French Education System 20/20 ?

Studying in France: A Perfect Score.

If you are planning to move to France with school age children then read on and by all means get your children to read this blog, we hope it helps and if you want more insight then leave a comment and we will follow it up, also if you have first hand experience of the education system then please also leave some comments.

We get lots of people asking us about the buying process and viewing property for sale in france with us but we also get hundreds of questions about the various aspects of living in France once people see a property they like and mark as a favourite, one of the most common questions is about the French education system and their concerns about putting thier children through the French system.

We have done that with our children and helped and advised many others on every aspect over the years so here we are adding some insights in the form of blogs to the Cle France website to help you understand the differences.

Photo by Tal Bright on Flickr

Les examens… If you are currently in the middle of your exams or you are about to passer les examens (take exams) and hope you can réussir les examens (pass exams) we wish you all the luck in the world, perhaps you are thinking of moving to France?

Let us just take a moment to see how different the grading system is in France, so you know what to expect.

The very first thing that will jump out to a non-French person is that grades are not based on an A, B, C, D, F system; they are not a percetage or even a 0-100 scale. Instead everything is based on a 0/20 marking system, with 10/20 being the basic "Pass" grade.

The other oddity (to us at least!) of the French grading system is that there is a strong emphasis on the idea that “personne n’est parfaite” (nobody’s perfect), quite refreshing in its own way. So teachers and 'profs' almost never ever give out a grade of 20/20! or at least I never got one!

Before people start yelling at me that it is just me that never got 20/20, “mais c’est faux ! Il y a des profs qui donnent des 20s !” (That’s not true! There are teachers that will give you 20s!), yes I guess, it is true that it is possible to achieve the much desired vingt sur vingt (twenty out of twenty), but it is rare and in general, on le donne pas (it’s not given out), because “personne n’est parfaite”.

Thinking about this, it is a little bizarre and certainly odd if you a’re not used to it. As a result of nobody being parfaite, l’idée d’une bonne note (the idea of a good grade) is un peu different compared with UK and American equivalents where stiving for the top marks is encouraged and shouted from the rooftops!

So what score is considered good?

In France a 12/20 is pretty good, a 14/20 is considered good and a 16/20 is amazing give yourself a pat on the back! (18/20 is reserved only for excellent work so if you get this then your a destined for great things).

Thinking about ces notes (these grades) in the familiar terms of just A, B, C, D, F may make you feel like you couldn’t do well in France and that scores out of 20 devalue your efforts somewhat BUT, enfin (finally), you will get used to the French grading system and be hiting the high numbers before you know it.

Le système d’éducation française (The French education system) is vastly different from the UK and American system. You may have to stumble along and learn it as you go, but in general it will only take 3 months to get to grips with the education system, about 6 months to fiully intergrate and by the end of the first year you will never want to be anywere else than studying en France.

If anyone has a specific question about 'the system' or how things work in French schools, Colleges and Uuniversities, feel free to leave a comment un commentaire below!