La prospective de l'éducation

In his speech introducing the seminar “Schools: dateline 2020”, Jacques Lesourne, who in 1987 wrote an important book about the future of the French education system in the medium and long term (Éducation et société demain. À la recherche des vraies questions. Paris: La Découverte, 1988), outlines the reasons why it is so necessary to think seriously about the outlook for education.
He mentions first the factors linked to the special nature of the tasks and constraints of the school system, and then discusses the main developments in the technological, economic and social context which will oblige education systems to undergo reforms. This will mean greater independence of action for those who, through their innovations, are able to generate “creative disorder”, but also requires a prospective long-term study to clarify their decisions and initiatives.