France

For people with any type of disability
Find out the sports structure and educational structure in your country! Check their websites and find information about sportclubs, activities, lists of schools and much more!

Education

Educational Structure

Three ministries divide their responsibility of the education for children and adults with special needs:

1. The Ministry of National Education - Handiscol
2. The Ministry of Health and Social Affaires
3. The Ministry of Justice

The C.D.E.S(Commission Départementaled’Education Spéciale) is an administration, which tries to orient children toward the best way.The integration in ordinary classes is prefered. Advice how to enter a pupil in a school is available on the website of the Ministry of National Education. It is however sometimes necessary for children to attend special education. In primary and elementary schools, educational integration classes (CLIS – Classes d’ Integration Scolaire) have the goal to integrate handicapped children. There are different types of CLIS:
- CLIS 1: children with mental handicap
- CLIS 2: children with hearing impairment
- CLIS 3: children with visual handicap
- CLIS 4: children with motor handicap
In the secondary school the organization is different: CLIS-classes don’t exist and there are classes called “UPI” only for children with a learning disability. All these classrooms are integrated in mainstream schools. At the end, if the collective integration isn’t possible, children are oriented toward specialized schools, created according to the need of each disability:
- IME-IMPRO: Education and medical institutions for children with a learning disability
- Social institutions for children with a behavior disorder
- Institutions for children with a visual impairment
- Institutions for children with a deaf impairment
- Institutions for polyhandicapped children
- Motor re-education centers
- Hospital areas: Metabolic disorders and psychiatry.

In order to help either individual and/or collective integration, the government created services which support each child when he needs it (with qualified people). There is one: the CAMPS for the nursery and kindergarten and an other: the SESSAD for the primary school.

Sports Education for people with a disability

Higher education in APA
A few young handicapped athletes have the possibility, since the 90s, to integrate sports curricula (STAPS – Sciences and Techniques of Sports and Physical Activities). In a few universities, with integrated sport practices or practice APA in Handisport clubs with an evaluation carried out by the university (convention between the University and Handisport).
A few handicapped athletes passed the federal diploma Handisport (level II). This diploma allows becoming professionals in the scope of sport careers: teaching physical and sport activities (with or without adaptations); elaboration, organisation and management of activities and plans, professionals’ in-service training, research, etc.