***Article by the French Trade Union Confederation of National Education (CSEN)

Scapegoating Europe? To hell with that!

The European Parliament elections will take place on the 9th of June. When choosing our common future, it’s worth stepping back and looking at the bigger picture.

What do we want for our children? In what ways will professions change going forward? Are we in favour of change or are we against it? People are in a state of disarray. Abounding fake news blitzes and remarkable AI capabilities appear to undermine everything we are told, not least what we are told by authorities. How can we find our bearings amid it all? Who can we trust? What are we to expect?

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[1]A four-part series portraying schools in France in 1880, 1930, 1950 and 1980[2] was recently broadcast on a French television channel. It involved current day teachers and pupils stepping back in time and immersing themselves in the practices and, most importantly, the beliefs of those times. The production skilfully avoids clichés providing solid in-depth analysis, no “it was better back in my day” discourse to be seen.

It is a timely illustration that the act of teaching has always been about facilitating a process whereby a student obtains knowledge or skills. A process that artificial intelligence will never be able to replace[3]. Restoring the prestige of our professions is an immediate imperative for the French National School Board.

The last segment of the series, in which the 2024 students answer questions in front of the camera, was the most eye-opening of all:

The 13/14 year-olds were utterly flabbergasted at the very notion of life in the 80s: “How did they manage it? You had to use different money all the time? Border checks?”

It all seemed so far-fetched, illustrating how irrefutably intrinsic Europe now is for that generation; Monnet and Schuman’s blueprint blatantly brought to bear – their work endures despite the ranting and raving of prevailing public opinion. Most voters nevertheless remain averse to change. Every voter is well aware of what he or she loses, yet seems blind to what he or she gains – considerable powers of persuasion are needed to achieve greater emancipation and prosperity for the masses.

Far too few politicians are bothered to go about that. This provides ample opportunity for populists. Just look at how the Brits are kicking themselves after Brexit.

Jacques Delors was keenly aware of all of this, so much so that he refused to stand for election in France even though all the polls suggested that he would have secured a comfortable victory.

How about comparing what used to happen here with what it is currently happening now elsewhere? Look at Russia for instance – surely that can allow us to recognise that the European project very much remains a worthy endeavour, one that merits our full attention.

CESI embodies such ambition, it brings hope to workers across our continent. We are the protagonists of our future.

If France is our community of shared destiny, we must remember that Europe is our community of shared civilisation.

Barbarism looms on the horizon.

The vote on June 9th will be historic.

It’s time to rally together.

[1] M6 cable TV channel

[2] ‘L’école à remonter le temps’ – (‘School once upon a time’) in collaboration with Jérôme Krop, educational sciences historian

[3] Raphaël Enthoven ‘l’Esprit artificiel’ – ‘The artificial mind’