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Guiding at-risk youth through learning to work
Lessons from across Europe

5.2.2. Short-term, specialised support
Short-term, specialised support measures can be used as a way of facilitating a
young person’s return to formal education or their transition into further
education/training or employment. These measures offer both learning and
personal development within an alternative environment to formal schooling.
Relay classes (Classes Relais), offered in both France and Luxembourg, are a
good example of this type of provision.

Relay classes (Classes Relais), France

Relay classes were created in 1998 by a partnership of the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of
Justice (notably with the Office for Youth Judicial Protection), local authorities, schools, and other
recognised interests. The Classes host many young people who are acutely demotivated with
regards to learning, leading to their disengagement from the learning process. Many have
complex academic, behavioural, emotional and/or social difficulties and the majority come from
socially or economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

Most of the participants are in the process of dropping out, are at risk of social marginalisation or
have already rejected traditional schooling. For many the Classes offer last chance, as many are
pupils who have already received all the support and guidance available at their school.

• Relay classes aim to offer support and an opportunity to learn in a sheltered, conflict-free
environment. They have four main objectives:
• helping pupils to reinvest in learning;
• helping young people to form a constructive relationship with education and society;
• supporting pupils to acquire the basic level of skills and competences, including civic
competences;
• reintegrating young people in a general, vocational, or professional education/training
pathway.
Pupils experiencing difficulties are identified by schools’ pedagogical teams and social workers,
who provide a report on the educational progress of at-risk pupils to local/regional educational
inspectors. This report is then analysed by a regional or local education commission which
decides whether the young person should join a relay class or an alternative support system.

The classes aim to provide both educational and social support and a number of different
methods and activities are employed to offer an individualised service to participants:
• differentiated curriculum and teaching methods within a group environment;
• individualised pathways, which can include practical work experience;
• small group sizes, generally between six and twelve pupils per class;
• progressive timetable, adapted on a case-by-case basis;
• linking with extra-curricular measures;
• logbooks, which detail the pathway followed, pupil progress, teacher comments with
examples of work completed, and notes by the pupil and their family (where possible).

Relay classes are run by a team of teachers who have volunteered to teach them and
counsellors who work in close contact with social workers and healthcare professionals. The
partners offer supplementary activities that guide and support young people in their learning
pathway. The activities are designed to take into consideration the specific situation of each
individual.

Depending on the local context, the classes can take place either on school premises or at other
appropriate locations. Some authorities choose to organise classes in an apartment or other out-
of-school location, which only remotely resemble classrooms. The decision to make attractive
rooms available in a non-school environment helps many young people to cope with the
reintegration process.

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