"what was their role in that meeting and why didn't the teachers insist that they behave? It seems to me that the girls would have had more of a role in the point system discussion than on one of student evaluations. It was an unbelievable situation for me."
I once was the rep for my class in the 70s when the "teachers conference of judgement" came. (Sorry I don't know an english expression for that)
I am German and lived in Germany until a few years ago. School judgements are given twice a year, in January or February and before the summer starts, in June or July. The teachers are discussing their judgements on each student, and usuall there is not much to discuss about average students.
Each class has a representative to whitness, it is only a formality. Usually there is never any case of corruption or so, at least I have never heard of any such case. So I don't really know why this was invented and when. I went to school from 1969 to 1980, and it always was like that, I have actually never thought about it until I read this question some minutes ago.
So, the fact that the girls were there was a just formality, and I was appalled that they could not behave. When I was elected that one time, I was proud and felt important. I would have never misbehaved like that. And I was a wild kid as well.
I was really wild, but a very good student at the same time, so I was respected by the teachers, and my "follies" were tolerated. But still, when at that conference, I would have never dreamed to behave in any way like that. I was also 14 or 15, and weird, but still, I was aware how serious this whole thing was.
But then, I was not from the underclass in an urban school. Maybe that is the point. And of course times were different. And maybe french schools are slightly different.
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