Lionel Jospin and the Destruction of French Education

When left-wing French politician Lionel Jospin died in March, major obituaries in French and English-language papers covered in great detail his long and eventful career, which included leadership of the French Socialist Party, membership in the Chamber of Deputies, and stints as national minister of education, prime minister, and a candidate for president of France. His shocking third-place showing in the 2002 presidential election marked the ascent of the far-right in France: The National Front’s Jean-Marie Le Pen defeated him in the first round, before being defeated himself by incumbent president Jacques Chirac in the second round.

But even Jospin’s obituary in the authoritative, center-left Paris Le Monde fails to dwell on one of his most notable accomplishments, and his most damaging one: his role in dismantling the once-outstanding French national primary- and secondary-education system.

About the Author

M.D. Aeschliman

M.D. Aeschliman is professor emeritus of education at Boston University and author of The Restoration of Man: C. S. Lewis and the Continuing Case Against Scientism (3rd English-language ed., Seattle: Discovery Institute, 2019 and French-language rev. ed., Paris: Pierre Téqui, 2020).

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When left-wing French politician Lionel Jospin died in March, major obituaries in French and English-language papers covered in great detail his long and eventful career, which included leadership of the French Socialist Party, membership in the Chamber of Deputies, and stints as national minister of education, prime minister, and a candidate for president of France. His shocking third-place showing in the 2002 presidential election marked the ascent of the far-right in France: The National Front’s Jean-Marie Le Pen defeated him in the first round, before being defeated himself by incumbent president Jacques Chirac in the second round.

But even Jospin’s obituary in the authoritative, center-left Paris Le Monde fails to dwell on one of his most notable accomplishments, and his most damaging one: his role in dismantling the once-outstanding French national primary- and secondary-education system.

About the Author

M.D. Aeschliman

M.D. Aeschliman is professor emeritus of education at Boston University and author of The Restoration of Man: C. S. Lewis and the Continuing Case Against Scientism (3rd English-language ed., Seattle: Discovery Institute, 2019 and French-language rev. ed., Paris: Pierre Téqui, 2020).