Three months after the beheading of Samuel Paty, murdered for showing caricatures of Muhammad to his students as part of a course on freedom of expression, the finding is clear. Protests against secularism and forms of religious separatism continue to grow at school and teachers are the first victims, as proved by an Ifop survey carried out for the Jean Jaurès and Charlie Hebdo foundation .
Lessons already contested for more than half of teachers
First consequence of this phenomenon: teachers are self-censoring more and more (42%) within their establishments, in order to avoid possible excesses and incidents which could be caused by some pupils. A proportion which even reaches 49% in secondary education and which has increased by 13 points since 2018, according to the study. A majority of teachers surveyed (53%) also state that some of their courses are subject to contestation, and that some students try to avoid them. A figure which is up 12 points here compared to 2018. More specifically, one in five teachers (19%) even observed a challenge or disapproval during the tributes to Professor Samuel Paty, last fall. A figure that climbs to a third (34%) in priority neighborhoods.
Many signs of religious separatism
More worrying still, the proportion of signs of religious separatism at school, far from being anecdotal. Thus, 59% of teachers say they have been confronted with it at least once in their establishment. These signs can take several forms: 45% of teachers say for example to have observed the absence of young girls during swimming lessons. 28% report refusals to enter religious buildings during school trips and 24% have already experienced challenges to Christmas meals, Christmas trees and cakes of kings, or any other Christian symbol. Finally, 21% of teachers testify to the refusal of certain children to join hands in the name of religious convictions, and 9% to requests for the organization of canteens according to the religion of the pupils.
Note – Google translate used.
