Minister of National Education Makes Unprecedented Speech at Medef Meeting: A Symbolic Gesture in Vocational Education Reform

Medef is surprised, Gabriel Attal is surprised that Medef is surprised, in short everyone is surprised. This Tuesday morning, an unprecedented scene took place in the premises of the employers’ organization: for the first time, a Minister of National Education spoke during its permanent assembly, its monthly meeting. “From my point of view, it is very positively significant,” welcomed Patrick Martin, president of Medef since this summer. “It’s quite surprising that it’s surprising that the Minister of National Education is coming to speak at the Medef permanent assembly, because we have to work much more together,” retorted Gabriel Attal. Surprising, we tell you.

“The company enters the school”

Less surprising was the hour-long pleasantries session that followed. “Mr. Minister, you are carrying out reforms which, from our point of view, are foundational, are very necessary and which, for one of them, the reform of vocational high schools, are likely to resolve many, many problems. problems that our country, our businesses, our economy are also facing, cooed Patrick Martin to the audience. Minister, you are here at home, concerned that the business enters the school and that the school enters the business.”

And to finish: “To tell you how motivated I am by the subjects you cover, this evening I will have dinner with Carole Grandjean [la ministre déléguée en charge de l’Enseignement et de la Formation professionnels, ndlr] to speak of the reform of vocational high schools.» Enough to certainly delight professional high school teachers, who mobilized like never before last year against said reform, which they accused of weakening the school to comply with the expectations of businesses.

Faced with the representatives of the bosses, Gabriel Attal came to both defend his action and that of the President and seek allies. For the national deployment of “discovery of professions”, firstly, a system aimed, as its name indicates, at familiarizing middle school students, from fifth grade, with a plurality of professional paths. “We heard that we were going to break up the school, sort the students according to their social origin or even worse. Those who say that have no understanding of what the business world is, defended the minister. “Making a guidance policy without companies would amount to depriving students of their main access to their professional opportunities.”

According to Gabriel Attal, 10,000 teachers volunteered to lead this discovery of professions, by signing the “pact”, this commitment to ensuring new missions for a bonus. “They are only waiting to be contacted or to receive a response to their requests,” the minister told the assembly. Who specified that he had requested the creation of a national platform mapping professionals who come to class to talk about their profession.

Cuddle therapy session

Another call for goodwill: second year internships. “There too, I will need you.” From June 17 to 28, in fact, general and technological second year students will have to complete two weeks of internship, with the aim of both “reconquest of the month of June” and strengthening the link between school and the world of work. “We need to be able to have a number of quality internships,” pleaded the minister. He himself completed his third-year observation week in the lingerie department of a department store, he said, assuring that it had been “useful” car “no internship is useless”.

Students from the city’s political districts will have the platform opened monstagedetroisieme.frwhose objective is to allow middle school students enrolled in priority education, who often do not have a network, to find internships in a field that interests them.

“We are very determined to welcome the interns, whether in third or second year, reacted Patrick Martin. They will be our employees of tomorrow. With behaviors that confuse us, that exasperate us, but which will be our collaborators. We need to organize internship reception as smoothly as possible.”

Questioned by a participant on the current impossibility for students to carry out internships during the summer if they wish, Gabriel Attal committed to “watch this topic”. “I am very in favor of all young people who want to do an internship being able to do an internship,” he added. A compliment on the efficiency of the minister, another on the government communication campaign in favor of the teaching profession, and Gabriel Attal left. A cuddle therapy session surely welcome, while National Education staff are at their worst.