French high-school students launch massive protests over underfunded schools and staff shortages

Beginning in late September, pupils in French lycées have mobilised nationwide to protest chronic underfunding, rundown facilities and teacher shortages, leading to school blockades that have turned violent in several locations. The actions have resulted in hundreds of injuries among students, teachers and police, and thousands of arrests, including alleged troublemakers. Demonstrators also voice discontent over extended school hours, mobile-phone bans and the opaque Parcoursup university-placement platform.

Although OECD data show France’s per-student spending exceeds the EU average and teacher vacancy rates are milder than elsewhere, the scale of the unrest reflects a deep-rooted French tradition of street protest that has historically compelled policy changes. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez labelled the movement “unprecedented,” while Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu stressed that police are only enforcing the law. The protests enjoy broad public sympathy, with a BMFTV poll indicating 72 % view the demands as legitimate, and they occur as President Emmanuel Macron faces low popularity and a politically weakened government.