Education and youth : les propositions des candidats à la présidentielle 2027

The school system has 11.6 million pupils and more than 850,000 teachers. Teachers' starting salaries are close to the OECD average but fall behind later in their careers.

Marine Le Pen

The RN puts the emphasis on fundamental knowledge and authority (RN programmes of 2024 and 2025).

Top priority for French, mathematics and French history in primary school.
Refer pupils excluded twice to specialised facilities.
Reinstate streams in the baccalauréat and abolish the Pacte enseignant.
Raise tuition fees for foreign students.

Jean-Luc Mélenchon

LFI wants to reduce class sizes and make school canteens and higher education free.

19 pupils per class by the end of the term, meaning 160,000 teachers recruited.
Free school canteens, with 100% organic or farm-produced food.
Free higher education, from bachelor's to doctoral level.
Guarantee a secular public school in every commune.

Édouard Philippe

Édouard Philippe relies on school autonomy and higher teacher pay.

A 20% increase in average teacher pay over the term.
School autonomy (timetables, uniforms, recruitment) in exchange for publishing their results.
Fines for parents who harass teachers, skip school or are highly disruptive.
Improve Parcoursup without scrapping it (October 2026).

Raphaël Glucksmann

Place publique wants to raise teachers' pay and make school a tool for reducing inequality.

Teacher pay increase of 10% to 25%, costing 6 billion euros.
A five-year rescue plan for public schools: smaller classes and renovated buildings.
Apply a principle of social mix to private schools.
“Passport for emancipation” guaranteeing a group stay for every child.

David Lisnard

David Lisnard advocates free school choice and autonomy for headteachers (August 2026).

Gradually abolish the school catchment system and guarantee free choice of school.
Headteachers' autonomy to recruit their teaching teams.
Double the number of medical students trained by 2030.

Bruno Retailleau

Bruno Retailleau wants to rebuild the school system around transmission, authority and the freedom of institutions (August 2026).

Entrance exam for sixth grade, ability groups and an end to automatic progression.
Create 1,000 “free” public institutions on a voluntary basis.
Net increase of 135 euros at the start and 300 euros mid-career.
Reintegration facilities for under-16s excluded repeatedly.

Gabriel Attal

Gabriel Attal relies on falling primary enrolment and higher pay mid-career.

Fewer than 20 pupils per class in primary school thanks to falling birth rates.
Reinstate a certificate of studies before entry to sixth grade.
Net monthly increase of 200 to 500 euros, estimated cost of 2.5 billion euros.
National scale of sanctions in primary schools (Renaissance programme 2025).

Éric Zemmour

Éric Zemmour's known school measures largely date from the 2022 programme.

Certificate of studies as a condition for entry to sixth grade (2022 programme).
End the collège unique and bring back vocational streams in lycées (2022 programme).
Recruit 50,000 AESH and raise teachers' pay (2022 programme).
Compulsory school uniforms (statement from 2023).

Marine Tondelier

The Ecologist programme aims for smaller classes and higher teacher pay.

19 students per class by 2032, and 12 in REP and REP+ schools.
15% increase in teacher salaries over five years, on top of inflation.
A category B career path for accompagnants d'élèves en situation de handicap (AESH), the school assistants supporting pupils with disabilities.
Abolish Parcoursup in favour of an online guidance platform.

Fabien Roussel

Fabien Roussel makes schooling a priority, with massive recruitment.

Make national education and youth the priority for the coming years (August 2026).
Recruit 90,000 staff for the Éducation nationale (2022 programme).
Homework completed at school for all pupils (2022 programme).
Abolish Parcoursup and introduce a student income of at least 850 euros per month (2022 programme).

Nicolas Dupont-Aignan

Nicolas Dupont-Aignan defends equal access, civic education and digital literacy teaching in schools.

Abolish Parcoursup (October 2026).
Priority for French students in university financial aid (October 2026).
Compulsory training for teachers in artificial intelligence.
Monthly flag-raising ceremony in every school.

Dominique de Villepin

Dominique de Villepin wants to make the school budget untouchable and revalue all staff.

Raise salaries of all school staff by at least 10%.
Make the Éducation nationale budget untouchable and increase spending per pupil by 20% over ten years.
Annual national assessments in French, mathematics and history, from primary school to collège.
Create a civic semester from age 15, linked to the citizen and operational reserves.

Nathalie Arthaud

Lutte ouvrière calls for massive funding and the hiring of tenured staff in education.

Billions for schools and their adaptation to global warming.
Recruitment determined by the needs expressed by staff.
End the use of contract staff who are “precarious and underpaid”.

Karim Bouamrane

Karim Bouamrane wants to invest in primary schools and guarantee every young person training of their choice.

Guarantee every young person training leading to a job of their choice rather than one imposed on them.
Invest heavily in primary schools and extracurricular activities.
Create specialised collèges with tracks in culture, sport and foreign languages.
Democratise excellence so that every child has the same opportunities.

François Hollande

He wants to reduce class sizes in primary schools and strengthen civic service for young people.

Cut class sizes in primary schools to 19 pupils.
Create a “national Erasmus” lasting one week between distant lycées.
Expand civic service to 300,000 young people, with a free driving licence.
Pay a 10,000 euro “entry into adult life” grant at the end of civic service.

Natacha Polony

She wants a school refocused on basics, language and secularism (laïcité).

Return to structured teaching of reading, writing and arithmetic.
Revalue teachers.
Make secularism a pillar of the republican pact.

Education and youth : les propositions des candidats à la présidentielle 2027

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