A few days before the start of classes, some students discovered that their return to school would be turned upside down.
For many, the surprise was significant. A few days before the start of the school year, scheduled for September 2 in schools in metropolitan France, it has been rearranged in some primary and secondary schools. Before this Monday, only a few private schools announced that they preferred to postpone their start, but it is an upheaval for students and their parents as well as for the teaching staff.
The reason for this last-minute change: the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, which take place from August 28 to September 8. On the first day of school, several events are scheduled, which could cause complications for students going to their first day of school. Many schools are, in fact, close to the Paralympic event locations and, as during the Olympic Games, a security system as well as spaces requiring a “Games Pass” must be taken into account for getting around. But what is most worrying the academies concerned is the issue of public transport.
By the start of the school year on September 2, most of the holidaymakers had returned and would fill the metros, buses and trams, which were already largely occupied by spectators and volunteers for the Games. In response, the rectorates have proposed to the management of the middle and high schools concerned to stagger the start of the school year.
The first ones concerned are obviously the establishments of the Paris academy, since the vast majority of the Paralympic events take place in the French capital. According to the rectorate, 91 establishments will be impacted by the security perimeters: 44 of them are in a blue or red zone while the other 47 remain close to these zones. But this is not the only department concerned, two others are also affected because they host Olympic sites.
As in Paris, many schools have had to adjust the resumption of classes. This only concerns a few cities, such as Saint-Denis, where the Dora-Maar college, located in the Olympic village, will remain closed until September 16. For 15 days, students will have classes in a former school in the city. In Seine-Saint-Denis, two schools in Clichy-sous-Bois are also affected, where teachers will teach outside the school, and students will even be able to attend exams.
The Hauts-de-Seine department is also one of the departments affected because it is crossed by some public transport that is at high risk of being overloaded. The cities of Asnières, Boulogne-Billancourt, Clichy, Courbevoie, Gennevilliers, Issy-les-Moulineaux, Levallois-Perret, Nanterre, Puteaux, Vanves and Villeneuve-la-Garenne will be the most affected.