French School Research Articles

Dumitru Peicev. The tribute to art

Dumitru Peicev (19.05.1943–18.12.2023), a renowned figure in the field of fine art in the Republic of Moldova, professionally evolved during the 1960s, inspired by the traditions of the French and Romanian schools of painting from the late 19th to early 20th centuries. A significant influence on his artistic conceptions and aesthetic visions was played by master Mihail Grecu, one of the founders of the national school of painting, with whom Dumitru Peicev had a warm and fruitful collaboration. Throughout his artistic career, he manifested himself as a talented painter of thematic compositions, genre scenes, landscapes, still life, and portraits. Dumitru Peicev’s paintings are housed in the collections of the National Art Museum of Moldova, the Museum of Fine Arts in Razgrad, Bulgaria, the Art Museum in Ţelingrad, Kazakhstan, and in numerous private collections. A significant number of his works have been donated to the „Dumitru Peicev” Art Gallery in the city of Taraclia. Through his original creations, Dumitru Peicev contributed to the enrichment of the national cultural heritage, shaping a new chapter in the history of contemporary fine arts.

Культурно-философские предпосылки концепции «мягкой силы»

This article delves into the cultural-philosophical prerequisites preceding the formation of the “soft power” concept. As a result of the study, the philosophical and cultural-anthropological factors of the emergence of this concept are highlighted. Conceptually, its philosophical origins are intertwined with two primary inquiries: firstly, the influence of the communicator on the recipient (the Maieutics of Socrates, the “Rhetoric” of Aristotle), secondly, the study of individual properties of culture, educational (Plato, Cicero, Confucius), unifying (Sun Tzu), regulatory (N. Machiavelli). Culture, as a full-fledged instrument of the “soft power” influence encompassing all these properties, is analyzed in the works of A. Gramsci. Another significant source shaping the “soft power” concept is the scientific tradition of cultural anthropology as a distinct discipline, which views culture as an essential element of colonial administration (E.B. Tylor, F. Boas, B. Malinowski) and interstate confrontation (R. Benedict). The French School of Social Anthropology has focused on the study of the mechanisms of formation of public opinion (G. Tarde) and methods of influencing the masses (G. Le Bon). In conclusion, the concept of “soft power” emerges as a product of diverse intellectual traditions, blending philosophical inquiries, cultural analyses, and anthropological insights. By elucidating its cultural and philosophical foundations, this article provides a comprehensive framework for understanding the complexities of modern power dynamics and international relations.

Nostalgia increases punitiveness by intensifying moral concern

We addressed the relation between nostalgia and moral judgment or behavior. We hypothesized that nostalgia, a social emotion, increases moral concern (H1), nostalgia intensifies punitiveness against moral transgressors (H2), and that the nostalgia—punitiveness link is mediated by moral concern (H3). We conducted three cross-sectional (Studies 1, 2, 4) and one experimental (Study 3) investigations (N = 1145). The investigations, involving distinct operationalizations of the relevant constructs (nostalgia, moral concern, punitiveness) and diverse samples (U.S., Canadian, and European Prolific workers, French business school students, Dutch community members), yielded results consistent with the hypotheses. Nostalgia keeps one’s moral compass in check. The findings enrich the emotions and morality literatures.

Co-construct, implement and evaluate a multi-level intervention to prevent a sedentary lifestyle in children-Study protocol of the CIPRES study.

A sedentary lifestyle is commonly associated with a higher risk of chronic disease development. Among school-aged children from European countries, screen-time represents a significant portion of sedentary time with 39.8% of children spending more than 2h/day in front of a screen on average. Therefore, effective solutions to reduce sedentary behavior (SB) must be found. Multilevel interventions based on the socio-ecological model (SEM) are particularly relevant to take into account influences of the social environment on individuals' SB. Moreover, the trans-contextual model (TCM) can offer complementary levers for individuals' behavior change. The CIPRES study is a theory-based multilevel intervention designed to decrease the SB in French primary school children aged 8-10 years. The present paper describes the protocol of a randomized controlled study to evaluate the effectiveness of the CIPRES multilevel intervention on SB. The CIPRES study is a cluster-randomized controlled trial comparing intervention vs control groups. A total of 700 children are targeted for inclusion, distributed in four municipalities considered as clusters. The study consists of two successive phases: 1) co-building of a SB prevention intervention by using a participatory approach involving representatives of each level of the SEM (e.g., children, parents, staff from municipalities, teachers) and 2) implementation and evaluation of the intervention. The intervention will last for 6 weeks in each involved class. Primary outcome will be the sedentary time of children per week, assessed by accelerometry. In addition, children and their parents will be asked to fill out questionnaires concerning children's physical activity level, screen time, quality-of-life and variables of the TCM. This study will give information on the effectiveness of a theory-based intervention, involving multiple levels of actors in the co-construction and the implementation of the intervention, that may interest schools and public health officers looking for innovative sedentary prevention programs.

Gifted Students’ Special Educational Programs in France: An Analysis of Students’ Needs as Perceived by Headmasters — A Secondary Publication

Some French public middle schools offer gifted students the opportunity to pursue their education in general classes, while benefiting from specific facilities within the framework of a dedicated educational program. In this study, we sought to identify and analyze the needs of these students as perceived by the headmaster of each middle school involved. The results highlight two main student needs, common to all these programs (uneasiness and difficulties in peer relationships) as well as needs specifically mentioned by some headmasters (non-adaptive behavior).

Embodied and Enactive Creativity: Moving Beyond the Mind–Body Dichotomy in School Education

ABSTRACTThis study explores the ways in which embodied creativity is conceived and implemented in french schools through the study of a corpus of professional articles published since the 1960s in a journal dedicated to physical education. The analysis focuses on pedagogical experiments to foster bodily creativity carried out in primary schools, as part of a wide‐ranging educational reform during the 1970s. Those practices mark a radical break with the grammar of schooling whose worldwide spread is linked to the colonial expansion of western Europe. They revealed many similarities with indigenous pedagogies through the willingness to go beyond the mind–body dichotomy, to value a sensitive and intuitive body, to anchor knowledge in lived experience and to move from a top‐down relationship between teacher and pupil to a more horizontal one. The 1980s marked a return to more traditional methods, but these pedagogical experiments nurtured a conception of embodied and enactive creativity that sought to go beyond a western vision of the body, of action and of the relationship with the world in school education. The convergences with non‐western pedagogies underline the interest of these approaches to explore and foster embodied and enactive creativity.

On the learning trajectory of directional biases in reading: Evidence from the flankers task

AbstractPrior research with adult participants reported a rightward bias in the reading version of the flankers task. Here, we investigated how this bias evolves as a function of reading expertise. We tested two groups of French primary school children from Cycle 2 (grades 1 and 2) and Cycle 3 (grades 4 and 5) and one group of adult participants. In the related flanker conditions, the central target word was flanked by the same word either on the left (park park ####), the right (#### park park), or on both sides (park park park). In the unrelated conditions, the repeated flanker words were replaced by a different unrelated word. In the analysis of standardized reaction times (RTs), there was a three-way interaction between the three groups of participants and the impact of flanker relatedness as a function of the position of the related flankers. This three-way interaction reflected the significantly greater increase in effects of flanker relatedness between Cycle 2 and Cycle 3 for the bilateral flanker and the right flanker conditions compared with the left flanker condition. This suggests that the rightward bias is driven by attentional asymmetries that develop during the process of learning to read.

Exhibitions of Art Works from Private Collections of Kazan in the Second Half of 19th — Beginning of 20th Century

The article uses the example of Kazan to reveal the process of organizing and holding exhibitions of artworks from private collections in the Russian pre-revolutionary province. Addressing this topic, which has not been sufficiently studied in the history of Russian art, is relevant because it expands the understanding of the phenomenon of exhibition activity, which is one of the most important aspects of artistic life in Russia. The source base of the present study is the catalogues of four exhibitions of paintings from private collections held from 1873 to 1916, as well as publications in the Kazan press of this period. The peculiarities of the organizational process, selection and exposition of works, and the owners of the works are revealed. It is established that the exhibitions were of charitable nature: their proceeds were directed either in favour of the starving or poor, or in favour of Russian soldiers. The main collectors of art works in Kazan in the second half of the 19th century were predominantly landed gentry and university professors (who came from the families of personal nobles and officials). By the early 20th century, representatives of individual merchant families also had significant art collections. The exhibited works represented the whole variety of genres, but they were dominated by landscapes and portraits, primarily family portraits, suitable for decorating mansions. Catalogues allow us to conclude that local collectors of the second half of the 19th century were primarily interested in foreign art (masters of the Italian, Flemish, Dutch, Belgian, German and French schools, mainly of the 17—18 centuries), as well as (to a lesser extent) Russian academic painting (from V.L. Borovikovsky and D.G. Levitsky to D. Zakharov) and itinerant painters (I.I. Shishkin, N.A. Yaroshenko). By the end of the 19th century, the vector of collectors’ preferences shifted towards contemporary Russian art (works by Makovskys, I.E. Repin, etc. were collected), and collecting works by local artists (K.V. Bardou, L.D. Kryukov, R.A. Stupin, N.I. Zeblov, etc.) began to develop as a special direction.

International case study: The metaverse in the classical high school

The exchange of best practices also at an international level on the use of new technologies applied to teaching is increasingly frequent today. However, there are few studies that delve into how classical high schools in Italy are actually changing their didactics in this line. In fact, there are some gaps between theory and practice when it comes to developing digital skills, sharing innovative teachings and assessing competences. Therefore, the aim of the present study is to describe how STEAM teachers of a classical high school in Sicily (South of Italy) used the metaverse in their subjects. In fact, a mathematics teacher, following a fruitful collaboration with a French school for the use of innovative teaching, involved colleagues from other disciplines in using the metaverse to motivate student learning in their subjects. A case study design from qualitative research designs was used. The participants were teachers and students and they were determined by convenient sampling method. The data of the study were obtained through a semi-structured interview form. The research data were analyzed using the thematic analysis. The results showed that all the teachers were enthusiastic using the metaverse to motivate the learners and the students grew up in the 4Cs (critical thinking, communication, collaboration and creativity). Future research could test whether these findings can be confirmed by using artificial intelligence programs to facilitate learning.

On Turbans, Abayas, and Colanders: The Scope of Religious Dress in a Pluralistic Society

Abstract This article scrutinizes the ongoing European debate surrounding religious attire, particularly in the context of legal restrictions and requests for accommodation. The core inquiry revolves around the ambiguous definition of ‘religious dress’, encompassing both prescribed attire and symbols with religious significance. Beyond conventional religious garments that are generally legally accepted, the article delves into the contentious classification of cultural styles, as seen recently with the ban on abayas and qamis in French public schools, and the exemptions for ‘religious dress’ claimed by adherents to mock religions such as Pastafarianism. Acknowledging the contested nature of defining religion, the article examines the potential necessity for legal definitions, emphasizing their role in determining both recognition and limitations. The study navigates the European legal framework, drawing insights from supranational sources and the case law of the European Court of Human Rights to unravel the intricacies, challenges, and implications of regulating religion and religious dress in Europe.

A Study of French Language Teaching in Primary Schools in China

Since the teaching of French in primary schools is not yet on a large scale in China, there are few references. In addition, the teaching of French in primary school started very late in our country and there are not yet complete standards to be followed, so that in the practice of teaching French in primary school, inevitably there are still a lot of problems to be solved. By combining the status quo of teaching French in primary schools in China, the problems encountered in its practice, the psychological characteristics of children during the learning of foreign languages, this project therefore aims to analyze, to reflect on the teaching of French in primary schools in China, and to propose a viable reflection on its future pedagogical practices, while starting from the organization of the courses, the teaching methods, the selection of the didactic material and stimulation of the interest of schoolchildren.

Practical and Theoretical Aspects of Teaching Methods from the Faculty of Fine Arts in France

In the current changing world, named the era of knowledge explosion, diversity and modernity, art professors and teachers as well as those who have been involved in teaching art in institutions and any related centers have been trying to find out the influence of teaching methods in the field of art. Several studies about practical and theoretical methods of teaching art in French faculties and schools have been undertaken. It is worthy to mention that these methods are very useful to apply in other schools outside of France. Art faculties and schools of Fine Arts dedicate some practical and theoretical methods to teach their required matters perfectly. There are some lectures and exercises that in theoretical and practical actions of the professors whose initial idea is to solve problems on the spot during the process of making artworks. These methods are constantly upgrading after each lecture and exercise to improve the ethods of teaching art at the faculties and schools of Fine Arts. The main objective of this paper is to describe some methods that directly relates to the interactive effect between professors and students. These methods provide an opportunity to develop further teaching methods and the formation of the methodological framework of lectures and exercises. The research handles comparative and descriptive teaching methods as well as academic. The result of this research is one of the possible methodological structures that proposed teaching aids that can be further developed and upgraded to improve teaching at the Faculties and schools of Fine Arts.

The bad migrant. The crisis of democratic education and the decolonization of the curriculum in French and German school dramas

The high school drama is a popular genre in France and Germany that often portrays the integration of young migrants into society. This essay compares the French film La journée de la jupe (Skirt Day, 2009) and its German adaptation for the stage, Verrücktes Blut (Crazy Blood, 2010), in which the civic education intended to turn young migrants into model citizens and form their democratic subjectivity fails. The analysis of La journée de la jupe focuses on the republican ideal of citizenship presented in the film. As this essay will show, there is a contradiction between the racist stereotypes reproduced in the film and its plea for a new liberal republicanism that reflects the diversity of society. Verrücktes Blut is more of a critical reworking of the film rather than an adaptation. The comedy reveals the neocolonial nature of current debates on migration, in which migrants become the object of othering, thus ascribing to them the position that previously belonged to the colonized. In the film and the play, genre comes into play in opposite ways. In La journée de la jupe, the genre of the republican tragedy, on which the film is based, serves to stage the young people, who are read as migrants, as the Other of French culture. In turn, Verrücktes Blut uses the genre of the school drama to create an emphatic attitude towards the young people in the audience. Verrücktes Blut underlines the importance of decolonizing the curriculum. This analysis of the film and the play shows that a democratic education to become a republican citoyenne and citoyen or liberal citizen remains incomplete without the self-decolonization of Western society and culture.

Gaston Labat, the Mayo Clinic, and the Introduction of Regional Anesthesia to the United States

Abstract Throughout the nineteenth century, transatlantic medical research and training was largely dominated by Western European hospitals. Americans trained in German, Austrian, French, and British medical schools and hospitals, and then returned to work in relatively subpar hospitals and medical schools in the U.S. This relationship was reversed after wwi, with European doctors seeking transition to a comparatively well-funded and respected medical community in the U.S. Recruited in 1920 from a French hospital system to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, the young surgeon Gaston Labat (1897–1934) became a pioneer in the development of regional anesthesiology and pain management practices in America, establishing the Mayo Clinic as a leader in this nascent field. Published in the U.S. in 1922, Labat’s textbook Regional Anesthesia was based upon his earlier years of work in Paris and came to define the field over the subsequent decades. Labat moved to Bellevue Hospital in New York City, and in 1923 founded the American Society of Regional Anesthesia (asra). The asra acted as an engine of transformation in the professionalization of the field of anesthesia in the U.S. and formed part of the organized response to the opioid crises that emerged in the early twentieth century. Labat’s story serves as a window into this period of transition in global medical leadership and the introduction of regional anesthesiology and acute pain management, based upon European medical practice.

Compréhension écrite en français langue de scolarisation chez des enfants de langue d’origine arabe : contribution de facteurs cognitifs et linguistiques

Reading comprehension, i.e., the ability to extract and construct meaning through the reader’s interaction and involvement with written language, results from the mobilization of linguistic and cognitive factors necessary, among other things, for the construction of the microstructure (local meaning) and the macrostructure (global meaning) in reading ( Kintsch, 1998 ). This ability is a prerequisite for learners’ academic success ( Bialystok, 2001 ). However, heritage language children, i.e., those from a migrant background who speak or at least understand their language of origin, which is different from the majority language and from the language of instruction ( Valdés, 2001 ), often have a disadvantage in reading comprehension compared to native speakers of the language of instruction. This is generally attributed to linguistic or cognitive differences ( Lervåg and Aukrust, 2010 ). Our research investigated the relationship between reading comprehension, linguistic factors (oral comprehension and metasyntactic ability) and cognitive factors (working memory and phonological memory) in 62 heritage language children of Arab origins, attending French schools in Montreal. The results highlighted significant differences in the contribution of the targeted variables in the construction of the microstructure and the macrostructure in reading.

Effects of a short food education program implemented at school canteens on children’s acceptance of plant-based food: A quasi-experimental study

Dietary transition toward more plant-based foods is needed to improve nutritional quality and reduce the carbon footprint of the food systems. Since 2018, the French school meals guidelines have imposed a weekly vegetarian meal, yet children may not like all of them. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of a short sensory-based food education program (SFEP) developed in collaboration with school canteen staff on children’s acceptance of plant-based food and eating traits. Two school canteens were selected as intervention group and two others as control group. Two plant-based foods were selected as targets (green cabbage and red beans) and two SFEPs were conducted: SFEP1 on cabbages and SFEP2 on pulses. Liking of the vegetarian dishes was collected through connected scoring devices. Knowledge about cabbages and pulses, willingness to taste and identification of green cabbage and red beans, attitudes toward food, and food neophobia by self-completed paper questionnaires. A total of 660 elementary school children (between 6 and 11 years old) participated in the study: 338 in the control group and 322 in the intervention group. After SFEP1, knowledge about cabbages increased, but liking, willingness to taste and identification did not. After SFEP2, knowledge about pulses, willingness to taste and identification of red beans increased, but liking did not. No effect of the SFEPs was observed on attitudes toward food nor on food neophobia. This intervention had positive effects on children’s knowledge for both cabbages and pulses, and on willingness to taste and identification but for red beans only.

‘Le Barbare parle Grec’: French Classical Scholars and the Racialisation of Modern Greek

ABSTRACT This article investigates the use of philology and classical scholarship in the racial categorisation of modern Greeks by French scholars in Greece in the second half of the nineteenth century, in particular the members of the French School in Athens, founded in 1846. It argues that modern Greeks are ‘racialised’ by these scholars of antiquity in relation to their perceived proximity with their classical heritage. It thus demonstrates how classical scholarship and philology are used as tools to justify racial inferiority and theories of degeneration through systematic scientific attempts to categorise and create scientific hierarchies grounded in linguistic difference.

Evolution of academic research in French business schools (2008-2018): isomorphism and heterogeneity

Evolution of academic research in French business schools (2008-2018): isomorphism and heterogeneity

Responsabilitatea socială și soluționarea dilemelor morale în organizațiile de afaceri

If in the first half of the 20th century, for business organizations, obtaining profit was the only purpose, the postmodern model of doing business related, at least as an aspiration, the two benchmarks - profit and moral values. Business ethics examines how economic concepts comply with ethical prescriptions, involves the empirical approach to business practices, looking at aspects of civil liberty, the well-being of individuals in industrial societies, the compatibility between economic activities and environmental policies. Starting from a meta-ethical approach, which aims at the moral status of corporations, business ethics pursues the ethical aspects of corporate management, the definition of corporate codes of conduct and equally, the social responsibility of companies and the consequences of their activity. The analysis of morality in the business environment has a different approach in schools and currents of thought regarding business ethics. From a critical perspective on the relationship between ethics and business, both the German, French and American schools, argue that in the post-industrial society business must be done only respecting moral values. In business, there are often unclear, dilemmatic situations, conflicts that are difficult to resolve, especially due to the desire to balance economic and social performances. When achieving this balance is particularly difficult (good or bad cannot be clearly specified and identified), a dilemma arises for decision-makers, considered one of the most demanding ethical problems. Regardless of the environment in which they appear (marketing, production, human resources) the solution of moral dilemmas must consider as the main criterion social responsibility and the social consequences and less the current economic results of the corporation.

Evolution of academic research in French business schools (2008-2018): isomorphism and heterogeneity

Evolution of academic research in French business schools (2008-2018): isomorphism and heterogeneity