N環球 
Fourth Student Protest Wave in Paris Ends in Clashes at Bastille; Minister Pledges 3,000 Substitute Teachers
On Oct. 8, thousands of students rallied at Place de la Bastille in Paris as police deployed water cannons; the Interior Ministry put nationwide turnout at about 71,500, with 24,500 in Paris. That evening, Education Minister Édouard Geffray announced 3,000 substitute teachers for the most struggling high schools. Organizers have called a fifth day of action for Oct. 13.
Why it matters
France's back-to-school student movement has entered its fourth nationwide day of action, with Place de la Bastille in Paris as one of the main flashpoints, where police deployed water cannons and clashed with demonstrators. The nearly three-week-old movement, started by high school students, targets education funding and the university admissions system; the education minister responded the same evening with 3,000 substitute teachers, the government's most concrete concession so far — but student groups rejected it and have called for a fifth round on Oct. 13.
Full report
On the afternoon of Oct. 8, thousands of high school and university students gathered at Place de la Bastille in Paris, demanding more education funding, better school buildings and an overhaul of Parcoursup, the university application platform. Police deployed water cannons and clashed with protesters; the Paris police prefecture had shut three metro stations near Barbès and Gare de l'Est in advance. The Education Ministry said 375 schools were partially or fully closed Thursday morning.
The Interior Ministry put nationwide turnout at about 71,500 (organizers claimed 130,000), including 24,500 in Paris. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said 6,629 people have been arrested since the movement began Sept. 21 in the Créteil academy, with 761 police officers and gendarmes and 215 students injured.
That evening, Education Minister Édouard Geffray told TF1's evening news that 3,000 substitute teachers would be sent to 114 high schools rated "red" and 400 rated "orange" — the most critical — starting Oct. 9. He also authorized academies to hire beyond quotas and unfroze hundreds of thousands of overtime hours for short-term cover. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu later confirmed the measures on X.
Student groups, however, left talks disappointed. Louis Letoublon, vice-president of Les Lycéens!, said the minister's announcements were "satisfactory only on school democracy," and urged intensified mobilization, with a fifth nationwide day of action set for Oct. 13.
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