The Prime Minister, Gabriel Attal, inaugurated the first “educational boarding school” in Nice on April 22, 2024. At the Lycée du Parc Impérial in Nice, a new program of “disruption internships” was experimented upon, where about ten young people aged 13 to 16 were hosted during the two weeks of spring break. They were supervised by a team of fifteen adults including teachers, educators, reservists from the gendarmerie, and psychologists. The program included classes on French history, learning the national anthem La Marseillaise, cleaning graves of fallen soldiers, as well as sports, theater, education on the dangers of drugs, screen addiction, disinformation, and bullying.
This initiative is part of a government policy to combat violence among minors, which was announced by the Prime Minister on April 18 in Viry-Châtillon, and is in line with recent proposals to revitalize boarding schools. In his general policy speech on January 30, Mr. Attal suggested reserving the “50,000 available boarding school spots” for “troubled youth” to disconnect them from negative influences and prevent them from delving into delinquency. The specifics of the program are still unclear, but it seems to involve short-term internships during vacations or year-long placements based on a “directed volunteerism”. If the experiment in Nice proves successful, the program could be expanded nationwide by the end of the year.
Teaching unions have expressed reservations about this program. They believe that these “disruption internships” in boarding schools seem to overlook the educational aspect and create confusion between the educational mission of existing school boarding schools in France and the coercive mission of so-called “rehabilitation boarding schools” that disappeared decades ago. Historian David Niget, an expert in youth history and children’s rights, explains that Attal’s proposals resemble the rehabilitation boarding schools that existed in France in the 19th century and continued until the 1970s. These schools were different from traditional bourgeois and Catholic boarding schools, focusing on knowledge transmission rather than disciplinary measures.
The Prime Minister’s initiative to introduce educational boarding schools has stirred debate among educators and experts. While some see the potential benefits of such programs in addressing youth violence and delinquency, others are concerned about the coercive nature reminiscent of historical rehabilitation boarding schools. The success of the experiment in Nice will likely influence the decision to expand the program nationwide. As discussions continue, it is essential to strike a balance between preventive measures and respect for individual freedoms and rights of young people. It remains to be seen how this new approach to tackling youth violence will evolve in the coming months and whether it will prove effective in achieving its intended goals.
