- On the eve of the start of the school year, the new Secretary of State in charge of Priority Education, Nathalie Elimas, gives her first interview to 20 Minutes .
- In college, the “homework done” system will ramp up between September and December. Reading hours will be offered in addition to college, as well as hours of personalized support in college and high school.
- At the start of the school year, 433 positions are created to split the large nursery sections in REP and REP +.
This is a first: Priority Education now has its Secretary of State. Nathalie Elimas was appointed to this post at the end of July. Alongside Jean-Michel Blanquer, the Minister of Education, she will have to support the educational teams and students during this complex back-to-school period, due to the health crisis.
She gave 20 Minutes her first interview, on the eve of the students' return to class.
You are the first Secretary of State in charge of Priority Education. Is this a sign that it will be a major focus of the ministry in the coming years?
The creation of this Secretary of State for Priority Education is a strong signal sent by the President of the Republic and the Prime Minister. This clearly shows the government's determination on the subject, to fight against educational inequalities.
Have many priority education students dropped out of school during confinement?
Nationally, 7% of students were considered dropouts during confinement, with variables between first and second degree. We do not yet have figures for priority education. It is possible that the proportion of dropouts was a little higher in fragile areas, given the digital divide in certain neighborhoods.
What is your strategy to be able to hang them up?
We will help priority education students during this difficult back to school. Those who have left the school system have a vocation to return, because school is not an adjustment variable, it is compulsory. This summer, we set up the “learning holidays” system to support these students, both socially and academically. Thus, 150,000 children were able to participate in “learning camps” and 250,000 in “open schools”, where they were offered activities to consolidate fundamental learning. It is a success. We will continue from the start of the school year, with personalized support for each student according to their needs.
What other support measures are planned for pupils in priority education who have not dropped out, but who have accumulated academic gaps?
In college, the “homework done” system will ramp up between September and December. Students may have up to 3 hours per week of help with homework at their school. Reading hours will be offered in addition to college, as well as hours of personalized support in college and high school.
The national evaluations which will be carried out in classes of CP, CE1, 6th and second, will be points of support for the educational teams, in order to meet precisely the educational needs of the students. In view of the results of the students, some of them will for example be offered successful internships during the All Saints holidays.
Have you planned additional human resources in REP and REP + for this start of the school year?
Yes, at the start of the school year, posts are created in the first stage to allow 20,000 students in particular to benefit from classes in large nursery sections split into REP and REP +. The movement will increase further in 2021. And the Minister of Education has announced 1.5 million additional hours of secondary education for all establishments, from which the colleges and high schools of the priority education.
Will priority education students be entitled to free masks?
The most precarious families will be provided with masks free of charge. Logically, the priority education areas are affected by this allocation. On the other hand, the establishments will be equipped with masks. So if a student arrives at school without a mask, they will be provided with one. Finally, the back-to-school allowance has just been increased by 100 euros per child, which will allow beneficiary families to meet back-to-school expenses.
Many priority education students did not have the means to work during confinement, due to lack of computer equipment. How are you going to remedy this problem?
During confinement, there was a real mobilization of local communities and associations, alongside National Education, to alleviate the lack of equipment for these students. The ministry has also set up a national rapid digital response team that will be able to provide computers to students whose schools are closed. An experiment is underway in Aisne and Val-d'Oise to fight the digital divide.
Once again, all the positions in the academies of Créteil and Versailles have not been filled. Should priority education students expect to have many more contract teachers this year?
The attractiveness of the territories is an issue in general, it does not escape priority education. And this is one of the challenges of my mission, to work on the attractiveness of these territories to better support teachers and better train them. In addition, the Minister of Education has undertaken to increase the salaries of teachers. He will initiate discussions with the trade unions in the coming days.
Will the priority education reform take place this year?
I am going to do a priority education tour de France. I will travel to all the academies to meet with communities, associations, trade unions, etc. More broadly, with all of the priority education stakeholders and partners. Thanks to this diagnosis, I will define my roadmap. And the overhaul of priority education is scheduled for the start of the 2021 school year.
The Azéma and Mathiot report suggested removing PWRs in order to move towards more local support for institutions in difficulty. Are you in favor of this idea?
This report recommends a number of changes. But it is premature to answer this question before having made my diagnosis. One thing is certain: my objective, with this reform, is not to leave any child of the Republic behind.
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