eEducation: 6 out of 10 French people want students’ digital skills to be assessed
Digital technology is more than ever at the heart of the debate on teaching and education. Last week, François Hollande announced the launch of a “Grande Ecole du Numérique” and reaffirmed his desire to see young French people become “digital players”. In line with this, on Monday the French Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Research unveiled new draft curricula for primary and secondary school pupils, designed to provide them with “the keys to deciphering an ever-changing digital world”.
The French and digital skills at school
- 59%of French people are in favor of assessing the digital skills of secondary school students
- In their opinion, assessing their level of office skills (41%) and digital literacy (36%) should be a priority.
- 70% of those questioned think that students should be assessed as early as middle school
- 25% believe that digital companies have a role to play in welcoming schoolchildren on compulsory internships
Digital technology, a new fundamental skill at school for a majority of French people
Today, digital technology is on the way to becoming a “key knowledge”, on a par with writing, reading and mathematics. A large majority of French people consider that understanding and knowing how to use digital technology is now essential: almost 60% of them would like middle and high school students to be assessed in this area.
“Digital skills are thus coming closer to the fundamental skills that parents expect from the French education system. This demand is undoubtedly motivated by the professional outlets and career prospects offered by digital technology to future generations of workers. More generally, parents are becoming increasingly aware of the daily use of digital technology in all sectors of activity, and of the need to master it,” comments Muriel Barnéoud, President of Syntec Numérique’s Publishers College.
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