The Carnet
The other night as study hours began, I struck up a typical evening conversation with Keenan, a junior. Me: "Soooo, what homework do you need to do tonight?" Keenan: "oh only about 20 minutes worth" Me: "yeah right. What do you really need to do?" Keenan procedes to list out his assignments, and starts to rummage through his school bag while I turn to another student to check in. As I turn back to Keenan, he's holding a small orange paper-back book and telling me he wants to show me something. The book is called a 'carnet' (car-nay), he explains, and is the way the French school system has chosen to record all kinds of information about a student. The student is then expected to show the book regularly to his parents. Keenan leafs through the book, explaining its various sections to me. One part has late passes, and another record visits to the nurse. There are several sections in which detentions and the reason they rewarded are noted....