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French high school students resumed protests after the holiday, but on a smaller scale

Riana Gegiu

2 November 2026, 14:32

International

Foto: Shutterstock.com

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French high school students resumed protests on Monday after a two-week holiday break, but turnout was much lower than in previous weeks. At 9:30 a.m., the Education Ministry in Paris announced that 41 high schools were blocked, representing approximately 1% of the more than 3,000 secondary schools in France.

Attempts to block schools were reported in Paris, Marseille and Rennes. Police were present in the affected areas, without full riot gear. Education Minister Edouard Geffray said protests were permitted, but preventing access to schools was illegal.

Before the holiday break, hundreds of high schools had been blocked, while demonstrations that began in September in the outskirts of Paris spread across the country. The protests focused on the cost of living, deteriorating schools, teacher shortages, the insufficient number of university places and inequalities in the admissions system. In some cities, demonstrations escalated into clashes with police and looting.

The government has promised to limit class sizes to 28 students, provide four billion euros for renovations, create 15,000 additional university places and reform admissions by 2028. Student representatives consider the measures insufficient and have announced that protests will continue.

Context: before the protests resumed after the holiday, student protests in France had escalated, with school closures and violence

Before the two-week holiday, student protests led to the total or partial closure of between 400 and 500 high schools, amid deteriorating buildings and a lack of teachers. Authorities reported that 24 educational institutions had been set on fire or vandalized, while 78 education employees had been injured, in addition to numerous violent incidents involving law enforcement.

The movement was accompanied by arrests and injuries: the Justice Ministry announced that, since the demonstrations began, more than 6,800 people had been detained, 86% of them minors. After an incident in which a teenager was seriously injured by a stun grenade (requiring the amputation of one hand), the government suspended the use of these devices last week and announced investigations into 18 alleged cases of abuse by members of the security forces.

Meanwhile, the government attempted to defuse the situation: it announced the deployment of approximately 3,000 substitute teachers to 114 affected high schools and budget adjustments for 2027. However, the High School Students’ Union deemed the measures insufficient and called for an additional 10 million euros in investment for renovation and modernization.