The conditions in which children experience their schooling today are at the crossroads of several concerns for parents. Among them, the question of equal opportunity at school is a key area of tension: in 2025, only 52% of parents feel that it is assured, while 59% consider that major territorial inequalities persist in the quality of education*. Issues relating to student well-being and bullying are also important: in both 2023 and 2025 , Ifop estimated that nearly one in five students was affected by bullying**. Finally, the role of digital technology in children’s development also raises high expectations and concerns: in 2024, 96% of parents considered it to be a major factor in children’s development, and 64% attributed negative effects to it***.
Against this backdrop, parents of children in primary and junior high school appear to be privileged witnesses to their child’s school experience. The aim of this study is to analyze their perceptions and practices in terms of their child’s school experience, homework support, relations with teachers and use of digital technology at school.
A school experience perceived as positive overall, but marked by social inequalities
The results highlight a generally positive relationship with school: 90% of parents feel that their child has important friends at school, 86% that he/she feels good there, and 80% that he/she is generally happy to go there. Confidence in academic success is also widely shared, with three out of four parents (75%) believing that their child can succeed despite the difficulties he or she may encounter.
However, these perceptions mask pronounced social divisions. The belief that the child can succeed at school peaks at 34% (answers “corresponds very well”) among parents who consider their financial situation very good, compared with just 21% among those in difficult financial situations. Similarly, the feeling that the child has to make a lot of effort rises to 30% among the economically inactive and 27% among parents with no qualifications, compared with just 8% among executives and higher intellectual professions. Finally, violence (physical or psychological) at school appears to be far from marginal: 43% of parents say their child has already witnessed it, and 32% that he or she has already been subjected to it, while one child in five (20%) has already been afraid of being harassed on social networks.
Parents strongly involved in homework support, but a clear demand for greater support from the school system
Several indicators testify to parents’ involvement in their child’s schooling:
üWidespread regular help with homework: 75% of parents say they regularly help their child with homework, a proportion that rises to 49% (“corresponds very well”) for parents of children in primary school, compared with 25% in secondary school, which may reflect the child’s increased autonomy once he or she starts secondary school.
üA growing expectation of institutional support: 46% of parents feel that the homework help offered at school should be reinforced for their child, and 64% think that homework support at school would be beneficial, a proportion more widely shared by mothers (30% “completely” vs. 20% among fathers) and the economically inactive (39% vs. 18% among executives and higher intellectual professions).
A relationship with teachers perceived as benevolent, but a significant proportion of children feel devalued by their parents
The relationship between teachers and pupils is widely valued by parents: 85% believe that teachers speak to their children with respect and kindness, 80% that they encourage and support them in their work, and 74% that they help them sufficiently in their learning. The perception of a quality relationship between teacher and pupil is particularly strong at primary level, where 40% of parents consider that teachers speak to their child with respect corresponds “very well” to the situation, compared with 29% at secondary level.
This positive assessment does not, however, mask a persistent fragility: 44% of parents say that their child sometimes feels devalued when he or she encounters difficulties with schoolwork. This feeling is much more pronounced in poorer social categories (20% “corresponds very well” in poorer categories, versus only 5% in wealthier categories) and is expressed more by mothers (19% vs. 9% among fathers).
Smooth communication with the school, but insufficient information on digital technology
Communication with the school is generally perceived as satisfactory: 84% of parents say they can easily communicate with the management, 79% feel that information is exchanged regularly and that a member of the educational staff is available for their child. However, this fluidity is unevenly distributed, with parents of privately-schooled children (42%) and those from wealthier backgrounds (45%) reporting easier communication with the management than parents of publicly-schooled children (32%) or those from modest backgrounds (29%).
When it comes to digital technology, on the other hand, the survey reveals high expectations: while 64% of parents feel that the information provided at school on digital uses corresponds to their child’s needs, only 16% consider it “completely” adapted. Above all, nearly three out of four parents feel that schools should provide better information, both on the educational digital uses offered to pupils (73%) and on the risks associated with digital technology, such as misinformation, addiction or cyberbullying (72%). This double observation reveals a major educational challenge in a context where children’s digital practices are intensifying.
In a context marked by the attention paid to children’s schooling conditions, the results of this study show that, from a parental point of view, pupils generally display a good level of self-confidence in their school career, against a backdrop of sustained family support for the educational institution and teaching staff. This confidence is accompanied by a high level of parental investment in their children’s schooling. However, the survey highlights a number of areas for improvement, notably in terms of social equality in terms of success, prevention of violence at school, and informing families and raising their awareness of digital issues.
(*) Survey conducted by Ifopfor L’Ascenseur. The survey was conducted among a sample of 2021 people representative of the French population aged 12 to 30. Interviews were conducted by online self-administered questionnaire from September 26 to October 6, 2025.
(**) Survey conducted by Ifop for Marion La Main tendue and Head & shoulders. The survey was carried out among a sample of 3015 people representative of young people in secondary school. Interviews were conducted by self-administered online questionnaire from September 22 to October 1, 2025.
(***) Survey conducted by Ifop for La Fondation pour l’Enfance. The survey was conducted among a sample of 1,004 parents of children aged 0 to 10, drawn from a nationally representative sample of the French population aged 18 and over. Interviews were conducted by self-administered online questionnaire from April 15 to 27, 2024.
