Oudéa-Castéra affair: how many single-sex classes exist in France today ?

The minister's choice to educate her sons in single-sex classes is controversial. MAXPPP ILLUSTRATION/GOOGLE MAPS SCREENSHOT – VINCENT ISORE

New revelation from Mediapart: in an article published this Tuesday, January 23, the investigative newspaper affirms that the Minister of National Education Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, already entangled in a series of controversies since her appointment to the government, chose to educate his sons in single-sex classes within the private Parisian establishment Stanislas. 

This is the latest chapter in the series of controversies surrounding the Minister of Education and Sports, Amélie Oudéa-Castréa. After being singled out by a parliamentary report on the abuses of sports federations for her staggering salary when she was at the head of French tennis, the minister is caught up again by "the Stanislas'affair ;quot;. 

In an article published this Tuesday, January 23, Mediapart reveals that "the parents Oudéa-Castéra enrolled their three boys in single-sex classes" of the private and Catholic establishment Stanislas, previously singled out for its "abuses", particularly on the subject of homophobia and abortion . 

"Gender discrimination"

A mixed option does, however, exist within the college, which has offered at each level of education five classes for boys, three for girls and two mixed classes since 1992, but the minister preferred to opt for the "tradition", which Stanislas justifies on his website by "the observation of the gap in maturity between boys and girls at dawn of adolescence. 

According to the investigation site, the establishment would thus promote "gender discrimination". The clothing rules for girls would be stricter than those imposed on boys. School activities and trips would also be separated by gender: boys would be entitled to sports Olympics, while girls would participate in cooking competitions or yoga workshops.

A choice in opposition to its missions

At the end of the Council of Ministers which was held this Wednesday, January 24, government spokesperson Prisca Thévenot affirmed that the schooling of the minister's sons in single-sex classes was a matter of the will of the children themselves.

In any case, this decision of “single-sex” schooling raises questions because, as Médiapartthe minister is in particular responsible for implementing the Interministerial Convention for equality between girls and boys in the education system.

Questioned by Mediapart on the supposed contradiction between her personal choices and the anti-discrimination policies that she must promote in as minister, Amélie Oudéa-Castéra refused to answer questions from our colleagues.

How many single-sex classes today in France ? 

Although diversity in primary and secondary education has been compulsory since 1975 (and encouraged from the 1960s), private establishments "outside contract& ;quot;, almost all of which are Catholic religious establishments, can still separate girls and boys into different classes. In the private sector under contract, some establishments, such as Stanislas College, also practice non-mixing in certain classes, provided that they also offer the option of mixing. < /p>

According to Franceinfo, single-sex classes "are really marginal" and only concern less than 1% of all educational establishments. A Senate report, published in 2004, identified 44 single-sex schools, including 32 schools of boys and 12 girls' schools, out of more than 59,000 schools, or 0.07%.