Posted 02 Nov 2009

According to an article in Time Magazine, state-run schools in France adhere to a "notoriously rigid education system" that does not equate to the success of students hoping to learn English for the benefit of their future careers.

Speaking to the publication, Julien Petitpas, a young man who is currently paying to learn English at an independent school, stated: "In school it’s all structure, grammar and getting it right on paper and in your head before you ever speak – and even then, you don’t do much of that. It just doesn’t work."

It also highlights recent comments made by the French president Nicolas Sarkozy, who called for greater efforts to be made to cultivate bilingual students and boost the country’s rating when it comes to TESOL examination results.

He added that an emergency plan to improve English language proficiency needs to be implemented, as well as greater employment of more teachers from overseas.

Category: Moving Abroad