Broad School Curricula..More Understanding..Less World Conflict?

Some teaching systems – such as Montessori – teach broad concepts to very young students (like my grand-daughter )and I see that ‘Social Economy’ will be part of the school curriculum in France. What if we also taught ‘World Religions and Lifestyles’? Could we broaden young minds to take in tolerance and world peace?

France’s New School Subject – Social Economy

An agreement between Benoît Hamon, Minister responsible for the non profit sector, and Vincent Peillon, Minister for National Education, has just been signed for a five year period and published on the online website of French newspaper La Croix.

Benoît Hamon says:

“It’s not about teaching a new subject but more simply to practically help teachers find the resources and the pedagogical tools necessary to better teach this part of French economy..

The content of the agreement doesn’t aim to state that those enterprises are better or worse than the others but that they simply exist and that this economic reality deserves first to be known and then to be explained.”

The Aim Of The New Subject

In most schools around the world only the ‘classic’ economic model (multinational corporations, limited liability companies..) is taught at school. The aim of this new subject is to teach students about different economic models and structures, those of the social economy, such as associations, cooperatives and foundations – a sector that in France produces 10% of the national wealth and employs 10% of French workers.

Other Possibilities

A series of possible initiatives is spelled out in the agreement, including:

• Social Economy Week at School
• the development of public projects for the acquisition of civic skills
• a project for introducing young people to key organizations

Bravo la France!