Paris: sign language taught in secondary school at the start of the school year

Europe 1 with AFP 6:36 p.m., January 19, 2022

The continuation of the teaching of French sign language (LSF) in public secondary schools will be possible in Paris from the start of the next school year, the academy and mayor Anne Hidalgo agreed on Wednesday during a meeting in the only elementary school in Paris. Paris offering this teaching.

While this teaching is now non-existent in public secondary schools in the capital, the PS mayor made a "commitment to AFP to be able to continue" the teaching of LSF "in college and high school, and in particular at Victor-Hugo (3rd arrondissement), so that children today in CM2 can have this schooling next year".

"A living language in its own right"

The PS candidate for the presidential election spoke after meeting rue de Turenne, in the Marais, deaf children and then parents of students in the only Parisian school group where students can follow official programs in LSF.

"LSF must be made a living language in its own right", she declared, insisting on inclusion so that "this sign language is shared with other children".

In this elementary school, three teachers supervise 8 deaf pupils, while some 200 hearing children benefit from 10 LSF lessons each year.

Opportunity to practice this language, their inclusion is done during extracurricular time: in the canteen two hours a day, during recreation and workshops.

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The "difficulty in finding supervisors"

But the "difficulty in finding supervisors, teachers who are 'signing'" and therefore "capable of offering bilingual education" has so far prevented the continuation of this program in secondary school, explained the academic director of the services of the National Education Marc Teulier.

The certificate of aptitude for teaching young deaf teachers (CAPEJS) is a State diploma which does not come under National Education but from medico-social, which explains the difficulties of recruitment, underlined the academy.