Lorsque rentrer à l’école, c’est rester à la maison

Homeschooling in France as a contemporary critique of social institutions

Bibliographic Data

ID18950596
AuthorsErin Tremblay Ponnou-Delaffon (Illinois State University), Erin Tremblay Ponnou‐Delaffon (0000-0003-4027-544X, Illinois State University, corresponding author)
Year2020
Volume45
Issue2
Pages189-210
Publication date2020-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueContemporary French Civilization (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0147-9156 • E-ISSN: 2044-396X
PublisherLiverpool University Press (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.3828/cfc.2020.11
OpenAlexW3046114260
LanguageFR
References cited7

At first glance, homeschooling appears a fringe phenomenon in France, where it concerns some 25,000 children today – a far cry from the two million home-educated youth in the United States. Yet, this alternative educational practice merits examination due to its recent rise in popularity and the sociopolitical polemics its increased visibility has sparked. Situating these debates in their historical and contemporary context, this article reveals that while l’instruction en famille is indebted to cultural borrowings from the anglophone world, it is also shaped by specifically French developments, dynamics, and traditions. By analyzing political, legal, and media discourse, as well as personal narratives and published data on l’école à la maison, I therefore contend that the phenomenon delineates cultural fault lines which map onto – but also chart territory distinct from – debates in the better-known American context. In particular, I argue that homeschooling in contemporary France exposes crises in the perception of societal institutions and values such as parenting, the state, l’école républicaine, la laïcité, and security and freedom in an age of terrorism

Art · Humanities · Political science · Sociology · Diverse Education Studies and Reforms

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