France Punishes Students Who Block High Schools
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France has seen a month of unrest among high school students, with many schools blocked by protesters angry about social and economic issues.
Education authorities have now announced sanctions for students who blockade the inside of school buildings, rather than just gathering outside.
Schools are also facing a practical problem: how to make up for the lessons that were missed because of the blockades. Catching up on lost classes is proving difficult for teachers and students alike.
The protests show no sign of stopping soon. On one recent Friday, 41 high schools were reported as blocked across the country.
That same day, police detained 154 people connected to the protests, according to official figures.
These numbers were given by Laurent Nuñez, a French government official responsible for public order and security matters.
The blockades are part of wider social anger in France, which has affected several areas of public life beyond education.
It remains unclear how long the protests will continue or how the government plans to respond beyond sanctions and policing.
For now, students, teachers and officials are all dealing with the disruption caused by weeks of blocked schools and lost teaching time.
Vocabulary10 words
- unrest
- a situation where many people are angry and protest
- sanction
- an official punishment for breaking rules
- blockade
- stopping people entering or using a place
- detain
- to hold someone, usually by police
- public order
- keeping things calm and safe in society
- social anger
- strong shared frustration about society
- disruption
- something that stops normal activity
- catch up
- to do missed work later
- official
- a government worker with responsibility
- authorities
- people or groups in charge, like government bodies
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Quiz
Answer key
1. Sanctions 2. Making up for missed lessons 3. Laurent Nuñez
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Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
France has seen a month of _____ among high school students, with many schools blocked by protesters.
Education authorities have now announced _____ for students who blockade the inside of school buildings.
Schools are also facing a practical problem: how to make up for the lessons that were _____ because of the blockades.
On one recent Friday, 41 high schools were reported as _____ across the country.
That same day, police _____ 154 people connected to the protests.
These numbers were given by Laurent Nuñez, a French government _____ responsible for public order.
The blockades are part of wider _____ in France.
For now, students, teachers and officials are all dealing with the _____ caused by weeks of blocked schools.
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