Home Education through the Lens of Municipal Records: A Case Study in the Parisian Suburbs

ABSTRACT

Research about home educators is often limited by a reliance on convenience-based samples. This paper explores an alternative source of information: written reports from inquiries held by the French public administration on every registered home-educated child. First, I depict how these inquiries are legally designed and how our research team has negotiated with government agencies to gain access to these reports. Then I discuss the case study of Cheny, a city located in the working-class suburbs of Paris. In Cheny, 70 children from 44 families were registered as home educated from 2011 to 2016. I use the city records to describe what the local authorities know and think about families who home educate their children and what this knowledge teaches us about the practice and public regulation of home education in France. I focus on the ability of these reports to provide us with information about parental motives. I also raise different questions about the value and weaknesses of such sets of data.

Acknowledgments

I would like to thank the Cheny City Council for having made this study possible, Yasmine Siblot, who gave me the opportunity to do research in Cheny, and Albert Cheng for his helpful comments.

This paper was discussed at the 3rd Global Home Education Conference in Moscow. Thanks to all the conference participants and organizers for their challenging feedback. Proofreading: Sarah Novak

Notes

¹ It is likely that children age 3 to 6 will also be included in this legal frame starting in September 2019, see http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/dyn/15/dossiers/alt/ecole_de_la_confiance.

² This very strategic article will be commented upon below: “Les enfants soumis à l’obligation scolaire qui reçoivent l’instruction dans leur famille, y compris dans le cadre d’une inscription dans un établissement d’enseignement à distance, sont dès la première année, et tous les deux ans, l’objet d’une enquête de la mairie compétente, uniquement aux fins d’établir quelles sont les raisons alléguées par les personnes responsables, et s’il leur est donné une instruction dans la mesure compatible avec leur état de santé et les conditions de vie de la famille.” (Code de l’éducation, art. L131-10). “Children subject to compulsory education who receive instruction within their families, including those enrolled in distance learning programs, will, starting in the first year and continuing every two years, be subject to an inquiry to be carried out by the appropriate mayoral office, with the single objective of establishing the reasons alleged by the persons responsible, and determining whether they are being given instruction that is compatible with their health and with their families’ living conditions” (French Code of Education, art. L131-10).

³ “L’autorité de l’État compétente en matière d’éducation doit au moins une fois par an, à partir du troisième mois suivant la déclaration d’instruction par la famille, faire vérifier que l’enseignement assuré est conforme au droit de l’enfant à l’instruction tel que défini à l’article L131-1-1” (Code de l’éducation, art. L131-10). “The State authority competent in the area of education must, at least once a year, starting in the third month following the filing of a declaration of intent to home-educate, verify that the teaching being given is in accordance with the child’s right to instruction as defined by article L131-1-1” (French Code of Education, art. L131-10).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Philippe Bongrand

Philippe Bongrand is Associate Professor in Education. His research is funded by the French National Research Agency (PROFET ANR-15-CE28-0009 and SociogrIEF ANR-18-CE28-0014) and the University of Paris Seine (INEX-2018-PE80).