France - School

The establishment which is in central Alsace, in a small town of 6 000 inhabitants, in rural area at the bottom of a valley located in Vosges, suffers the brunt of the negative effects of the current economic crisis with unemployment rising, the rural depopulation, closure of businesses, lack of dynamism and enterprise, the aging of the population ... are few visible signs. Enclosed geographically local people tend to isolate themselves culturally, to lack ambition and will collapse on itself.
In this difficult environment, the school, located in Academic Achievement Network (formerly ZEP) welcomes 220 students from 6 to 11 years of ethnic, geographic, social and cultural diverse and rather poor, causing a mixing of identity not always lived well and exclusion. In addition the presence of a class with students with mild disabilities special educational needs at some reinforces a sense of marginalization. Finally there is a section of bilingual education at parity French / German and a
strong regional political will to see the German as the only foreign language taught in primary school, tend to restrict linguistic and cultural offer to pupils. Our role in this project will show us to ourselves, our pupils and the environment in which we are, our ability to overcome its difficulties and negative a priori that they generate.