Students, teachers and parents march across France over school conditions

Students, teachers and parents marched across France on Tuesday in the largest day of a nationwide protest movement demanding action on teacher shortages, long school days and deteriorating buildings.

Demonstrations began peacefully in Marseille, Nantes and Lyon, while protesters blockaded schools across the country. The French High School Students Union said 1,800 high schools were blockaded or expected to close, while another report citing the Education Ministry put the number of schools suspending at least some classes at 891. Some education authorities moved lessons online.

The movement began in the Paris suburbs in September and spread nationwide. Protesters have cited absent teachers, inadequate resources, overloaded timetables and classrooms poorly equipped for rising temperatures. Authorities say some demonstrations have also involved vandalism, arson and clashes with police; the education minister said 24 schools had been burned or ransacked by Monday.

A 15-year-old boy lost a hand during unrest in Lens on Monday. Regional newspaper La Voix du Nord reported that he picked up a police dispersal grenade before it exploded, while the local prefect declined to confirm the precise circumstances.

Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu ordered ministers to prepare proposals by the end of October addressing the replacement of absent teachers, the length of the 8 a.m.-to-6 p.m. school day, lunch breaks and repairs to ageing buildings. The government has said the movement has been accompanied by urban violence, while the French Human Rights League accused police of using disproportionate tactics against protesters, many of whom are minors.