Die Klasse

by François Bégaudeau, Katja Buchholz (Übersetzer), Brigitte Große (Übersetzer)

François ist Lehrer in einem typischen Problembezirk im Nordosten von Paris. Seine Schüler heißen Khoumba, Dico oder Souleymane. Angesagte Klamotten, der Afrika-Cup oder das Coolsein an sich sind ihnen allemal wichtiger als der Unterricht oder die französische Sprache. Doch auch die Lehrer passen sich ihrer Umgebung an, François’ Methoden sind einigermaßen extravagant, und mehr als einmal muß er sich fragen, wer hier wem eine Lektion fürs Leben erteilt. Mit einer gehörigen Portion Sarkasmus erzählt François Bégaudeau eine rasante Geschichte von Schülern, für die Respekt eine Frage des aggressiven Auftretens ist, und Lehrern, die weder ihre Schüler noch den Kopierer disziplinieren können.

Genres: France, Fiction, French Literature, Contemporary, Education, Read For School, Literature

232 pages, Paperback

First published January 12, 2006

About the author

He was born in Luçon, Vendée and was first a member of the 1990s punk rock group Zabriskie Pont. After receiving his degree in Literature, he taught high school in Dreux and in an inner city middle school in Paris. He published his first novel, Jouer juste in 2003. In 2005, he published Dans la diagonale and Un démocrate, Mick Jagger 1960-1969, a fictionalized account of the life of Mick Jagger.

In 2006, his third novel entitled Entre les murs earned him the Prix France Culture/Télérama.

François Bégaudeau is a movie critic for the French version of Playboy, having previously worked for the Cahiers du cinéma. He also was a regular contributor for several French magazines, including Inculte, Transfuge and So Foot. Since September 2006, he is a columnist for La Matinale and Le Cercle on Canal+ television.

He worked on the screenplay of Entre les murs, a film based on his 2006 novel, in collaboration with Laurent Cantet. He also starred in the film, which received the Palme d'Or at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival, and an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film in 2009 (though it lost to Japan's Departures). The English language version of Entre les murs was published in April 2009 by Seven Stories Press under the title The Class.

Reviews

[Sam · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really wanted to enjoy this book...I was looking for catharsis...I was hoping to find that teaching the kinds of students discussed in this book held the same challenges no matter where you went. In short, I wanted to share in someone else's recounting of "Oh-look-at-how-difficult-it-is-to-teach-I'm-such-a-good-person-but-so-unappreciated."

Instead, here's what I learned: Teaching would be much more pleasant if I could touch or strike students, knock them down, swear at them, or otherwise abuse/mock their lack of intelligence or social norms with impunity. In some places, administrators can and will expel students at the drop of a hat for being a general nuisance and using the informal "you" when speaking to a teacher. And, teaching is a lot easier when you can lecture, order dictation, and go off on infinite tangents without so much of a whiff of administration interference.

Also, the teachers themselves seemed to be spoiled, egotistical, narcissistic versions of their own students. The administration are nothing but buffoons who ask for donations for this cause or that and generally have no idea of what's going on in the classrooms. The author himself admits with what appears to be glee to the reader that he often has no idea what he's talking about and makes up answers to students questions as he goes along, hoping not to get caught out. Well, okay, so I did learn that some things aren't so different.

Finally, I hated the hipster tone the author adopts, which I cannot believe is completely attributable to the translator. What is supposed to be ironic or cool about this exploration into an urban French school? Education is about anything but education? Neat-o! What a prick.

[Delphine · Rating 4 out of 5]

J'ai lu en une soirée Entre les murs de François Bégaudeau, le livre qui a inspiré le film éponyme de Laurent Cantet. Ce roman est absolument formidable. Outre les passages adaptés à l'écran, il y a un style très fort, soulignant les difficultés de discipline au jour le jour dans la vie d'un enseignant de collège et les rares moments de joie (situations drolatiques, humour pas toujours volontaire des élèves, humour très volontaire et pas toujours compris du professeur…)

Les conversations en salle des professeurs sont aussi très amusantes.

L'humour de Bégaudeau et de son personnage fait un peu oublier à quel point la situation, au fond, est triste, à quel point certains enfants partent avec un lourd handicap dans la vie.

Mais, par dessus tout, c'est l'écho de mon année scolaire à Châtenay-Malabry, sur la Butte Rouge, que j'ai aimé. La frustration de ces instants paraît moins forte quand on sait qu'elle est partagée.

[Benjamin Martel · Rating 2 out of 5]

J'aurais aimé mieux lire Entre lémures, j'aime mieux les animaux que les profs condescendants.

[Elena · Rating 3 out of 5]

Being a teacher in a Secondary School, I can relate with many experiences and situations described in this book. I should also add that we do have kids like those ones here, but we teachers have to be quite different... We could never say "You're an idiot" to a pupil, or talk so 'freely' with them-for example. Those who dare, are at risk of a formal complaint. This said, I've found the book a bit boring rather than 'vivid' as it was described in the back cover: the writing style is quite monotonous, like when the author repeatedly describes what the kids are wearing (or better, what are the writings on their T-shirts). The other teachers all appear like boring guys/ladies who find teaching a chore and a bore. We're not (all) like that!!!

[Bridget · Rating 3 out of 5]

AHHHHH! This guy is such a jackass! With every page I turned I liked him less. He embodies all the bad habits and bad attitudes a teacher can acquire over a teaching career. He blows off students with serious questions about the material and difficult life situations, parents who are trying to have a real and honest conversation with him, and staff who are as negatively like-minded as he is. I just couldn't believe how negative everyone was about the kids, what low expectations they had for the students, what a chore of a job they viewed their career as. The only reason I gave it two stars and not one was because I liked the writing style - short vignettes of a few moments of different days. Main character though - BOO!

[Betsy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I found the narrator/teacher's voice really annoying. He never seemed to give his students the benefit of the doubt and would come down hard on them even before they gave him cause.

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

Το βιβλίο αναφέρεται στην εμπειρία ενός καθηγητή δευτεροβάθμιας εκπαίδευσης στο Παρίσι, σε μια συνοικία πολυπολιτισμική του 19ου διαμερίσματος.
Περισσότερο θέλει να δείξει ότι όταν λέμε "ζούμε στο Παρίσι" μπορεί να σημαίνει ότι δεν ξέρουμε ούτε πού πέφτει η Όπερα και τα Ηλύσια Πεδία.
Από τη δομή της αφήγησης συμπέρανα ότι το βιβλίο θα ήταν πολύ καλύτερο στη μεταφορά του στον κινηματογράφο. Είναι από τις περιπτώσεις που τα πράγματα είναι ανάποδα : καλύτερη η μεταφορά από το βιβλίο. Την ταινία δεν την έχω δει αλλά θα πρέπει να υπερτερεί της ανάγνωσης.
Ποτέ δεν θα μπορούσα να πω ότι το να διδάσκεις παιδιά του σχολείου είναι εύκολη υπόθεση. Αν προσθέσεις και εφήβους τότε η κατάσταση μπορεί να γίνει δυσβάστακτη. Αν στο μείγμα μπει και η ετερογένεια των μαθητών (θρησκείας, κοινωνικής προέλευσης, πολιτισμικών διαφορών) τότε τα πράγματα γίνονται ακόμη πιο δύσκολα.
Από την άλλη μεριά, δεν γνωρίζω εάν διδάσκονται μαθήματα ψυχολογίας και τεχνικές προσέγγισης /χειρισμού παιδιών και εφήβων στις γαλλικές παιδαγωγικές σχολές. Το σίγουρο είναι ότι από το βιβλίο ο αναγνώστης συμπεραίνει ότι ο καθηγητής δεν καταφέρνει στο ελάχιστο να πλησιάσει τους μαθητές του. Οριακά γίνεται έως και αντιπαθής στον αναγνώστη.
Εκείνο που διαγράφεται στο βιβλίο είναι η ανοχή του διδακτικού προσωπικού μέχρι να τελειώσει η σχολική χρονιά και να καταφέρουν όλοι να πάρουν μια μετάθεση για κάπου αλλού. Ένα είδος δλδ καταναγκαστικού έργου.
Το βιβλίο κατάφερε να με απογοητεύσει όχι μόνο ως προς τα γεγονότα που περιγράφει αλλά γενικότερα, ως προς το μέλλον των πολυπολιτισμικών κοινωνιών, μέρος των οποίων αποτελούμε πλέον όλοι.

[Jodie · Rating 5 out of 5]

C'était vraiment bien, et très interessant. Le rapport entre le prof et ses élèves s'est développée dans un façon compliqué, mais il est évident qu'il y a une grande complicité là. Le roman a touché aux sujets difficiles, et souligné les problèmes avec l'école publique en France. Même si ça m’a pris si longtemps pour le lire, enfin ça en valait la peine.

[Maï · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nul du début à la fin. Aucun intérêt à cette histoire. Ne l'a liser pas.

[Baptiste · Rating 4 out of 5]

Belle lecture, rapide et digeste. Pour en avoir une vision fidèle en 2h, le film (aussi écrit, et même interprété, par François Bégaudeau) a très bien été adapté au cinéma !
Ce roman a d’ailleurs eu le même effet sur moi que le film il y a quelques années : l’envie de devenir prof. Une vraie fiction avec un aspect presque documentaire qui se concentre sur l’aspect foncièrement social de ce métier difficile, notamment dans les ZEP (aujourd’hui REP), et bien souvent incompris.
Au passage : si vous n’aimez pas l’insolence et la mauvaise foi des adolescent.e.s, il va falloir serrer les dents une ou deux fois 😁

[terrystad dit Roy · Rating 3 out of 5]

En effet, il y a un petit quelque chose de plus dans le film qu’on ne sent pas dans le livre.
Néanmoins, le roman Entre les murs est frais et vrai. Merci!

Citation pris dans l’oeuvre (En regardant en arrière) : « J’ai souffert souvent, je me suis trompé, mais j’ai aimé. C’est moi qui ai vécu, et non un être factice créé par mon orgueil et mon ennui.

[Kiera Modi · Rating 2 out of 5]

I went into this thinking that Begadeau's experiences would be engaging, poignant and inspiring to read, but I came away feeling disappointed. I think what threw me off was Begadeau's appalling attitude towards the kids, going as far to label them "imbeciles". He uses the quote "lick-able breasts" at one point, which I found jarring and unnecessary, regardless of whom it was directed towards. The book is very dialogue heavy, so it was an easy read, but as others have said the descriptions get vastly repetitive and it ultimately dragged. I will be watching the film and hoping it adopts a more optimistic tone.

Edit: watched the film, enjoyed it more. Characters were better developed and more well-rounded.

[Anasylvi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Înainte să vă spun câteva cuvinte despre carte, o să vă povestesc cum am ajuns să o caut și să o citesc. Am văzut pe un grup o postare despre ea, iar în momentul în care am văzut poza cu coperta, mi-am amintit de film, care îmi plăcuse foarte tare, deși nu l-am văzut chiar de la început. La un moment dat, acum ceva vreme, butonând telecomanda într-o seară am ajuns pe TVR2, dacă nu mă-nsală memoria. Acolo rula acest film, “În clasă”, care a luat și premiul Palme d’Or la prestigiosul festival de la Cannes. Filmul m-a fascinat pe loc și l-am urmărit cu mult interes.

Așadar, când am văzut că există și cartea, am trecut-o pe listă. Am găsit-o la un preț foarte bun (nu mai știu să vă zic exact, dar era o sumă de o cifră, sigur) pe anticariat, la Târgul cărții. E o ediție din 2008, de la Nemira, în stare foarte bună.

Revenind la carte, consider că este o lectură bună pentru toți cei implicați în procesul educației. Nu este scrisă într-un mare stil literar, mai degrabă fiind o relatare onestă a experienței de profesor de franceză a lui François Bégaudeau, într-o școală de la periferia Parisului, cu foarte mulți imigranți și copii din clasa de jos. Foarte mulți știm de problemele învățământului din țara noastră și ne așteptăm ca lucrurile să stea mult mai bine în țări mai dezvoltate. Acest lucru chiar se întâmplă în multe dintre țări, dar să nu uităm că aproape în orice țară există și categorii defavorizate. Țările nordice sunt considerate în general un exemplu în educație, dar în țări ca Franța și Anglia există o sumedenie de probleme, incluzând abandonul școlar sau o educație cel puțin superficială.

Recomandarea completa, aici: https://adropofinspiration.wordpress....

[Mélusine · Rating 1 out of 5]

Le sexisme est omniprésent dans ce livre où il ne se passe essentielement rien pendant 290 pages et où le prof prend un malin plaisir à humilier ses élèves alors que lui-même ne sait même pas quoi répondre quand les élèves en question l'interrogent sur son cours.

[Clémentine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probablement le meilleur livre que j’aie lu sur l’enseignement. C’est un exploit que d’écrire un livre aussi touchant sans sentimentalité pesante, de faire naître aussi un sentiment d’injustice sans pour utiliser de ton moralisateur. Le rapport à la langue est aussi très original sans être pesant : on en dit beaucoup avec peu de mots, et on fait confiance au lecteur pour y trouver ce qui le touchera lui-même. Bref, un livre doux, drôle et juste.

[Terri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting. I have not read a translation for a long time. I always wonder what gets "lost in the translation."

What I enjoyed most about this book was its honest relaying of the facts. There have been a spate of books, movies, and books made into movies that dissect the teacher-student relationship - "Freedom Writers Diary," "Stand and Deliver," etc. Though these can be very inspirational, they can also be very dangerous in that they set up the expectation that all teachers can and should be heroic and willing to sacrifice everything for their profession. The fact of the matter is that these stories don't always tell the WHOLE story. No one talks about the fact that Erin Gruwell (the teacher featured in "Freedom Writers Diary") only taught for the four years that she had this particular group of kids (and that it is rare to be able to work with the same group of students for their entire high school experience). No one talks about the fact that the failure of Gruwell's marriage and relationships was at least in part due to her profession. Real teachers, those who are in the trenches for an entire career are human - they sometimes make mistakes, they sometimes are cranky, they sometimes say things they shouldn't, they are sometimes frustrated, they are often overworked, and they often get little in return for what they do -- just like real parents, just like real people in other professions. And some teachers (parents, butchers, bakers, and candlestick makers) are better than others. However, teachers are held up to different standards than other real people and professionals.They are expected to be perfect, to save the world!

And students in real life really can be jerks. Even though teachers are supposed to be "adults" and "professionals," students really can get under a teacher's skin. Kids can say things that cut to the core. And there are times when a teacher would like to tell a student she is acting like a "skank" - or whatever - because she is! It is hard to always have self-restraint when being bombarded with things like that over and over.

Therefore, "The Class" was a refreshing look at a real teacher. I loved the dispassionate way in which he simply tells the facts. He makes no judgments about himself, his colleagues, his students, or their parents. He allows us to form our own opinions. He clearly does a lot of things that aren't very admirable. But don't we all? His students' lack of common knowledge about the world and the way it works was sometimes astounding. There is a perception that education in many developed nations is superior to that of the United States. This clearly shows us that there are "issues" in education everywhere.

I loved the short vignettes and the use of repetition - it made for a fast read. Some things were difficult to understand, partly due to the translation, and partly due to not having firsthand knowledge of the culture. Despite the fact that the story is French, there are many universals to be found here. Though the book made me sad, I did find truth and a certain comfort in it.

[Jérémy Drai · Rating 4 out of 5]

François Begaudeau est un écrivain et un personnage médiatique captivant. J’aime son honneteté intellectuelle, sa capacité à se remettre en question et l’aisance rhétorique qu’il déploie en débat. C’est un homme de gauche que l’on pourrait qualifier d’“authentique” dans la mesure où ses actions et son parcours de vie s’inscrivent dans le prolongement d’un combat politique et militant sincère.

Entre les murs est un roman inspiré de l’experience de l’auteur comme professeur au collège Mozart dans le 19ème arrondissement de Paris. On suit le quotidien d’un professeur de français désabusé qui affronte la réalité brutale de l’enseignement dans un environnement scolaire “difficile”. Le livre témoigne de l’écart abyssal entre les notions enseignées et le niveau des élèves complétement dépassés, le décrochage est structurel dans cet établissement où la mission éducative du corps enseignant s’efface souvent devant la gestion de problèmes familiaux beaucoup plus concrets.

Loin d’être misérabiliste, le livre s’emploie à décrire avec réalisme une réalité sociale en laissant au lecteur le soin d’en tirer ses propres conclusions. Le protagoniste échappe au principal écueil qu’on aurait pu attendre d’un livre traitant d’un tel sujet, à savoir mettre en scène un professeur dénué de toute aspérité, dont le sens du devoir quasi sacrificiel suffirait à redonner le goût des études à ses élèves. Au lieu de ça, Begaudeau nous confronte à un personnage qui se laisse facilement dépasser par ses affects au point de commettre des erreurs évidentes pour le lecteur, évidemment inexcusables mais fondamentalement humaines. Les élèves se dévoilent peu au fil des pages au point qu'on tend à les confondre, malgré des personnalités marquées, tant au sens propre qu’au figuré. Ils sont souvent identifiés par la marque de leurs vêtements, rappelant ainsi le pouvoir de pénétration des enseignes, à la fois marqueurs identitaires et signes d’appartenance de groupe.

La lassitude du corps enseignant confronté année après année aux mêmes difficultés érode la confiance en ce qu’ils font et pousse certains à adopter une attitude cynique. Des détails à priori insignifiant comme le fonctionnement de la machine à café prennent des proportions capitales dans le petit écosystème de l’école. Le sentiment de désemparement qui parcourt le livre n’empêche pas ce dernier d’être ponctué de touches comiques, souvent construites sur le décalage entre ce que les élèves sont censés comprendre et comprennent. Cet effet est amplifié par l’écriture de l’auteur : une succession de phrases percutantes, retranscriptions acerbes du réel, plus profondes qu’elles ne le laissent paraître et qui invitent souvent à une seconde lecture.

[Lorenzo Berardi · Rating 2 out of 5]

They better call it a screenplay rather than a novel.
"Entre les murs" is poorly written in its dry dialogue-led realism with only a few selected moments of a decent, but mainly sarcastic irony.

Frankly speaking, the reason why I found this book interesting is mainly comparative, thinking to the Italian system of education.
What I learned is that apparently in France you can be suspended from class or even expelled from school just by calling your professor "you" or not asking the permission for throwing a sheet in the wastepaper basket.
Oh Mon Dieu! These banlieusards are worse than savages! C'est intolerable!

Being the son of a teacher, I consider the way professor/Bégaudeau interacts with his lazy and partly illitterate pupils astonishing, prejudicial and superficial: no wonder he had problems with them.

Liking very much Laurent Cantet as a director I guess how I would appreciate more the movie based on this book than the book itself.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ce livre sent le vrai, j'aime que le prof ne soit pas idéalisé, son rapport aux élèves (mélange d'attachement, de condescendance, d'impatience, de répartie maladroite) est très vraisemblable, mais qu'est-ce que j'ai pu le trouver agaçant par moments... Le style n'est pas inoubliable, c'est plutôt factuel et télégraphique, idéal pour appuyer les effets de réel.

[Anita Cocina · Rating 3 out of 5]

le livre est bien écrit, et surtout facile pour une italienne comme moi en apprenant le langue française. L'unique problème de Entre Les Murs c'est que le lecteur peut trouver le livre répétitive et sans moments de vraie tension.

[Dian · Rating 4 out of 5]

" Entre les murs" raconte l'ascension social, extraordinaire et tragique, d'un professeur de Francais et Souleyman, un Malien, son ecolier.

[Realini Ionescu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Entre Les Murs aka The Class by Francois Begaudeau and others, directed by Laurent Cantet

A different version of this note and thoughts on other books are available at:

- https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list... and http://realini.blogspot.ro/

This is a winner of The Palme D’Or, in my view the most important, prestigious and relevant of all cinema awards.
And it is a worthwhile, thought provoking work of art.

The themes are:

- Education, religion, race relations, life in the banlieue, poor neighborhoods, values and role models, among others

The film is based on the real experience of Francois Begaudeau, who has contributed to the scenario and used to be a teacher.

Otherwise, the dialogue is spontaneous and it seems that the production was based on improvisation even if there is structure to the narrative.
I was thinking that in some ways, this film resembles another masterpiece –To Sir With Love, with Sydney Poitier in the lead role.

Notwithstanding the fact that the teenagers are impressive and especially given their inexperience, I thought the teacher is the most important protagonist.
He is a role model, even if or because he breaks down and has moments when he comes close to losing control.

To be faced with such a huge challenge looks to me like heroism in the fiercest battle, confronting enemies that you cannot injure….

- Well, there are always reprimands, lousy grades and more, but in these cases they do not seem to care
- Indeed, some just take their lousy performance and evaluations as a badge of honor and pride

So the professor has to demonstrate incredible resilience, grit, bravery, calm, sense of justice, compassion.
Psychology has demonstrated the importance of the Pygmalion Effect and the excellent results that can be obtained:

- If a teacher believes in his students, much like the sculptor of Ancient Greece loved his statue of Galatea, the pupils will perform stupendously
- Alas, the reverse is also true

And here I am unhappy to mention my own frictions with the French educational system, in which I have enrolled my daughter.
The local Lycee Francais has some advantages, but it is plagued with some teachers who are not just modest in performance, but they apply the reverse Pygmalion effect and the leader of this school is impervious to some rather critical aspects:

I told her for instance that the parking lot has hundreds of cars with engines running while the drivers sit and wait, just because they want 21 degrees in the car and although the temperature is often exactly that, they want to show off and impress that they have the money for the diesel, on top of the amount needed for luxury cars.

The leadership was oblivious to this and a number of other aspects that make me worry and upset that they are so limited.
Their attitude and lack of perspective, in an area which they should have seen and reacted, because after all, intelligent people are aware of the Climate Change- they even signed protocols in Paris recently- and know better than to just send carbon dioxide into the atmosphere for…really no reason other than vanity, ignorance, stupidity and criminal negligence…

- And if they do not see, react, do something about that, what do they know and teach there then??!
- If they do not have fundamentals right, what do they know about values, virtues, strengths, skills??
- At times it looks like little or nothing
To end with an anecdote that I remembered seeing this film, a chef d’oeuvre:

“You’ve heard that thing about Faulkner and Clark Gable haven��t you? Howard Hawks was taking Faulkner out on a quail shoot and came by to pick him up a little before dawn to get to where they were going by first light. Clark Gable was in the car and Faulkner in the backseat. As they rode along, Gable and Hawks got to talking. Gable said, ‘You know, you’re a well-read man, Howard. I’ve always been meaning to do some reading. I never have really done it. What do you think I ought to read?’ And Hawks said, ‘Why don’t you ask Bill back there. He’s a writer, and he’ll be able to tell you.’ Gable said, ‘Do you write, Mr. Faulkner?’ Faulkner said, ‘Yes, Mr. Gable. What do you do?’ ‘’

[André · Rating 4 out of 5]

Citaat :
Het grootste deel van de troep stond voor het natuurkundelokaal te wachten. Frida vertelde druppelsgewijs een verhaal, dat ingedronken werd door een halve kring meisjes.
Review :
In ‘De klas’ geeft François les aan een groep leerlingen van het vierde middelbaar van diverse komaf. De verschillen tussen culturen zorgen vaak zorgen voor tragikomische taferelen in het klaslokaal. De klas is een afspiegeling van de hedendaagse maatschappij in Frankrijk en eigenlijk elke West-Europese stad.
Het boek gunt ons ook een unieke blik in het leven van een jonge leraar. François Bégaudeau spreekt dan ook uit eigen ervaring. François Bégaudeau (Luçon, 1971) gaf zelf les in het middelbaar onderwijs toen hij dit boek schreef. Hij speelde later ook zichzelf in de verfilming van Entre les murs. Tegenwoordig is hij fulltime schrijver en levert hij bijdragen aan kranten en tijdschriften. In 2006 won hij de Prix Franse Culture-Télérama en de verfilming van Entre les murs werd bekroond met de Gouden Palm in 2008.
De tekst heeft ritme, muzikaal bijna. De scholieren in het boek spreken een taal die vaak hun moedertaal niet is en daardoor houden ze er een eigen woordgebruik op na. Zo laat Bégaudeau de ruigheid en muzikaliteit van een levende taal weerklinken, waarvan de klas de beste echokamer is.
De goed bedoelde lessen van de jonge leraar Frans over de taal lopen vaak uit op discussies, en ook ruzies, die hij dan weer in goede banen moet zien te leiden. Er zijn stukjes vanuit meerdere klasniveaus maar vooral van de klas waarvan hij klassenleraar is.
Tussen de verhalen over en met leerlingen staan ook stukjes over hoe het er in de lerarenkamer aan toe gaat, en dat getuigt ook niet bepaald van hoog niveau. De docenten zijn nauwelijks gemotiveerd, zuchten en steunen over het gebrek aan interesse en vooral het gedrag van hun leerlingen.
Dat François soms wanhopig en woedend wordt door het brutale gedrag van zijn leerlingen, is te begrijpen, maar het blijft vreemd dat hij zichzelf niet iets meer in vraag stelt. Wat ook van het lerarenkorps gezegd kan worden. De roman bestaat grotendeels uit dialogen, wat natuurlijk de perfecte keuze is voor dit soort verhaal. Alleen jammer dat de dialogen soms mank lopen of stroef klinken.
Toch blijft het in zijn geheel een bijzonder boek dat ik heel graag gelezen heb en waarvan ik de verfilming ook heel geslaagd vond.

[Jenna · Rating 2 out of 5]

This had some interesting narrative features but was overall unpleasant to read.

I would have been in the same school year as the children in this book. Even back then, there was no way any of our teachers would have called us the names the teachers were calling the children in the book. The whole "skanky" exchange was ridiculous and unprofessional. The teachers were also completely oblivious to really blindingly obvious multicultural flashpoints and seemed to deliberately provoke conflict. I felt deeply sorry for all of these children being lumbered with these teachers and felt that there probably was some unfortunate truth that expulsion (which happened at the drop of a hat) probably could have improved their prospects, as it seemed unlikely another school would be any worse.

The quality of the translation was also awful. Muslims don't celebrate "Aid". There is no way Dico called his teacher the f-slur twice in the same conversation without his teacher reacting at all to that - when this teacher is so easily provoked that he's completely losing his mind about students using "tu" on him, so I am really curious what insult is in the French version. There are several similar instances where the English insult substituted is either too weak or too strong for the original French, judging by the reactions of the other characters. The translator can't just redefine "head teacher" to mean form tutor/homeroom teacher/whatever term you'd prefer, when it already has the dictionary meaning of "school principal" - though at least this meant my reaction of "this guy's in charge of the whole school??" was thankfully incorrect. Weights are sometimes in kilos, sometimes in pounds - either decide you're going to convert every measurement for American readers, or leave them alone. It's definitely noticeable that the French-language review scores for this book are substantially higher than the ones from people who have read the English version.

[Chiara F. · Rating 1 out of 5]

Stile nervoso e frammentario quello del prof che sciorina didascalicamente il suo anno di prova in una scuola problematica delle banlieu parigine.
Sembra proprio di trovarsi sul set di un film francese, dove gli attori che interpretano gli insegnanti recitano a scatti, nevrotici e infantili, mentre gli studenti scimiottano i piccoli gangster del ghetto, ignoranti e quadrati, ossessionati dal brand e disinteressati alla cultura offerta dalla scuola.
È triste vedere che gli unici strumenti efficaci a disposizione dello scrittore per esprimere quanto sia difficile e sfidante gestire una classe di adolescenti, siano delle sintetiche descrizioni di dettagli apparentemente banali (come le scritte sulle magliette o sulle scarpe dei ragazzi) che riempiono il testo, interrompendo soprattutto i dialoghi serrati, come a dirci che l’unico modo per comprendere la gioventù sia spesso attraverso l’immagine di sè data al mondo, testimonianza della sua natura al di là delle parole o, al contrario, dei silenzi.
Purtroppo la tecnica è talmente abusata e la traduzione estremamente scadente, che si fatica a tenere il filo del discorso, già di per sè nebuloso sia per la cripticità dello slang studentesco sia per il sarcasmo dei docenti, ritratti in modo becero.

Il rischio di incappare nel blocco del lettore è alto.
Conclusione: l’ho lasciato a metà.

[Wifey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book because to me it seems fairly realistic in the way it describes school.
I never wanted to be a teacher, I do not have the patience to teach a bunch of kids completely uninterested in the subject just to find the one who is different (maybe). I worked one year as a foreign language assistant to be sure and yes, I was sure after that.
The atmosphere in the teacher's room was similar, most of the teachers were counting the days until the year was over. Some of the kids I was supposed to teach German were exactly like those described. After 4 years of language classes you askes a student their name and the answer "14 years" and you are supposed to be understanding and see this utter lack of interest as the failure of teacher/system/parents, but not the poor student? No, unfortunately, a lot of students are exactly as described in the book. So I can understand the teacher. Yes, he is a bit of a jerk, but most people would be under the circumstances. The truly inspirational teacher is very rare, I certainly haven't met any who would inspire those who are not at all interested.

[José Díaz-Bahamonde · Rating 1 out of 5]

PROS
Una curiosa mirada a un colegio en un barrio francés con alumnos conflictivo.
Se lee rápido dado que es una sucesión de escenas más que una narración con desarrollo

CONTRAS
No hay ningún desarrollo en los personajes.
El lector es simple testigo de situaciones y diálogos, con algunos momentos de acceso a las reflexiones de algún personaje
El libro se promueve como una revelación sobre la conducta de los alumnos y sus dificultades de compromiso con el aprendizaje. En mi caso lo sorprendente y decepcionante fue el profesor quien dista de ser un apóstol de la educación. Parece muy capaz en el dominio de su materia pero su manejo de la clase es brusco y grosero, y cuando habla de otros temas es claramente ignorante y sesgado. Su mención a Austria es vergonzosa. Realiza comentarios mentales al físico de sus colegas y alumnas.
El final fue incomprensible para mí.

FINAL
Decepcionante.

[☆ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Achei esse livro em um sebo da Sé sem ter nenhum conhecimento sobre o autor e do seu assunto, muito menos sobre o filme inspirado que gerou muitos prêmios. Ri bastante e passei raiva também, muitas vezes achei que o professor passou dos limites, e fiquei com vontade de deitar ele na porrada, talvez seja porque me encontro na mesma posição que os alunos. Uma leitura leve e fácil, muito cotidiana, não há nenhum grande conflito ou um final dramático, apenas a realidade de uma escola da periferia de Paris durante um ano letivo, o que é muito interessante, as histórias dos alunos e dos professores simplesmente se cruzam, muito influenciada pelas falhas no sistema educacional e na sociedade que refletem nas salas de aula, e é muito legal poder ter acesso a esses diferentes pontos de vida que são praticamente forçados a se chocarem, deixando marcas na história dos educadores e dos alunos, principalmente.

[erica · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 voire 4 par moments. j’ai beaucoup apprécié certains aspects de cette lecture, comme le style de narration en vignettes (dont je ne raffole pas d’habitude, mais qui fonctionne très bien ici) et les personnalités des différents.es élèves que l’on suit tout au long de l’année scolaire (toustes étaient extrêmement attachants.es).
moins fan (euphémisme) de l’attitude du prof protagoniste envers ses élèves: parfois ironique et amusant, il lui arrive cependant d’être ouvertement méprisant avec certains.es et d’avoir des comportements TRÈS déplacés, du style pousser un élève pour qu’il avance plus vite, ou en traiter une autre de pétasse 💀 ces comportements m’auraient moins dérangé s’ils avaient été critiqués par l’auteur, or ce n’est pas le cas. déçue aussi de la fin, qui n’en est pas vraiment une

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I saw and loved this film years ago and really expected this book (on which the film is based) to be much better. This is a rare instance of a movie, in my opinion, exceeding the book. The book itself felt too vignette-driven, which prevented me from caring for the characters (including the teacher) in the way that the film (by focusing more on a handful of the characters) allowed. It may be more accurate that a teacher's role really is spread across a larger number of students, especially in a district like the one described in the book where troubles are ubiquitous. Nonetheless, I wished for more narrative to inspire my to care more.