The French School Lycée Jules Verne of Johannesburg and its satellite, the Miriam Makeba school of Pretoria (up to CM2 [grade 5]) educate many French and South African students as well as many from various other countries. All these students follow the French education system and almost half of the grades have a French-English bilingual format. Secondary school students sit the French Baccalauréat, choosing either the S (science), ES (economics and business) or L (literature) option. The foreign languages offered are English, Spanish and German. Over and above the standard values of our education system, i.e. religious neutrality and respect for cultural differences as well as a high academic standard and excellence, our school has formulated a specific school project, the objectives of which are:
Proficiency in languages
Extending the school’s sphere of influence in the host country
Developing communication strategies to become better informed and more active, and for self-promotion
Citizenship and sustainable developmentWe have a school canteen, top-class sports facilities and the most recent teaching materials: multimedia rooms, interactive white boards, a technology and computer room, a language laboratory, etc. Students take the same tests and examinations as in France, with the French Baccalaureat as the school-leaving examination. In addition, they can obtain official English language certifications. This is the equivalent of a passport complete with all the visas required for successful higher education studies. The school is an examinations centre for our students as well as for other students attending French schools in Southern Africa. The teachers and administrators include qualified French civil servants and locally-recruited staff, all of whom enjoy the benefit of an ambitious staff training project organised in conjunction with all the French school’s of the Southern African Indian Ocean zone. Indeed, the Lycée Jules Verne is a member of the AEFE (Agency for French Teaching Abroad) Network and in this capacity receives guidance, inspections and subsidies. This network, the largest of its kind in the world, includes 250 000 students from 460 schools in 130 countries.
Useful links:
L’Agence pour l’enseignement du français à l’étranger (AEFE) – French agency for French teaching abroad.
Le Centre national d’enseignement à distance (CNED) – French national distance education centre.
