![]() |
Article du "Times Educational Supplement" |
"English - and not very proud of it", Article de Keith Sharpe dans "Times Educational Supplement" du 2" mai 1997. http://www.tes.co.uk/
Keith Sharpe examines the vastly different views of nationalism held by primary schoolchildren in England and in France
ArticlePrimary pupils in France are much more proud of being
French than English children are of their nationality.
The children's starkly contrasting views on national
identity have been revealed by the joint University of
Bristol/Canterbury Christ Church College Quest project, which
is based on a survey of 850 upper-primary pupils in Avon,
Kent, Calais and Marseilles.
Analysis of the children's freely made comments also
indicated big differences in the way they thought about their
citizenship and national identity. French children tended to
have a more unconditional love of their country and described
it in more expressive terms.
French responses included references to "notre beau pays"
(our beautiful country) and the obviousness that if one was
born French one would be proud of being French.
The English responses seem to reflect a child's view while the French responses often appear to echo adult attitudes. But the real distinction may be between the essential pragmatism of the English, and the idealism inherent in French culture. By the age of 10 or 11 both sets of children may have been largely assimilated into the perspectives of their societies. What preoccupied English children most were the practical
benefits and achievements associated with the country,
particularly in sport, music and language: "Man Utd come from
England, so do Eternal . . . English is a well-known language
that's spoken worldwide".
The more positive French view of national identity is
matched by a more positive attitude to schooling, and the two
are inter-related. In France, education is an important
consensual value. The school embodies this collective
commitment by providing a clear, publicly understood national
ladder of progress to which all have access. This has remained
essentially the same over generations.
These cross-national differences in identity and attitude
take on considerable significance in the context of the
debates in England about the perceived breakdown in moral
values and social order in schools. In particular, they
suggest that policy responses, such as stricter religious
education, the use of corporal punishment, dress codes for
teachers and the introduction of civic education, need
cautious scrutiny.
The Tory government's insistence on promoting educational
"choice and diversity" undermined the sense of a common,
shared national experience of schooling which might underpin
stronger feelings of national identity.
Sur l'auteurDr Keith Sharpe is director of Primary Teacher Education at Canterbury Christ Church College. The other Quest researchers are Patricia Broadfoot, Marilyn Osborn, Claire Planel and Brigitte Ward. Another article on the Quest project appeared in Research Focus on January 10. |