the capital of the Drôme department, situated on the left bank of the Rhône, south of Lyon on the railway to Marseilles.Its inhabitants are called Valentinois...
(1452), Université de Nantes (1461), Université de Bourges
Bourges
Bourges is a city in central France on the Yèvre river. It is the capital of the department of Cher and also was the capital of the former province of Berry.-History:...
(1464), Université de Douai
University of Douai
The University of Douai is a former university in Douai, France. With a Middle Ages heritage of scholar activities in Douai, the university was established in 1559 and lectures started in 1562. It closed from 1795 to 1808...
(1559) and others.
Earlier modern period
In the early modern period, colleges were established by various Catholic orders, notably the Oratorians.In parallel, universities further developed in France.Revolution
During the French RevolutionFrench Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
(1789), the Ancien Regime universities were closed, church-controlled faculties were dismissed and the French education system was fully re-organised. Condorcet drew up plans for universal schooling. Widespread secondary education was established in most large cities of France. While higher education was a noble privilege under Ancien Regime, the republican regime removed all prior barriers to access to university studies. Liberal education, including especially modern sciences, became possible and widespread.
Faculties of the Université de France were organised as four categories (law, medecine, sciences, humanities), under the strict supervision from the government.
As a replacement for faculties of arts from the Ancien Regime universities, lycées were established in 1802 as the main secondary education establishments targeting baccalauréat examinations. They taught French, Latin, Ancient Greek and sciences. A law of 1808 fixed the syllabus as "ancient languages, history, rhetoric, logic and the elements of mathematical and physical sciences". They were usually boarding schools under military-like discipline.
In parallel to faculties of law, medecine, sciences, humanities in the universities, Grandes écoles
Grandes écoles
The grandes écoles of France are higher education establishments outside the main framework of the French university system. The grandes écoles select students for admission based chiefly on national ranking in competitive written and oral exams...
were established as specialized higher education
Higher education
Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
institutions focusing on sciences and engineering. The term came after the French revolution, in 1794 with the creation of the École Normale Supérieure
École Normale Supérieure
The École normale supérieure is one of the most prestigious French grandes écoles...
by the Convention
National Convention
During the French Revolution, the National Convention or Convention, in France, comprised the constitutional and legislative assembly which sat from 20 September 1792 to 26 October 1795 . It held executive power in France during the first years of the French First Republic...
and the École Polytechnique
École Polytechnique
The École Polytechnique is a state-run institution of higher education and research in Palaiseau, Essonne, France, near Paris. Polytechnique is renowned for its four year undergraduate/graduate Master's program...
. Actually, their forerunners were civil servant schools aimed at graduating mine supervisors (École des mines de Paris
École nationale supérieure des mines de Paris
The École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Paris was created in 1783 by King Louis XVI in order to train intelligent directors of mines. It is one of the most prominent French engineering schoolsThe École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Paris (also known as Mines ParisTech, École des Mines de...
established in 1783) , bridge and road engineers (École royale des ponts et chaussées
École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées
Founded in 1747, the École nationale des ponts et chaussées , often referred to as les Ponts, is the world's oldest civil engineering school...
established in 1747), shipbuilding engineers (École des ingénieurs-constructeurs des vaisseaux royaux
École nationale supérieure de Techniques Avancées
The École Nationale Supérieure de Techniques Avancées , also known as ENSTA, is one of the most prestigious and selective French grande école in engineering...
established in 1741) and five military engineering academies and graduate schools of artillery
School of Applied Artillery (France)
The École d'application de l'artillerie is an applied military academy of the French Army.-Pre-Revolutionary History:...
established in the 17th century in France, such as the école de l'artillerie de Douai
School of Applied Artillery (France)
The École d'application de l'artillerie is an applied military academy of the French Army.-Pre-Revolutionary History:...
(established in 1697) and the école du génie de Mézière (established in 1748), wherein mathematics, chemistry and sciences were already a major part of the curriculum taught by first rank scientists such as Pierre-Simon de Laplace, Charles Étienne Louis Camus
Charles Étienne Louis Camus
Charles Étienne Louis Camus , was a French mathematician and mechanician who was born at Crecy-en-Brie, near Meaux....
, Étienne Bézout
Étienne Bézout
-External links:...
, Sylvestre-François Lacroix, Siméon Denis Poisson
Siméon Denis Poisson
Siméon Denis Poisson , was a French mathematician, geometer, and physicist. He however, was the final leading opponent of the wave theory of light as a member of the elite l'Académie française, but was proven wrong by Augustin-Jean Fresnel.-Biography:...
, Gaspard Monge
Gaspard Monge
Gaspard Monge, Comte de Péluse was a French mathematician, revolutionary, and was inventor of descriptive geometry. During the French Revolution, he was involved in the complete reorganization of the educational system, founding the École Polytechnique...
.
19th century
The Guizot Act of 1833 provided for free education at the parish level.After the Bourbon Restoration
Bourbon Restoration
The Bourbon Restoration is the name given to the period following the successive events of the French Revolution , the end of the First Republic , and then the forcible end of the First French Empire under Napoleon – when a coalition of European powers restored by arms the monarchy to the...
the lycées were called collèges royaux, but were renamed lycée in the Second Republic
Second Republic
-Europe:* French Second Republic * Second Polish Republic * Second Hellenic Republic * Second Spanish Republic * Portuguese Second Republic, known as Estado Novo * Czechoslovak Second Republic...
. This was confirmed by the loi Falloux (texte). At this time the lycées included junior classes.
During the 19th century, a number of higher education Grandes écoles
Grandes écoles
The grandes écoles of France are higher education establishments outside the main framework of the French university system. The grandes écoles select students for admission based chiefly on national ranking in competitive written and oral exams...
were established so as to support industry and commerce, including Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Paris (today ESCP Europe, founded in 1819), École Centrale des Arts et Manufactures
École Centrale Paris
École Centrale Paris is a French university-level institution in the field of engineering. It is also known by its original name École centrale des arts et manufactures, or ECP. Founded in 1829, it is one of the oldest and most prestigious engineering schools in France and has the special status...
(École centrale de Paris) in 1829, École des arts industriels et des mines (École centrale de Lille
École Centrale de Lille
Located in the campus of the University of Lille in France, École Centrale de Lille is a renowned Graduate Engineering school, with roots back to 1854 as the École des arts industriels et des mines de Lille, re-organised in 1872 as Institut industriel du Nord.It is one of the Centrale Graduate...
) in 1854 and École centrale lyonnaise pour l'Industrie et le Commerce
École Centrale de Lyon
The École Centrale de Lyon, founded in 1857, is one of the oldest universities in France. It is considered as one of the most prestigious French Grandes écoles of engineering continuously ranking as one of the Top 6 French Engineering research institutions for the post Bachelor study...
(École centrale de Lyon
École Centrale de Lyon
The École Centrale de Lyon, founded in 1857, is one of the oldest universities in France. It is considered as one of the most prestigious French Grandes écoles of engineering continuously ranking as one of the Top 6 French Engineering research institutions for the post Bachelor study...
) in 1857.
An act proposed by Camille Sée
Camille Sée
Camille Sée was a French politician who was born in Colmar.As the pioneer of the 1880 French law which established Lycées for girls, he also created the École normale supérieure in Sèvres in 1881....
in 1880 brought secondary schools for girls. There were 36 such schools in 1896. Secondary schooling became free of charge between 1926 and 1930.
The Jules Ferry laws
Jules Ferry laws
The Jules Ferry Laws are a set of French Laws which established free education , then mandatory and laic education . Jules Ferry, a lawyer holding the office of Minister of Public Instruction in the 1880s, is widely credited for creating the modern Republican School...
are a set of French laws, which established first free education
Free education
Free education refers to education that is funded through taxation, or charitable organizations rather than tuition fees. Although primary school and other comprehensive or compulsory education is free in many countries, for example, all education is mostly free including...
(1881) then mandatory and laic
Laïcité
French secularism, in French, laïcité is a concept denoting the absence of religious involvement in government affairs as well as absence of government involvement in religious affairs. French secularism has a long history but the current regime is based on the 1905 French law on the Separation of...
education (1882). Proposed by the (Republican
Republicanism
Republicanism is the ideology of governing a nation as a republic, where the head of state is appointed by means other than heredity, often elections. The exact meaning of republicanism varies depending on the cultural and historical context...
) Minister of Public Instruction Jules Ferry
Jules Ferry
Jules François Camille Ferry was a French statesman and republican. He was a promoter of laicism and colonial expansion.- Early life :Born in Saint-Dié, in the Vosges département, France, he studied law, and was called to the bar at Paris in 1854, but soon went into politics, contributing to...
, they were a crucial step in the grounding of the Third Republic
French Third Republic
The French Third Republic was the republican government of France from 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed due to the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, to 1940, when France was overrun by Nazi Germany during World War II, resulting in the German and Italian occupations of France...
(1871–1940).
During the latter part of the 19th centuries, new Grandes écoles
Grandes écoles
The grandes écoles of France are higher education establishments outside the main framework of the French university system. The grandes écoles select students for admission based chiefly on national ranking in competitive written and oral exams...
were established so as to further develop education in new fields of sciences and technologies, including Hautes Études Commerciales
HEC School of Management
HEC Paris or École des Hautes Études Commerciales de Paris is one of the foremost business schools in France and in Europe. It was created in 1881 by the Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industry on the model of French Grandes Ecoles and has progressively become one of the most selective graduate...
(HEC Paris), École nationale supérieure des télécommunications
École Nationale Supérieure des Télécommunications
Télécom ParisTech is one of the most prestigious and selective grandes écoles in France and one of the finest institutions in the field of Telecommunications...
(TELECOM ParisTech), the École supérieure d'électricité (Supélec).
20th century
A decree of 1959 established "classical, modern and technical lycees"/. In 1963, the junior classes were absorbed into primary schools. In 1977 lycées d'enseignement professionnel (vocational schools) were established. They were renamed lycée professionnel in 1985.En 1985, the then education minister, Jean-Pierre Chevènement
Jean-Pierre Chevènement
Jean-Pierre Chevènement is a French politician. He was Minister of Defense from 1988 to 1991 and Minister of the Interior from 1997 to 2000. He was a presidential candidate in 2002 and since 2008 has been a member of the Senate....
, announced a target of "80% of an age group to reach baccalauréat level". This aim was taken up by his successor, René Monory
René Monory
René Monory was a French centre-right politician.-Biography:René Monory was born in Loudun and began his career as the owner of a garage. He was the founder of the Poitiers Futuroscope.Monory first became a Senator in 1968...
and informed an act of parliament in 1989 proposed by Lionel Jospin
Lionel Jospin
Lionel Jospin is a French politician, who served as Prime Minister of France from 1997 to 2002.Jospin was the Socialist Party candidate for President of France in the elections of 1995 and 2002. He was narrowly defeated in the final runoff election by Jacques Chirac in 1995...
. In the next decade lycées and higher education grew rapidly. The baccalauréat professionnel was created in 1987. It allowed the holder of a Brevet d'études professionnelles or a Certificat d'aptitude professionnelle to complete their secondary education and perhaps be able to undertake higher study. Between 1987 and 1995, the number of baccalaureate holders rose from 300,000 to 500,000.
Until 1994, the streams in the lycée were called A (literature, philosophy and languages), B (economics and society), C (mathematics), D (biology), E (mathematics and technology), F1, F2, F3, F4… F12 (technology), G1, G2, G3 (administration, secretarial work, business studies, accounting) et H (hospitality). These streams were then regrouped as the three routes: general, technological and vocational.
See also
- Education in FranceEducation in FranceThe French educational system is highly centralized, organized, and ramified. It is divided into three different stages:* the primary education ;* secondary education ;...
- Falloux Act (1850)
- Secular educationSecular educationSecular education is the system of public education in countries with a secular government or separation between religion and state.An example of a highly secular educational system would be the French public educational system, going as far as to ban conspicuous religious symbols in schools.In...