Paris (AFP)

A vaccination campaign through middle and high schools will begin at the start of the school year for students over 12 who wish, announced Sunday the Minister of Education, Jean-Michel Blanquer in an interview with the JDD.

The protocol adopted for the start of the September 2 school year in mainland France is the one known as "level 2": face-to-face lessons in schools, colleges and high schools, compulsory mask inside from primary school, limitation of mixing by level and reinforced ventilation .

"The protocol is lighter than last June, especially in terms of school catering (...) while the incidence rate is higher among students because of the delta variant", lamented in a tweet Guislaine David , general secretary of Snuipp-FSU, the first primary school union.

While vaccination is open in France to over 12 years, "in all colleges and high schools in France, students and staff will have access to the vaccine, near or within their establishment," also said the Minister of 'National Education, in an interview with the Journal du Dimanche.

"Depending on the situation, either mobile teams will come to vaccinate in the establishments, or we will organize the movement of student volunteers, in connection with the health services, to the vaccination centers," he said.

About 55% of 12-17 year olds have already received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine since this summer.

"Level 2 of the protocol in metropolitan France but few answers on the rest: who will supervise the vaccination operations? (...) What policy of tests in the secondary level?", Asks on Twitter the Snes-FSU, the first union of the secondary.

The government "has not invested in a number of things, whether in personnel or in equipment", worried about LCI Jean-Rémi Girard, president of Snalc (National Union of high schools, colleges, schools and the superior).

- Parents' certificate -

For teachers, Jean-Michel Blanquer judged "neither legitimate, nor desirable, nor useful" to require a health pass, preferring to bet on "a logic of trust and responsibility".

In the event of contamination in a class, the period of isolation of seven days, therefore of remote school, will not be required for the vaccinated pupils, "the same rule as for the rest of the population", argued the Minister.

"An unvaccinated pupil is in a more risky situation than a pupil who has received at least one injection. Asking him to stay at home in the event of risky contact is to protect him and others," he said. -he explains.

In the primary, children not old enough to be vaccinated, the rule remains the closure of the entire class for seven days in the event of contamination.

To protect medical secrecy, the pupil's vaccination status will be communicated on the basis of a certificate of vaccination from the parents.

Finally, with regard to school trips, students will not be asked for a health pass in places where they are not mixed with the public (swimming pools or libraries).

But as of September 30, it will be requested, from 12 years old in places that require it.

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