Reinventing schools in an uncertain world

Coordination : Jean-Marie De Ketele and Marie-José Sanselme

Drawing on an international conference and analyses from over thirty countries, this issue presents an original observation – for the first time, uncertainty no longer appears as an external shock to be absorbed, but as the structural condition within which all education systems now operate. Climate crises, conflicts, geopolitical tensions, rapidly evolving professions, the rise of artificial intelligence, growing inequality and the proliferation of teaching and learning spaces are all profoundly reshaping a decades-old frame of reference in education. 

At the heart of these changes, another major trend is apparent: around the world, the actors of education are getting creative. Teachers, local officials, communities and students are developing original solutions, sometimes under extreme circumstances. Both within and outside formal schools, new forms of learning are emerging, e.g. digital environments, social media, local initiatives or private tutoring. They reveal educational dynamics that are more scattered, but also more vibrant.

By bringing these studies together, this issue provides a global overview of transformation in education. It highlights several converging trends:

• The effects of climate change, pandemics and disasters are profoundly altering educational priorities and serve as a reminder of the vital role schools play as places that provide continuity, protection and cohesion.
• Even in contexts of social and political tension, vulnerable societies are nevertheless finding new ways to create spaces for learning.
• Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming young people’s careers, points of reference, sources of knowledge and practices, calling into question the very role of educational institutions.
• The rise of private tutoring, social segregation and mistrust of state schools highlight major challenges for educational equity.

In the face of these upheavals, new forms of schooling are already taking shape. They appear to be more open to their local communities, more collaborative, rooted in the environments in which they operate, responsive to young people’s capacity for action, and connected both to local knowledge and to global innovations.

This 100th issue does not set forth a model for the schools of the future. Instead, it demonstrates, through rigorous and comparative analysis, that profound changes are already underway. By bringing together the perspectives of researchers and practitioners from around the world, it reveals that we can – and must – rethink education based on reality, recognising the diversity of contexts, the complexity of situations and the creativity of those involved.

In doing so, it affirms a fundamental belief: in an uncertain future, education remains one of the most powerful tools for building societies that are fairer, more resilient and capable of bringing people together to tackle contemporary changes.
 

Contents

Introduction

• Challenges, opportunities and insights for reinventing schools in an uncertain world
  Jean-Marie De Ketele

Chapter 1. The uncertainties of today’s world:
threats or opportunities for education?

• Educating in the uncertainty of the Anthropocene 
  Laurent Rieutort
• The resilience of education communities in the face of crises
  Alain Boissinot, Mamadou Ndoye and José Weinstein 
• Developing AI and transforming education systems: towards new balances? 
  Luis Galindo, Laetitia Pierrot and Jean-Pierre Véran
• Educating and training for tomorrow’s uncertain jobs: innovations, challenges and prospects
  Adel Ben Amor, Géraldine Farges, Christophe Gremion and Yannick Tenne
• Proliferating learning environments: towards harmful fragmentation or emerging new landscapes?  
  Anne-Marie Bardi and Roger-François Gauthier
• When schools face the challenge of conflicting truths 
  Anne Lehmans and Séverine Parayre

Chapter 2.  In today’s uncertain world, what foundations to build education on?

• Reclaiming the future: towards an alliance of learners 
  Marina Garcés
• Education in an era of strategic uncertainty 
  Hervé de Courrèges
• Dealing with uncertainty: the lessons from Gustave Monod
  Alain Boissinot
• Between the old world and the new: modern schools as the cornerstone of life
  Claude Lessard

Chapter 3. Who does the future belong to?

• An uncertainty industry: private supplementary tutoring in competitive spaces 
  Mark Bray
• The political construction of (un)certainties in education debates: the French case 
  Xavier Pons
• Indian youth: a shared future… or a fragmented one?
  Padma M. Sarangapani
• Reinventing education for a just and democratic society: a critical and collective engagement. 
  An interview with Frank Adamson 

Chapter 4. What makes for a credible school?

• Freeing French schools from their straitjacket
  Alain Bouvier
• Preparing young people for the challenges of an uncertain world: key areas for the transformation of African education systems
  Mamadou Ndoye
• Violence, mistrust and inequality. The societal challenges facing education in Latin America
  José Weinstein 
• Schools would do better if we didn’t expect everything from them
  An interview with François Dubet
• Responding to crises or shaping the future? The dilemma at the heart of education policy 
  Sobhi Tawil

Conclusion

• Daring to reinvent education
  Jean-Marie De Ketele 

Colloque international 2025 : éduquer dans un monde incertain : un enjeu mondial

France Éducation international et la Revue internationale d’éducation de Sèvres, en partenariat avec l’Institut des hautes études de l’éducation et de la formation (IH2EF), ont organisé un colloque international majeur sur le thème : « Éduquer dans un monde incertain : un enjeu mondial », du 2 au 4 juillet 2025 à Sèvres.