Detailed summary of the School Council Meeting on June 13, 2024
Written by the attending parents: Caroline Despres, Célia Hughes, Pierre-François Vilquin, and Pierre Morgan Riche.
This document is not an official report.
Number of participants: 12
Number of voters: 16
Quorum reached
Opening of the session: 16:05
Start of the session: 16:05
The Principal expressed regret over the excused absence of staff representatives. However, the meeting could proceed as the quorum was reached. She proposed a discussion time after the meeting for any questions the staff representatives might have.
Agenda:
- Administrative Matters
1.1. Appointment of the session secretary and deputy secretary
1.2. Adoption of the agenda
1.3. Adoption of the minutes from the January 25, 2024 meeting
- School Organization
2.1. Presentation of the school’s activity report
2.2. Update of the internal regulations
2.3. Structure for the 2024 school year
2.4. New measures for 6th and 5th-grade classes starting in 2024
2.5. Presentation of the Sexuality Education Program
2.6. Presentation and implementation of the anti-bullying program (Phare)
2.7. School trips for 2024-2025 and the travel commission
2.8. Video surveillance
Organization of the Institution
2.1. Activity Report of the Institution
Mme Campels presents the 2023-2024 activity report of the institution for information and thanks all the staff who contributed to the drafting of this report and to the implementation of all the educational projects mentioned in it, as well as the support provided to the students throughout the year by all the services.
Parent representatives wonder about the long-term FLSco follow-up for some students. It is certain that after two years, the nature of the student’s difficulties must be examined, and the referring teacher will be of great help in this regard. Weekly meetings are already organized in primary school with the referring teacher, the FLsco teacher, the language coordinators, and the principal. The project and the involvement of the family are fundamental.
Parent representatives note there is a wide variety of actions that would deserve to be better known and showcased, particularly through the LFIT’s website. Regarding absences in the secondary, it is complex to track the number of classes canceled and not replaced : some are covered prior to the canceled class, or afterwards by the teacher themselves, assignments are given, etc..
Student representatives highlight the difficulty of integration for some students. The reasons are multiple, and an individual case-by-case study is necessary.
2.3. Structure for the 2024 School Year
Currently, we have 1,584 students enrolled, with some adjustments to be expected based on departures, arrivals, and confirmation of enrollments after the allocation of scholarships.
2.4. New Arrangements for 6eme and 5eme in 2024
Mr. Ragouvin, the deputy principal, presents the new arrangements for need-based groups in Mathematics and French for 6eme and 5eme grades (first and second year of junior high school, i.e. 6th and 7th grades in the US system). An explanation will also be given directly to families at the beginning of the school year during meetings for each of the levels concerned . The supporting documents will be translated into Japanese.
2.5. Presentation of the Health and Sexuality Education Program
The program, proposed by Mme Chenevoy and Mr. Bérard, within the framework of the national education guidelines, was discussed and validated in the pedagogical council, CVCL, and secondary education council. This program will cover all levels from 6th grade to the final year. It is included in the school curricula (https://www.education.gouv.fr/education-la-sexualite-1814).
The principal notes that the program is ambitious, and its full implementation in the first year may be complex.
2.6 Presentation, Implementation, and Deployment of the Anti-Bullying Program at School (pHARe)
Document Presented:
PHARE Program
Lycée Français International de Tokyo
Anti-Bullying Program at School
The pHARe program is a harassment prevention plan aimed at schools, colleges, and high schools, based on 8 pillars:
- Measuring the school climate.
- Preventing harassment phenomena.
- Forming a protective community of professionals and staff for students.
- Effectively intervening in harassment situations.
- Involving parents and partners and communicating about the program.
- Mobilizing school democracy bodies (CVC, CVL) and the health, citizenship, and environment education committee.
- Monitoring the impact of these actions.
- Providing a dedicated resource platform.
Resource Team of the Lycee:
Composed in 2023-2024 of 9 volunteer staff members (4 secondary school teachers, 2 primary school teachers, 1 AED, CPE, 1 nursing staff)
- Production of resources and tools to support staff in animation and prevention sessions (creation of fact sheets by level, links to videos or academic resources…)
- Reflection on the detection of harassment cases: adaptation of the questionnaire for students (+digitization) and distribution from CE2, information and awareness messages, set up of a mailbox with a questionnaire, support for homeroom teachers
- Intervention with students in reported situations (4 situations in secondary school): interviews and follow-up of the situation, in connection with the pedagogical team of the concerned students and the parents
- Training plan: 1 staff member of the institution as a reference trainer; 2 staff members trained within the framework of the Asia-Pacific zone training plan
The key points for 2024-2025:
- Communication to families and staff at the start of the school year
- Relaunch of the survey for all students from CE2 to Terminale in the second half of the first trimester, with support and awareness-raising in class by homeroom teachers; analysis and monitoring of statistics
- Continued production of internal resources
- Interventions and follow-up for students experiencing bullying, in connection with teaching teams and parents
- Deployment of training for volunteer staff in 2024-2025 (as part of the AEFE and school training plan)
- Mobilization and training of student ambassadors
- Implementation of key awareness-raising events
The discussion mentions training, creating a specific email address, and designating a school contact person.
A student asks if it would be possible to put the school climate questionnaire on the school website.
Parents remind of the existence of the LFT “living together” group (vivre-ensemble@familles-lycee-tokyo.com).
2.7 School trips in 2024-2025:
- Teissonniere presented 2 primary school trip projects to take place shortly after the September start, which were approved by the primary school council : Unanimously approved by the School Council
Parents request creating a school trip committee to help school staff, particularly with financial planning.
The school notes that domestic trips in Japan do not present major financial difficulties, as evidence by the numerous school trips in primary school. Besides, one of the school staff is charged, among other responsibilities, with helping set up and prepare trips.
Foreign trips are more challenging due to the family funding cap and require seeking other sources of funding. It is doable, but more complex (it was possible to organize 2 trips this year, for a few students only). To date, only secondary school teachers have put forward proposals for trips overseas.
Mme Campels does not favor creating an ad hoc committee outside official bodies, suggesting the existing secondary school council can fulfill this role. For the secondary school, there already exists an official committee whose remit includes examining trip proposals and providing help to staff if necessary ; it is the secondary school council (CSD), comprising parents, teachers and students representatives: this council, smaller than the School Council, can easily be gathered.
For parents, having only 3 School Councils per year seems to be constraining teachers, and this proposal is aimed at helping teachers organize trips.
Proposal by the administration : a secondary school council meeting early in the year will be dedicated to this topic.
2.8 Video Surveillance
Request from Parent Representatives
- Primary Objective: To prevent incivilities and assist in resolving incidents such as theft, harassment, violence, and vandalism.
- Framework and Limits:
- Only in common areas such as circulation spaces accessible to secondary school students.
- Exclusion of areas such as locker rooms, classrooms, restrooms, and spaces reserved for adults.
- Only recordings, within a time limit of one month, are accessible to the principal of the institution or, upon request, to the competent authorities of the country or an authorized person who is part of the management team and with the principal’s authorization. The request must be made in writing and specify the reasons for the search, and specify the locations and the date as precisely as possible.
- On-site Consultation, Closed Circuit:
- A consultation register must be established specifying the name of the person who viewed a recording, the reason, and the date.
- A notice informing of the presence of cameras must be installed to inform anyone entering the institution; local competent authorities will be notified.
- The deployment cost of this video surveillance will not be borne solely by the institution but co-financing must be found.
Opinion of the CE:
For: 10 Against: 0 Abstention: 2
3. Questions from Representatives
3.1 Questions from Parent Representatives
- Possibility of Hiring a School Psychologist (question raised at the January CE meeting)
- The question frequently arises from parents whether, given the size of the school, hiring a school psychologist might be necessary, initially on a part-time basis.
- The issue of visas naturally comes up, but would it be possible to hire professionals already living in Japan who might be interested in this type of mission, or even consider the option of a practitioner who would be employed part-time and thus under a planned fee contract rather than a traditional contract?
- Another solution would be to contract with a psychologist based in Tokyo for regular interventions at the school. Is this feasible?
At the January CE meeting, the following response was obtained:
Such a measure, before being possible, requires a thorough study: assessment of needs, cost (and the ad hoc creation of a salary scale that does not currently exist), assigned missions and their limits, approval from administrators, employment contract and visa, practical questions (what space would be allocated?). A visa to bring a psychologist from France would not be granted, so it would be necessary to recruit a professional already residing in Japan who could be employed (for example, a dependent visa with a contract capped at 28 hours per week, or a Japanese spouse – without hourly restrictions for the contract). This decision falls under the remit of the board of directors.
RPEEP: In France, these personnel are tenured members of the National Education system with knowledge of the specificities of the French school system. This request for creation has been brought forward by staff and parent representatives in previous years.
The administration assures that a study can indeed be conducted to be presented to the CA.
Question: Has the study been conducted? How do other international schools handle this? Or when do you think you can provide us with an answer on legal feasibility?
Response:
It is not possible for the institution to sponsor personnel who are not already in Japan with a work authorization for this type of position. Only a professional already established in Japan (for example, either a French-speaking Japanese psychologist or a French psychologist with a dependent visa – allowing employment on a 28-hour weekly basis – or a Japanese spouse visa – allowing full-time employment) could be recruited by the institution.
Contact has been made with other international schools in Tokyo: one of them has hired a full-time psychologist (40 hours) since April, no responses yet from others or negative responses.
A clear definition of the missions of this personnel must be made.
Mr. Roussel reminds that he has been making this request for several years.
- Creation of a Maths/Science club
- We’d like to develop our chidren’s appreciation of mathematics and science in general. Does a Science club exist at LFIT ? It seems it doesn’t. Could one be created, under the supervision of a competent teacher ?
- This club could, for instance, aim to prepare member students to enrol into contests such as the CGenial contest in which students present an innovative science projet as a team, or any other contest linked to science, techonology, robotics or mathematics.
- Is it possible for parents to participate in setting up and animating such club ?
Response:
It is perfectly possible for such a club to be created if there is student demand and adult supervision. The presence of parents may be possible, subject to verifications (skills, liability, insurance).
- Kangourou des Maths
We would like to warmly thank the mathematics teachers who, through their time and commitment to the students’ interests, managed to organize the Kangourou des Maths in record time. We would like this competition to be organized again next year, but with more advance planning this time.
We believe that communication from LFI Tokyo to the parents (and not just to the students, as was done this year) would be more effective, as only the parents are able to handle the registration and payment for their child.
What is planned to congratulate and highlight our students, some of whom have achieved exceptional results?
Response: As with all educational projects, it must be submitted, if the teachers wish to continue it, in early September for review and approval by the administration. This is the best way to anticipate communication.
On Tuesday the 25th (communication will be made quickly, it has already been done internally to list the students), an evening is planned to honor the students who have distinguished themselves this year in multiple actions or projects, including the Kangourou des Maths.
4.Integration of Newcomers / Living Together
Regularly, we receive testimonies from children arriving from France or other countries who have been disturbed upon arrival here by seeing a divisive atmosphere between groups of students speaking different languages. They note that it is difficult to create bonds with groups whose language they do not speak. This increases the discomfort that any student may feel when arriving at a new school. What message could the educational community convey to all students, and what measures can we take to improve the integration of new students and encourage the older students at LFIT to use a common language to include the newcomers? It is not about “forcing” students to speak French but rather teaching the important values of living together.
Response: The fact that different languages are spoken is a reality in all French schools abroad and contributes to their cultural and linguistic richness. This is a dimension that new arriving families largely integrate. The French language is naturally the common language used by all teachers, ASEM, and AED. At the beginning of each school year, we ask the older students to ensure that the newcomers are integrated and taken care of.
5.Inclusive School
Thank you very much for all the initiatives put in place to develop a more inclusive school (FLSCO, Speech Therapists at LFIT, Recruitment of a referent teacher, etc.). It is a real plus to welcome and support students with special needs. Does LFIT plan to open ULIS classes (elementary, middle school)?
Response: The ULIS system (and not ULIS class) is an option present on the national territory in direct connection with the CDAPH, which assigns students to it. This system does not exist abroad.
- Payment of AESH Scholarships
We would like to alert you to the delay in the payment of AESH scholarships for the 2023-2024 school year. As of today (May 26), we are still waiting for payments to cover the AESH invoices we have paid since September 2023. Despite our numerous reminders to the embassy and the LFIT, it seems that the AEFE has not yet released the scholarship payments. We also understand that other families are experiencing the same delays. This is causing a difficult financial situation for most of the families concerned.
Response: This question is not within the competence of the CE.
- School Calendar
A few years ago, the school year ended after the first week of July, as is logically the case in France as well… (Combined with the summer camp, the high school operated until mid-July). Why is this no longer the case?
Response: The school calendar is discussed and voted on by the school council, which rejected the proposed calendars that included school days in July. Regardless of the start and end dates of the school year, students have the required number of weeks and hours of classes mandated by the national education system. The 2025-2026 calendar has not yet been developed or voted on, but the issue of school days for students in July 2026 will certainly be considered by the representatives on the school council.
- Secondary School Class Councils
To promote communication between teachers, student and parent representatives, could we consider holding secondary school class councils in person or in a hybrid format for the 2024-2025 school year?
Response: Yes, the matter will be reviewed for the next school year.
- Student Schedules
With sometimes more than 8 hours of free periods per week, not counting the lunch break, it seems essential to improve the schedules to avoid an excessive number of free periods for students in certain classes.
The parents propose to help optimize this using dedicated programs that are much more efficient than the tools available in French schools.
Response: The administration thanks the parents for their proposal but will not follow up on it. The software used for scheduling is particularly effective (one of the best currently on the market, if not the best, as it takes into account many specific parameters of French schools), renowned in all schools, and mastered by the administrative staff. It is absolutely not conceivable to change it. The design of schedules is a very technical and complex task, assigned solely to the administrative team, in which parents cannot interfere.
Moreover, on a normal schedule (excluding absences or class relocations), it does not seem that students have up to 8 hours of free periods in the school, unless the hours at the beginning and end of the day are included.