Chapter 18: National Policies and Practices on ICT in Education: France

France has a population of just over 64 million in an area encompassing 551,695 km². France’s overseas territories and departments, which are, except for Guyana, islands found on three oceans, add three million inhabitants.¹

Like other high-income countries, France has increasingly become a highly urbanized society, and the country currently is experiencing many profound economic changes. Regional disparities in access to education are less pronounced than 20 years ago, and the proportion of a generation gaining a vocational diploma has also increased. Today, approximately 92% of students in an age cohort acquire (at least) the minimum qualification level set by the government for all school-leavers. Also, young people are assured of receiving a recognized qualification, whatever their social, cultural, or geographical origins. The challenge for the French education system is to give students equal opportunities in a society where mastery of ICT is becoming essential, and to prepare them to become citizens of the information society.