France Adds Teaching Posts, Allocates Billions for School Renovations
Geffray said the government would reverse 836 planned job cuts in public secondary education and introduce 500 additional teaching positions in high schools, according to reports.
The measures come amid concerns about students' academic workloads, competition for university places through the Parcoursup admissions platform, decisions over subject specializations and overcrowded classrooms.
Acknowledging the challenges facing students, Geffray stressed the need to reduce pressure within the education system and improve classroom conditions.
“We must objectively reduce this school pressure; we must reduce the number of students per class,” he said.
As part of the planned changes, the government will introduce limits on class sizes in schools serving less advantaged communities. Beginning with the 2027 school year, second-year high school classes will be limited to 28 students in half of the country's high schools that serve these communities.
The policy will subsequently be extended to the other half of high schools, serving more advantaged populations, from the 2028 school year.
The measures are intended to address overcrowding while improving the learning environment for students. Reducing the number of pupils in each classroom is also expected to ease pressure on teachers and allow for more manageable class sizes.
In addition to staffing changes and classroom limits, the government has announced a major financial initiative to support the renovation of school buildings.
Geffray said Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu had approved an additional €4 billion, equivalent to approximately $4.4 billion, in subsidized-interest loans for regional and departmental authorities. The financing will help fund renovation projects at middle schools and high schools across France.
The funding mechanism is designed to give local authorities access to loans on preferential terms, making it easier for them to obtain financing and move forward with construction and renovation work more quickly.
Local authorities will be responsible for using the available financing to support improvements to school facilities, with the initiative intended to help address infrastructure needs across the secondary education system.
The announcement follows renewed student protests over the weekend and comes as the government faces pressure to respond to concerns about school conditions, staffing levels and academic demands. The measures combine changes to teaching recruitment, classroom capacity and school infrastructure investment as part of efforts to improve conditions for students and educators.
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