Podcast: French song's popularity abroad, screens in school, France's Nobels

Why songs in French are attracting new audiences in non-francophone countries. How are French schools using screens in classrooms? And the history of France's Nobel prizes. The Paris Olympic Games and Paralympics gave French-language songs huge exposure, building on a growing interest in listening to songs in French on streaming platforms. But what kind of music are non-French-speakers listening to and why? A new exhibition at the recently opened Cité Internationale de la langue française asks the question. Its curator, the music journalist Bertrand Dicale, based the exhibit on the idea that songs reveal who were are, and he talks about what popular songs reveal about France. He also highlights some surprising differences between French and foreign audiences, whereby stars like Aya Nakamura and Juliette Gréco have enjoyed huge success abroad despite being scorned at home. (Listen @0'00)France lags behind many countries in the use of technology in classrooms and there is no clear policy from an ever-changing education ministry. But the disorganisation may be buying educators time to consider the consequences. A report commissioned in the spring by President Emmanuel Macron advised placing limits on young people's use of smartphones and social media, and some schools are testing a smartphone ban this year. The report also pointed to a lack of coordination between authorities in determining how technology should be used in schools. A group of educators founded a collective Pour une éducation numérique raisonnée (For a well-reasoned digital education), which has raised concerns about the push to digitise textbooks and get students to use screens. We visit a class taught by one of its members, and see how technolgoy is – and is not – used. (Listen @22'00)In the midst of Nobel season, a look at some of France's 71 prizes, from the first ever Nobel Peace prize in 1901, to the five won by members of the Curie family for physics and chemistry. (Listen @15'00)Episode mixed by Cecile Pompéani. Spotlight on France is a podcast from Radio France International. Find us on rfienglish.com, Apple podcasts (link here), Spotify (link here) or your favourite podcast app (pod.link/1573769878).