Hundreds of French schools closed as students maintain protest pressure

Up to 500 schools across France will be shut or partially closed in an attempt to avoid the violence between security forces and students sweeping the country since 17 September. REUTERS - Nacho Doce

Nearly 500 highschools across France were closed or partially closed on Monday as students continued their demonstrations over poor learning conditions, ahead of a day of wider protests scheduled for Tuesday.

France high school students protested or disrupted lessons at 413 of the country's 3,700 secondary schools on Monday, the education ministry said, down from the number of schools affected last week.