Is the academic level of French students truly collapsing, or does the PISA ranking only measure a portion of their abilities? Faced with alarming reading results, Madeleine de Jessey and Mouhamadou share the observation that the education system is in crisis, but not always the diagnosis. She teaches at the end of the system, in preparatory classes; he lays the foundations in primary school. Two ideal positions from which to compare what the institution demands, what teachers impart, and what students actually learn.
➤ Madeleine de Jessey: a literature professor in preparatory classes, former middle school teacher, and author of L’École des illettrés (The School for Illiterates). She raises the alarm about the linguistic, memory, and cultural gaps she observes even among the best students. She advocates for explicit, demanding instruction based on the findings of cognitive science, as well as much more robust training for primary school teachers.
➤ Mouhamadou: a primary school teacher in Val-de-Marne for about ten years and author of *Mouhamadou, the Teacher: 50 True Stories*. He advocates for a school system capable of adapting to its students without compromising their progress. For him, the crisis cannot be explained by a single method or by teachers alone: unstable curricula, overcrowded classrooms, insufficient training, parental distrust, and institutional violence must all be considered together.
In this discussion, they address these questions:
👉 Does PISA truly measure the quality of French education?
👉 Is mastery of grammar essential for learning to think?
👉 Should academic standards be adapted to new generations?
👉 Are parents and screens the blind spots of the education crisis?
👉 What long-term policies could truly raise academic standards?
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➤ 🎧 Share your thoughts or questions in the comments
➤ 👍 Like the video to support our work
➤ 🔔 Subscribe so you don't miss anything
We appreciate your kind comments, and above all, enjoy the video!
IN THIS EPISODE:
00:00 Introduction
00:44 Madeleine and Mouhamadou: Two teachers, two ends of the educational journey
02:24 True/False: Grammar, fundamentals, AI, and traditional methods
03:52 PISA 2025: What does the French ranking really reveal?
04:40 Should we go back to the schools of yesteryear?
09:05 Generation Google and AI: Do we still have to memorize everything?
11:04 Language mastery or register diversity?
13:53 Write first, correct later: Mouhamadou's method
17:39 Reading and comprehension: A matter of autonomy and democracy
19:01 Primary school, overcrowded classrooms, and collective responsibility
20:25 Does PISA assess knowledge or only a type of knowledge?
22:33 Why are students reading less well?
23:39 Syllabic method and "sight words": the disagreement
26:42 Is teacher training up to scratch?
29:17 Political instability and violence within the institution
31:27 Has "pedagogical theory" weakened knowledge transmission?
33:00 Parents, vocabulary, and screens: forgotten responsibilities
35:21 Recreational screens and non-native French-speaking children
38:22 What exactly is pedagogical theory?
41:45 Effort, enjoyment, and grammar: can we be demanding and fun?
44:18 Are teachers prepared for the realities on the ground?
45:48 How can we concretely improve students' academic performance?
47:29 Poland, England, Portugal: Reforms that worked
49:11 Labeling textbooks or preserving pedagogical freedom?
52:06 Political courage or simple intellectual honesty?
53:19 Changes of course: what exhausts teachers
54:02 Distrust, transparency, and questioning the school system
Business inquiries: lecrayon@influxcrew.com
Co-production: /influx - https://www.influxcrew.com
Directed by: https://agenceillustre.fr
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No insults or illegal content
Write in correct and understandable French
Be respectful of guests and other participants in discussions
If these guidelines are not followed, your comment will be deleted.
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Is the academic level of French students truly collapsing, or does the PISA ranking only measure a portion of their abilities? Faced with alarming reading results, Madeleine de Jessey and Mouhamadou share the observation that the education system is in crisis, but not always the diagnosis. She teaches at the end of the system, in preparatory classes; he lays the foundations in primary school. Two ideal positions from which to compare what the institution demands, what teachers impart, and what students actually learn.
➤ Madeleine de Jessey: a literature professor in preparatory classes, former middle school teacher, and author of L’École des illettrés (The School for Illiterates). She raises the alarm about the linguistic, memory, and cultural gaps she observes even among the best students. She advocates for explicit, demanding instruction based on the findings of cognitive science, as well as much more robust training for primary school teachers.
➤ Mouhamadou: a primary school teacher in Val-de-Marne for about ten years and author of *Mouhamadou, the Teacher: 50 True Stories*. He advocates for a school system capable of adapting to its students without compromising their progress. For him, the crisis cannot be explained by a single method or by teachers alone: unstable curricula, overcrowded classrooms, insufficient training, parental distrust, and institutional violence must all be considered together.
In this discussion, they address these questions:
👉 Does PISA truly measure the quality of French education?
👉 Is mastery of grammar essential for learning to think?
👉 Should academic standards be adapted to new generations?
👉 Are parents and screens the blind spots of the education crisis?
👉 What long-term policies could truly raise academic standards?
🎙️ Find ALL our shows as podcasts:
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/20rMwrr...
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/fr/podcast...
Deezer: https://www.deezer.com/fr/show/2676222
➤ 🎧 Share your thoughts or questions in the comments
➤ 👍 Like the video to support our work
➤ 🔔 Subscribe so you don't miss anything
We appreciate your kind comments, and above all, enjoy the video!
IN THIS EPISODE:
00:00 Introduction
00:44 Madeleine and Mouhamadou: Two teachers, two ends of the educational journey
02:24 True/False: Grammar, fundamentals, AI, and traditional methods
03:52 PISA 2025: What does the French ranking really reveal?
04:40 Should we go back to the schools of yesteryear?
09:05 Generation Google and AI: Do we still have to memorize everything?
11:04 Language mastery or register diversity?
13:53 Write first, correct later: Mouhamadou's method
17:39 Reading and comprehension: A matter of autonomy and democracy
19:01 Primary school, overcrowded classrooms, and collective responsibility
20:25 Does PISA assess knowledge or only a type of knowledge?
22:33 Why are students reading less well?
23:39 Syllabic method and "sight words": the disagreement
26:42 Is teacher training up to scratch?
29:17 Political instability and violence within the institution
31:27 Has "pedagogical theory" weakened knowledge transmission?
33:00 Parents, vocabulary, and screens: forgotten responsibilities
35:21 Recreational screens and non-native French-speaking children
38:22 What exactly is pedagogical theory?
41:45 Effort, enjoyment, and grammar: can we be demanding and fun?
44:18 Are teachers prepared for the realities on the ground?
45:48 How can we concretely improve students' academic performance?
47:29 Poland, England, Portugal: Reforms that worked
49:11 Labeling textbooks or preserving pedagogical freedom?
52:06 Political courage or simple intellectual honesty?
53:19 Changes of course: what exhausts teachers
54:02 Distrust, transparency, and questioning the school system
Business inquiries: lecrayon@influxcrew.com
Co-production: /influx - https://www.influxcrew.com
Directed by: https://agenceillustre.fr
Guidelines for commenting:
No insults or illegal content
Write in correct and understandable French
Be respectful of guests and other participants in discussions
If these guidelines are not followed, your comment will be deleted.
Le Crayon is on all social media!
► Instagram: Instagram: lecrayonmedia
► TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/lecrayonmedia/
► Facebook: Facebook: lecrayonmedia
► LinkedIn: LinkedIn: le-crayon-politique
► Podcasts: https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/...
► Twitter: Twitter: lecrayonmedia
► Our website: https://www.lecrayongroupe.fr/