Between record debt and high school protests, France's situation draws global attention

PARIS: France's education minister Edouard Geffray has pledged to send 3,000 substitute teachers to the country's most struggling high schools, following nationwide student protests demanding better education and decreased police brutality. Over 71,500 individuals participated in demonstrations across France, with more than 500 people detained by authorities.

In Paris, where approximately 24,500 protesters gathered, students climbed the Bastille monument and sang the national anthem, vowing to continue fighting for their future. High school students have been blocking entrances to hundreds of schools for over a week, leading to the deployment of riot police and numerous clashes. Education Minister Edouard Geffray announced the deployment of teachers to 114 of the 3,700 affected schools, targeting the most problematic institutions.

Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu pledged to present a plan to address the crisis by the end of October, though protesters remain unconvinced. The protests have resulted in injuries to hundreds of students, police, and teaching staff, and the arrest of thousands, primarily children. France's recent PISA scores placed the country's education system at its lowest level since the rankings began in 2000, despite spending 24% more per student on upper secondary education than the OECD average.