Depending on their social background, the level difference between two 15-year-old students can be more than two and a half school years. An unbearable gap for the Minister of Education, who wants to make the fight against inequality one of his hobbies. This gap was measured in the most recent Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) PISA survey.

In France, it can reach 107 points, while the OECD average is 89 points. “It’s significant,” for Thierry Rocher, who is in charge of these issues at the Ministry of National Education’s statistical service.

The “static” map of priority education

Social inequalities are “early”, he emphasizes. And they “grow in school and college,” particularly in math, a discipline where social markers are “very strong.”

In a recent column in the “Monde”, the Minister for National Education Pap Ndiaye said he wanted to “fight against all social determinism and attributions”. For him, “a school that promises it but does not grant equality breeds not only injustice but distrust and anger in the working class.” Targets will be “assigned” to principals who can “fulfil school assignments” with local authorities, he said, promising action to “promote diversity” within “weeks”.

Back in early November, Pap Ndiaye promised to “retouch” the priority education card. “We need to be able to move out of institutions that no longer match the educational focus and bring in others,” he said, judging the current model as “rather static”. Private lessons under contract which accepts more students from privileged backgrounds, is called upon to contribute “to this effort” of diversity.

“Don’t fall into fatalism”

Important as they are, the gap between students is no longer widening. “There is a stabilization of these high levels of social inequality,” says Eric Charbonnier, education expert at the OECD. We cannot be satisfied with this, but we must follow this trend because in France, since 2012, there has been a real will to fight against social inequalities. »

In certain debates we sometimes get the impression that France is the worst country in the OECD in terms of inequality. That’s not the case. We must not fall into fatalism.

ERIC CHARBONNIER Education Expert at the OECD

France is poorly positioned in terms of inequalities related to the socio-economic background of students. But it “performs better” on gender inequalities, he adds. The differences between girls and boys in writing are “less severe” than elsewhere, while Norway and Finland are concerned about boys’ greater difficulties in their education systems.

Regarding access to education, the expert also underlines the “sharp decline” in the number of young people without a degree in the last ten years (12% in 2021 compared to 17% in 2011) and the democratization of higher education, even if “young people from disadvantaged conditions are overrepresented in short courses”. “Sometimes in certain debates we have the impression that France is the worst country in the OECD in terms of inequality,” continues Eric Charbonnier. That’s not the case. We must not fall into fatalism. »

skeptical teachers

One should not idealize this or that recipe, how the increased autonomy of the institutions, he warns. Eric Charbonnier warns against the example of Sweden, which with “a completely decentralized education system” has “created a negative effect on the enormously increased social inequalities”.

To fight these inequalities, Pap Ndiaye needs to convince teachers that the education system is capable of reducing them. Only 23% of teachers believe it, according to a poll conducted by the CSA Institute for the Senate last January. Parents (41% of whom answered yes) are more optimistic.