The initial training required of those responsible for education depends on the age of the pupils, but also on the type of institution and the study direction chosen.
Institutions, level and models of training
The requirement for initial training for staff at all childcare facilities is relatively recent, and the qualifications required vary depending on the type of facility.
A new decree dated 2 May 2019 setting out the authorisation and subsidy scheme for crèches, childcare services and independent (co-)childminders, defines the titles and rules for initial training for the functions of childcare, psycho-medico-social support and management.
Specifically for childcare functions, this new decree requires at least the upper secondary education certificate (CESS = Certificat d’Enseignement Secondaire Supérieur) accompanied by a certificate of qualification or an additional training diploma defined by the legislation of the Office of Birth and Childhood (ONE : Office de la Naissance et de l'Enfance).
For psycho-medico-social management functions, the titles required are much more restricted: 3 levels of bachelor's degree (psychology, social worker, nursing) and 3 levels of master's degree (psychological and educational sciences, engineering in social action, public health).
For managerial positions, all higher-level training with a psycho-pedagogical, health or social orientation is authorised for nurseries with more than 14 places. Nevertheless, the Office of Birth and Childhood requires that, within two years of taking up the post, proof of additional training recognised by the Office of Birth and Childhood be provided. This complementary certificate is currently being organised.
For the out-of-school childcare sector (3-12 year olds), holiday centres and homework schools are defined by several pieces of legislation. The decree of the Government of the French Community sets out the terms of application of the Decree of 3 July 2003 relating to the coordination of the care of children during their free time and support for after-school care and defines the titles required for the various functions found within the structures.
In April 2014, a decree (11 April 2014) (décret réglementant les titres et fonctions dans l'enseignement fondamental et secondaire organisé et subventionné par la Communauté française), changed the qualifications required for different functions.
The teaching profession can be categorised according to the coverage of the section of the Master's degree of Education chosen and corresponding to the years of compulsory education in which graduates can teach :
- Master's of Education section 1: from the 1st pre-primary to the 2nd year of primary education, including psychomotricity ;
- Master of Teaching section 2: from the 1st to the 6th year of primary education, with the exception of psychomotricity, physical education, second language, ethics or religion (unless training preparing for the teaching of ethics or religion is included in the student's programme) ;
- Master's degree of Education section 3 :
For general subjects: from the 5th year of primary education to the 3rd year of secondary education.
For foreign languages and digital, technological and digital education : from the 3rd year of primary education to the 3rd year of secondary education.
For artistic subjects: from the 3rd year of primary education to the 3rd year of secondary education and for part-time secondary arts education.
For physical and health education: from the 1st year of pre-primary education to the 3rd year of secondary education. - Master's degree of Education, sections 4 and 5 : from the 4th year to the 6th year of secondary education. If, after obtaining one of these grades, the teacher has five years' seniority and is awarded the advanced Master's degree of Education, the 3rd year of secondary education is added to the base coverage of the section.
Amendments and additions are planned to the decree regulating titles and functions in pre-primary and primary education in order to include the new titles, which will be published in June 2027 at the earliest.
Non-school childcare facilities
The training of childcare workers is a vocational upper secondary education programme, in which courses on health and hygiene still feature prominently compared with educational psychology.
Childcare worker training is currently under review by the French-speaking Service for Jobs and Qualifications (SFMQ : Service Francophones des métiers et des qualifications).
Whereas no diploma had previously been required for childminders looking after children at home or parents staffing a parental day nursery, childminders must now hold a degree.
For childcare functions, the new decree of 2 May 2019 establishing the authorisation and subsidy scheme for crèches, childcare services and independent (co-)childminders, requires at least the upper secondary education certificate (CESS = Certificat d’Enseignement Secondaire Supérieur) accompanied by another title such as childcare worker, childcare assistant, educator, education agent or a diploma as a company manager: childminder issued by IFAPME/EFPME.
Master's degree of Education, sections 1, 2, 3 : direct training
Initial Teacher Education is organized in four years (240 ECTS), on a joint degree basis between Hautes Ecoles (University Colleges), Universities, and/or Arts Colleges. All the networks organise this type of education. Administratively, the education departments at Hautes Ecoles are then allowed to organize short-type, full-time higher education, but also long-type higher education.
The decree on the reform of Initial Teacher Education of 7 February 2019 defines the development and acquisition of four major skills :
- The skills of the institutional, social and cultural actor ;
- The skills of the actor in a learning organisation in a collective dynamic ;
- The skills of the organiser and coach of learning in an evolving dynamic ;
- The skills of the reflective practitioner.
These skills translate themselves into numerous abilities that future teachers need to acquire.
Various aspects of organisation, content, and teaching activities are instrumental in enabling students not only to acquire the reflexes of teaching professionals, but also to become theoreticians of their practices. The training model implemented is a model of organisation and specific supervision of professional training situations.
For the teaching masters degrees in sections 1 to 3, one axis identifies training "in and through practice" by setting up professional situations. Learning is built up gradually through interaction between theoretical training situations and professional situations.
These work-related situations are worked on in professional training workshops, practice analysis seminars covering the various areas of training and practical internships in real-life situations.
The annual programme of the second cycle of training leading to a Master's degree of Education, sections 1, 2 and 3, is organised to enable students to undertake a long-term internship in order to gradually and as far as possible enter into the practice of the four areas of competence of the teaching profession.
The professional situations (internships) take place in pre-primary, primary, secondary, ordinary and specialised schools, both full-time and dual vocational education, social advancement secondary schools or part-time secondary arts education.
The progression of internships and professional situations is thought out in terms of objectives and skill levels to be built up. The duration of internships varies from short internships at the start of the training to increasingly long internships.
The professional situations enable the following objectives to be developed :
- Testing the professional project ;
- Gradually developing a professional identity ;
- Building a reflective practitioner attitude ;
- More in-depth study of subjects, including subject didactics, as well as differentiated teaching, remedial teaching, individual support and co-teaching ;
- The development of skills related to the social role of the teacher ;
- Progressive learning to work independently and as part of a team.
Master's degree of Education, sections 4 : direct training
The Master's programme of Education, section 4 (artistic and non-artistic) is a 2nd cycle programme (120 ECTS - level 7 of the European Qualifications Framework) and aims to enable future teachers to acquire skills relating to the didactic, pedagogical, communicative and social components. It enables students to continue developing the competences relating to the subject component begun during the first cycle of training.
The annual 2nd cycle programme enables future teachers who have acquired at least 10 teaching ECTS in training for and through practice to carry out a long-term internship, equivalent to 15 of the ECTS in training for and through practice, preferably within the same institution.
The future teacher will gradually be able to work in the four areas of competence of the teaching profession and benefit from teaching units enabling reflective analysis and supervision of practice.
The degree specifies the subject for which the training prepares and enables to teach from the fourth to the sixth year of secondary education and in part-time secondary arts education for the Master's degree of Education, section 4 linked to artistic subjects.
Master's degree of Education, sections 5 : deferred training
The Master's programme of Education, section 5 (60 ECTS - level 7 of the European Qualifications Framework) is a pedagogical training that follows on from a Master's degree in a subject-specific training and is organised as part of a joint degree programme involving at least two types of training providers (Universities, Hautes Ecoles, Arts Colleges). The degree is specified by subject and enables holders to teach in compulsory education, from the 4th to the 6th year of secondary education, and in part-time secondary arts education for the subjects that concern it.
The subjects for sections 4 and 5 of the Masters of Education are listed in the decree of 7 February 2019 defining Initial Teacher Education.
Advanced Master's degree of Education
An advanced Master's degree of Education, sections 1 to 5, enables teachers to continue and deepen the development of certain skills (60 ECTS - level 7 of the European Qualifications Framework). To qualify, teachers must have been teaching for at least 5 years. For sections 3 to 5, it will extend the years of teaching from the 3rd to the 6th year of secondary education.
Master's degree in Teacher Training
A Master's degree in Teacher Training (60 ECTS - level 7 of the European Qualifications Framework) enables teachers to teach in Initial Teacher Education for Higher Education and Adult Education. This master's degree must be obtained within 6 years of the teacher's first appointment, except for holders of a certificate of pedagogical aptitude for Higher Education (certificat d'aptitude pédagogique pour l'enseignement supérieur) and holders of a doctorate in psychological and educational sciences or in the field of "teaching" or didactics.
Admission requirements
Non-school childcare facilities
Access to the third stage of vocational secondary education is contingent on successful completion of the fourth year of secondary education. Admission to studies to qualify as a childcare worker is subject to a number of additional conditions :
- a favourable opinion from the admissions board (which may request the opinion of the Centre for Psychological, Medical and Social Services concerning the pupil’s aptitude for the practical part of the course) ;
- the production of a certificate of fitness in which a doctor who is approved by the head of institution or the controlling authority confirms that he/she has not discovered any long-term health condition in the pupil which is likely to compromise the normal completion of the teaching experience programme, to be exacerbated by it or to endanger the safety of those with whom the pupil will associate in the school premises concerned.
Master's degree of Education, sections 1 to 5
Training courses for Master's degree of Education, sections 1 to 3 are accessible to holders of the upper secondary education certificate (CESS) or qualifications recognised as equivalent (decree of 7 November 2013, Article 107). They are also accessible to students who do not hold any of the qualifications which authorise access to higher education but can provide proof of having passed :
- either the special exam for admission to engineering science (complete exam) ;
- or the admission exam organised by a university in the French Community.
Article 34 of the decree of 7 February 2019 defining Initial Teacher Education takes into account the thorough mastery of the French language in a professional context.
An introductory written test on the thorough mastery of the French language as a speaker and receiver in a professional context is organised each academic year at the beginning of the training course.
It covers the following skills :
- analyse and summarise an informative or argumentative written text in terms of its explicit and implicit content ;
- produce a written argumentative text using an appropriate writing process, including syntax and spelling rules.
This preliminary test is organised identically and simultaneously in all institutions authorised to organise Initial Teacher Education.
For Master's degrees of Education, sections 1 to 3, the test is optional and, if passed, exempts the student from the 5 ECTS for the mastery of the French language course.
For Master's degrees of Education, sections 4 and 5, the test is compulsory and, in the event of failure, adds 5 additional teaching ECTS relating to the mastery of the French language.
As part of the Master in Teaching Section 3: Physical education and health education, institutions require a medical certificate and sometimes an additional cardiovascular examination that certifies that the student is fit to undergo all the teaching activities as well as activities in a sports and professional setting.
Students who enroll in a Master’s degree of education section 3 for an artistic discipline organised within the Arts Colleges must also pass an admission test at the beginning of the academic year. Its participation implies adherence to the Arts College’s educational and artistic project. The rules governing the studies determine the organisation of this admission test.
Teachers of vocational practical courses and some teachers of technical courses for whom no full-time training is provided, may prepare for the teaching profession by attending training leading to the teaching proficiency certificate (CAP) organised by higher-level social advancement education, while in employment. Entrance requirements and the length of these courses depend on the candidate’s profile, and in particular on his/her school and/or academic record and the qualifications that he/she holds. There is a CAP section open to candidates who hold a higher education degree and one open to candidates who do not hold such a qualification.
Higher education is an open system incorporating legally defined gateways by which a student can change course, dispensations and the recognition of personal or professional experience. Many students begin a teacher-training course after having attempted to follow other higher education programmes.
Curriculum, level of specialisation and learning outcomes
Non-school childcare facilities
The three-year curriculum leading to the childcare worker’s qualification consists of at least :
- 1,000 periods of general, special and philosophical instruction ;
- 1,700 periods of technical instruction and professional practice.
The course content covers the various skills in the childcare worker’s training profile. The profile is based on six functions (educating and socialising the child; caring, health and safety; organising and planning; management and administration; social and communication aspects; professional ethics), each corresponding to a number of activities, which are in turn translated into skills and indicators of the mastery of those skills. Thus, for example, the function ‘educating and socialising the child’ includes the activity ‘integrating the child in the group’, which involves – among other skills – ‘creating an atmosphere which enables, fosters and validates interactions, communication and cooperation between children’. The indicator of the mastery of this skill is as follows: ‘The learner identifies cooperative interactions and validates them while respecting the need for individual activities’.
Preparation for the qualification tests also requires successful completion of at least 1,000 50-minute periods of teaching experience, including at least 400 periods in the seventh year if the pupil has taken the ‘childcare’ grouped basic option and 500 periods if he/she has taken the nursery care work grouped basic option.
Internships are organised in institutions which are authorised for this purpose and located in Belgium or, by dispensation, abroad, and which offer the necessary clinical, social, ethical and educational psychology resources for pupils’ technical, psychological, ethical and social training. The supervision of trainees is the responsibility of an ‘internship supervisor’ who is qualified in accordance with the objectives assigned to each internship: this supervisor undertakes the individual educational supervision of the trainees and, by monitoring the development of the internship in collaboration with the staff at the host institution, assesses it. Under no circumstances may the number of children per trainee be less than four. At the end of each internship, the pupils draw up a report in order to provide evidence of their progressive learning of an approach of observation, analysis and adaptation and of their completion of the planned internships. The trainees must be given the opportunity to perform tasks that reflect their level of competence. These tasks must be consistent with the activities described in the training profile.
Master's degree of Education, sections 1, 2, 3 : direct training
With reference to the decree of 7 February 2019 defining Initial Teacher Education, 7 areas of training are defined :
For sections 1 and 2 :
- Disciplinary training, including aspects of subject didactics or applied to the subject : at least 100 ECTS ;
- Training in and through communication : at least 10 ECTS ;
- Training in and through practice : at least 55 ECTS, including at least 20 ECTS at 2nd cycle level ;
- Didactic and pedagogical training: at least 20 ECTS ;
- Training in the human and social sciences : at least 20 ECTS ;
- Training in and through research in education and didactics : at least 15 ECTS ;
- Training in oral and written mastery of the French language : at least 5 ECTS, organised among the 60 ECTS in the first cycle ;
- ECTS left to the discretion of the institutions.
For section 3 :
- Disciplinary training, including aspects of the didactics of the discipline or applied to the discipline : at least 100 ECTS ;
- Training in and through communication : at least 10 ECTS ;
- Training in and through practice : at least 55 ECTS, including at least 20 ECTS at 2nd cycle level ;
- Didactic and pedagogical training : at least 20 ECTS ;
- Training in the human and social sciences: at least 20 ECTS ;
- Training in and through research in education and didactics : at least 15 ECTS ;
- Training in oral and written mastery of the French language : at least 5 ECTS, organised among the 60 ECTS in the first cycle ;
- ECTS left to the discretion of the institutions.
Media education, EVRAS (Education in Relational, Affective and Sexual Life = Éducation à la Vie Relationnelle, Affective et Sexuelle) and gender education are integrated transversally into all the areas.
A final year's work is structured around a minimum of two areas, including the 6th.
Within Area 1, of the minimum 100 ECTS devoted to Area 1, disciplinary training is broken down as follows :
• 70 ECTS for the first subject and 30 ECTS for the second :
- French and ethics
- French and religion
- French and education in philosophy and citizenship
- French and ancient languages
- French and cultural and artistic education
- French, French as a foreign language and French as a learning language
- Mathematics and digital education
- Physical education and health education
- Manual, technical and technological training and digital training
• in the case of a single subject: 100 ECTS are allocated to it :
- sciences ;
- human sciences.
• for Germanic languages: 50 ECTS per language
For artistic disciplines, if the curriculum is aimed at part-time secondary arts education, the training includes a minimum of 160 ECTS for area 1, 5 ECTS for area 7 and 60 ECTS to be divided between areas 2 to 6. The remaining 15 ECTS are left to the schools to decide.
Within Area 1, of the minimum 100 ECTS allocated to Area 1, subject-based training is divided as follows : 80 ECTS for the first subject and 20 ECTS for the second subject :
• Artistic training : music and cultural and artistic education
• Artistic training : visual arts and cultural and artistic education.
If the course is aimed at teaching in part-time secondary arts education, it includes a minimum of 160 ECTS in subject-based training. There is no breakdown between disciplines.
Know-how is based on the link between theory and practice. It is acquired at professional training workshops and by taking part in teaching practice internships. The professional training workshops offer students a series of activities which are designed to develop methodological skills and a reflective attitude towards those skills. They enable the students to try out, observe and analyse the various components of the profession. They integrate discipline-specific and general didactics in the context of activities organised both in the field and at the Haute école. Teaching practice is arranged in all four study years. In the first year, it consists of participatory observation activities, with the student accompanying the internship supervisor. They may gradually lead to the student taking over a class, in close collaboration with the internship supervisor. In the second and third years, the student properly takes charge of a class. The progression of internships and professional situations is thought out in terms of objectives and skill levels to be built up. The duration of internships varies from short internships at the beginning of the training to increasingly long internships.
Professional identity-building interdisciplinary activities are always coupled with teaching practice or a practical activity. They include the compilation of a career plan, training in neutrality, the school’s openness to the outside world, the teacher’s identity, professional ethics and the teacher’s dossier.
The final dissertation is a personal and original written work in which the fourth-year student uses his/her knowledge in the specific context of the subject he/she has chosen to discuss and of the research that he/she conducts in this connection. The paper is presented orally.
Optional modules may be organised in the pre-primary and primary sections: information on specialised education (15 hours), training in the teaching of ethics or religion (60 hours), training in teaching a second language (60 hours in the ordinary primary section), training in the didactics of education for philosophy and citizenship (60 hours).
The curricula are determined by the controlling authority of the teacher training institute, provided they cover the various compulsory elements of content, with a given minimum number of hours per domain, and within the framework of 1020 hours of disciplinary and interdisciplinary training. The minimum timetable and total hours for the pre-primary, primary and secondary sections are fixed. The coherence of curricula is ensured by the development of minimum content and competency frameworks for Masters degrees of Education. 103 sheets are made available to the institutions concerned by Initial Teacher Education in Universities, Hautes Ecoles and Arts Colleges. Some Hautes Ecoles and a number of social advancement schools organise specialisations in psychomobility and special education.
Future Master's degree of Education, section 3 must choose an area of specialisation from among the following options :
- French and Ethics ;
- French and Religion ;
- French and Education in Philosophy and Citizenship ;
- French and Ancient Languages ;
- French and Cultural and Artistic Education ;
- French, French as a foreign language and French as a learning language ;
- two Germanic languages from among English, German and Dutch ;
- Mathematics and Digital Education ;
- Science ;
- Physical Education and Health Education ;
- Human sciences ;
- Arts education : music and cultural and artistic education ;
- Artistic training : visual arts and cultural and artistic education ;
- Manual, technical and technological training and Digital training.
Master's degree of Education, sections 4 and 5
The decree of 7 February 20219 defining Initial Teacher Education, as amended by the decree on various measures relating to Higher Education and Initial Teacher Education, defines the list of subjects :
- Ancient Greek and Latin ;
- Modern languages (two of the languages taught in upper secondary education) ;
- Biology ;
- Chemistry ;
- Physical education ;
- French ;
- French as a foreign language ;
- Geography ;
- History ;
- History of art and archaeology ;
- Mathematics ;
- Computer science ;
- Engineering sciences ;
- Biomedical sciences ;
- Philosophy and citizenship ;
- Religion ;
- Ethics ;
- Physics ;
- Economics ;
- Social sciences ;
- Public health ;
- Pharmaceutical sciences ;
- Architecture ;
- Town planning ;
- Musicology ;
- Plastic, visual and spatial arts ;
- Music ;
- Dance ;
- Theatre and dramatic arts ;
- Performing arts and communication and broadcasting technology ;
- Modern languages, translation and interpreting (two of the languages taught in upper secondary education) ;
- Psychological sciences and education ;
- Law.
The subjects referred to in 26th to 30th may be supplemented by a reference to a speciality or an instrument.
The subjects referred to in 2nd and 31st may be supplemented by a reference to the languages taught.
The French subject referred to in 6th may be paired with either Latin, French as a foreign language or a modern language taught in upper secondary education.
Teachers educators
Non-school childcare facilities
Future childcare workers are trained by secondary school teachers (during the day) and whose qualifications correspond to the courses in question.
In the case of training provided in other types of institutions (e.g. social advancement education - childcare assistant training), trainers have a different profile, defined according to the type of institution in which they teach.
Pre-primary, primary and secondary education
The trainers of future pre-primary, primary and secondary teachers hold the qualifications required to teach the courses on the curriculum of these future teachers at the various institutions (primarily the Hautes écoles, Arts Colleges and universities, but also Higher social advancement education).
Qualifications, evaluation and certificates
Non-school childcare facilities
The requirements relating to initial training were updated by the decree of 2 May 2019 setting the authorisation and subsidy scheme for crèches, childcare services and independent (co-)childminders.
All Organising Authorities ensure that the staff of childcare facilities can provide proof of initial training and draw up a continuous training plan in relation to the childcare project and for the duration of the project (5 years). This continuous training plan is implemented by the participation of staff in the training modules proposed via a continuous training programme set every five years by the Government, on the proposal of the Office of Birth and Childhood (ONE : Office de la Naissance et de l'Enfance).
For independent (co-)childminders and staff from other care facilities, participation in initial training is organised via a training plan specifying participation up to a minimum of two days per year on average over the duration of the plan.
The paragraphs below concern the childcare worker diploma.
Certification
The childcare qualification certificate, endorsed by the French Community, is issued at the end of the vocational seventh year in ‘childcare’ to regular pupils who meet the following conditions :
- they must have passed a qualifying test to check that they have mastered the relevant skills and incorporated them into their practice ;
- they must hold a certificate of upper secondary education.
The examination board responsible for issuing this certificate consists of at least one nursing member of teaching staff and one member of the teaching staff with responsibility for training in educational psychology. The member of staff responsible for coordinating the internship automatically has a place on the board.
Assessment during training
Each controlling authority is free to adapt its assessment procedures (choice of subjects, types of exam, time allotted for each exam, etc.) for the various stages, forms and streams of education, and in light of the specific characteristics of its environment. Nevertheless, in order to avoid too wide a disparity, it is recommended that schools consult one another. Furthermore, the Decree on the Missions of Schools has created committees on assessment tools in relation to the knowledge and skills expected upon completion of qualification-stream education. These committees are responsible for producing batteries of standardised assessment tests, which correspond to these reference guides. The government distributes these tools as a guideline to all schools organised or grant-aided by the French Community. An Administrative Steering Unit organises non-certificative external assessments of pupils’ achievements at the start of the second and fourth/fifth year of secondary school. These relate successively to reading/production of writing, mathematics and introductory science. They enable teachers to better measure the level attained by their pupils and, consequently, to adjust their teaching. The unit produces an analysis of the results and develops teaching methods. The inspectorate ensures educational monitoring.
In qualification-stream education, it is suggested that global comprehensive exams on grouped options be given during the school year. These exams encourage coordination between theoretical and practical lessons and prepare pupils for the qualification tests. Certificates of competence are issued to pupils upon successful completion of these exams. The members of the qualification examination board from outside the school are invited to examine pupils’ work continually during the school year.
One or two sessions of annual examinations are organised every year. The primary purpose of the June exam is to ascertain whether pupils have achieved the minimum competencies needed to progress. A student deferred in June must take examinations in September.
There must be continuity between learning in school and in the childcare facility. An internship must meet precise educational criteria. The teacher who is the internship supervisor handles assessment preparation and guidance. He or she collaborates with the ‘tutor’, who is a company employee responsible for the student at the internship premises. According to predetermined criteria, the internship is continually assessed with the student’s involvement. The assessment is formative. A report is issued upon completion of the internship (summary assessment).
Master’s degree of Education, sections 1 to 5
Certification
The Universities, Hautes Ecoles or Arts Colleges issue Master’s degree of Education, sections 1 to 5.
Internal assessment
The modalities of internal assessment belong to the educational freedom of each teacher, and they are governed by statutory provisions. Assessment corresponding to a teaching may consist of an oral and/or written examination, an artistic assessment, a continuous assessment or any other work carried out by the student for this purpose. It is globally summative and certificative, and its procedures are defined in the joint degree agreements ; it is based on the assessments organised at the end of each four-month period, as defined by the landscape decree, which enable credits to be acquired.
No later than one month after the end-of-quadrimester assessment period, a student receives details of the results of the assessments in which he or she has participated.
A dossier is also examined in which the student’s performance is recorded, in particular in the practical training and teaching experience. Approaches to formative assessment also exist.
From one academic year to the next, a jury may exempt a student from learning activities for which the student has generally obtained a mark of at least 10/20. The exception is the introductory French language test, for which the student obtains a pass or fail grade.
The annual programme of the second cycle of training leading to a Master's degree of Education, section 1, 2 or 3, allows students to carry out a final year project linked to a process of action research or collaborative research.
Upon completion of their studies, graduates must take the Socratic oath in public, vowing to “commit all their energy and skill to the education of all the pupils entrusted to them”.
Alternative training pathways
Non-school childcare facilities
A number of qualifications are recognised as possible substitutes for the childcare qualification to carry out care functions in childcare facilities for children aged 0 to 3 years old : either similar qualifications issued by full-time secondary education (educational worker, nursery worker, educational assistant), by dual vocational education (childcare assistant in collective structures, training diploma "business manager : childcare worker" awarded by IFAPME/EFPME. It is compulsory for these to be accompanied by the Upper Secondary Education Certificate (CESS : Certificat d’Enseignement Secondaire Supérieur) according to the new legislation of 2009.
Pre-primary, primary and secondary education
The unemployed
Any unemployed person can begin certain complementary training programmes while retaining the right to unemployment benefits, provided the training leads to an educational qualification for which the National Employment Office (Onem) considers there is a shortage. Specifically, for the last few years, this measure has related to the position of primary school teacher.
Moreover, some university programmes giving access to a teaching career, provided they are followed by the upper secondary teaching diploma, are compatible with maintaining unemployment benefits.
Supplementary educational qualifications
Practical and vocational teaching courses in secondary education can be entrusted to holders of a qualification in the subject to be taught who do not have a teaching qualification, provided they attend a training leading to the teaching proficiency certificate (CAP) in social advancement education upon completion of a training programme in a school for social advancement. These courses include a cycle of variable duration depending on prior studies, the frequency and intensity of the timetable as well as the students' choice of how to organise their studies.
The programme includes general courses, courses in educational science, and teaching practice. Following the consecutive model, the first year is spent on general training and the second and third years are spent on educational psychology and teaching practice. In the context of practical training, students receive a minimal introduction to teaching practice and develop their skills by teaching classes under the supervision of trainers.
Examination boards
It is also possible to sit for examinations in the presence of the French Community Examination boards, in order to obtain the teaching proficiency certificate (CAP).