how France and the UK rely on school

The murder by Samuel Paty – professor of history and geography beheaded in October 2020 by an 18-year-old Abdullakh Abouyedovich Anzorov, a few days after showing his students caricatures of Muhammad during a civic education course – provoked at teachers understandable shockwave and fear.

Many of them were already struggling to manage in class discussions around sensitive topics such as the publication of these controversial cartoons by the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo. Now, some fear for their personal safety.

My thesis deals with the impact of Islamic terrorism on educational policies in France and England. As my research draws to a close, recent events give rise to an unfortunate sense of déjà vu.

Criticisms and controversies

I became interested in this subject after the attacks on the Charlie Hebdo offices in January 2015. Interviews that I have conducted over the past three years reveal that these cartoons continue to arouse anger and discontent among some Muslim students.

During the tribute paid to Samuel Paty in schools at the beginning of November, 400 students would have refused to participate in the minute of silence, according to figures communicated by the Ministry of National Education.

Since this assassination, there has been a lot of talk about France’s “color blind” approach to cultural diversity, emphasizing equal rights between citizens. An approach often seen as the opposite of multiculturalism underway in countries like the UK, leaving more room for the expression of minority cultures and religions.

Faced with international criticism on the reaction of his government, the President of the Republic Emmanuel Macron insisted on French specificities, and the inability of Anglo-Saxon commentators to understand it.

In doing so, we forget that there are strong similarities in the way in which the English and French governments rely on schools to promote social cohesion and protect their youth from the risks of radicalization.

Fundamental values

In each of the two countries, governments have sought to emphasize in the education system their common values. Since 2014, schools in England are required to promote the “Core British values” democracy, the rule of law, individual freedom, mutual respect and tolerance towards people of different faiths.

In French schools, since the attacks of January 2015, we are focusing on re-emphasizing the promotion of the values ​​of freedom, equality, fraternity and secularism – which limits the expression of religious beliefs in public spaces such as schools.

Other policies in both countries target students at risk of radicalization. In this case, teachers are required to escalate their concerns to the school administration or to certain external bodies. Actors in the educational world are also trained to spot signs of radicalization – this approach is however much more developed. United Kingdom just in France.

The questions raised by atrocious acts like the murder of Samuel Paty also have consequences for the way teachers run their classes, in England and in France.

Heated discussions

In the case of France, the attacks against Charlie Hebdo highlighted the difficulties teachers were already experiencing in managing discussions on subjects such as secularism and freedom of expression.

In England, similar issues have come to light in debates on contemporary issues, in politics around fundamental British values, and in discussions of recent terrorist attacks.

Teachers, school leaders and politicians in both countries frequently state that not all teachers have sufficient knowledge of these subjects which they are required to deal with more often in class. In addition, many fear that they will fail to channel the emotions that these sensitive issues can sometimes generate in students, and ultimately lose control of the situation.

This is a concern that is particularly evident among certain people called upon for this research work in France who believe that, due to an educational tradition too focused on lectures, some of their colleagues may experience a form of nervousness when they have to manage debates in class.

In England, the significant decline in citizenship education in the educational system limits the possibilities of engagement around civic values ​​and contemporary issues. This is compounded, as one school official noted, by the fact that official curricula remain very succinct on how to promote these core British values.

My research shows that teachers need to be better prepared for these complicated discussions. This preparation should be integrated into the initial training of teachers and their in-service training.

This is already practiced in certain academies in France and England. In France, for example, trainers accompany teams of teachers over long periods of time on themes such as the facilitation of debates, the religious beliefs of pupils, and the way in which the subject of terrorism is approached with young people.

In a secondary school that I visited in London, teachers organize citizenship education days that they run collectively. This allows them to have better support if difficult situations arise.

The people I met during my research also underline how essential it is to respect students during these conversations. Some school heads and teacher trainers in France feel that personal beliefs teachers and the way in which they express them in class may have contributed to aggravate certain confrontations.

It would seem that, on both sides of the Channel, teachers are not immune to a broader climate of anxiety around Islam and suspicion vis-à-vis the Muslim populations. This may lead some teachers to initiate certain discussions with a form of hostility.

This message must be conveyed with care. In a context where teachers may fear for their safety, it is important that such warnings are not viewed as criticism. But it would also be unfortunate if the horrific murder of Samuel Paty made it impossible to debate these pressing issues, at the heart of today’s challenges.

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