TRAINING: Participants in the IIEP 1995/96 Training Programme study the French education system
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Study visits are a regular feature of IIEP's Annual Training Programme. Organized for participants in the programme
to study the structure and functioning of two education systems, they are a way of enhancing trainees' reflection
on the education systems of their own countries and how they are managed. This year's programme includes two
such study visits: one to the Academy of Aix-Marseille to the Academy of Aix-Marseille in France, and the
second to Germany.
The study visit of the Aix-Marseille Academy, organized in co-operation with the French National Commission for UNESCO, was preceded by a one-day preparation session at the IIEP on 24 November 1995. The actual visit took place in two phases. First in Avignon, administrative centre of the Vaucluse Département, where trainees studied first level education in France, visiting various kindergarten and primary schools, and lower secondary education provided by the collèges. Then, in Aix-en-Provence, headquarters of the Academy Rectorate, and Marseille, capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur Region, trainees were able to study the various types of training available for the 15-19 age-group, visiting a number of vocational lyc‚es and apprenticeship centres, as well as the administration of the Rectorate and the role of new information systems. |
During the visit, the trainees were accompanied by representatives from the Vaucluse General Council
and the town council of Avignon, the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur Regional Council, and by a number of administrative
officials and education officers, including the Rector and General Inspector of the Vaucluse Academy.
The visit ended with an evaluation session chaired by the Secretary General of the Academy, during which the four working groups presented their reports on: decentra-lization and the sharing of authority between the State and the various regional bodies; the orientation and regulation of student flows; educational quality and the struggle against pupil failure; and creating partner-ships between schools and companies. The trainees highlighted the importance of the resources allocated to schools, the strong role of the State (also a means of uniformizing the system), the need for a permanent dialogue between the State and the local authorities and the involvement of families in decisions on vocational guidance. They also insisted on the need to search for ways of adapting the system to meet the needs of an economy dealing with high rates of structural unemployment, particularly among the young. |