According to data from the Students' Union, cited by AFP, around thirty campuses across France, from Paris to Marseille in the southern part of the country, were blocked this morning.
The student union assesses this mobilization as historic. Although access to educational institutions is restricted, the association reported that universities may switch classes to remote learning.
Secondary schools are also blocked throughout France. Among them is the Brequigny lycée, the largest in Brittany, where a group of people gathered in front of one of the entrances, blocking passage, as reported by AFP journalist.
Student Lola, outraged by the lack of substitutes for absent teachers—one of the reasons for this student movement that began a week ago in the suburbs of Paris, told AFP: 'They don't hear us; we are forced to take to the streets.'
The intensity of the protests increased, and on Wednesday they covered 356 institutions nationwide, compared to 338 institutions on Tuesday, according to the French Ministry of the Interior.
In Nantes, a school in western France, was destroyed by fire during the blockade today, reported AFP journalist. Deputy director Gaël Cordier informed AFP that it was an 'arson' of the school's facade.
Hundreds of students, most dressed in black, held a rather intense protest in front of the Cuffinyal general and technological high school in Strasbourg, noted AFP journalist. They blocked vehicle traffic, particularly a tram passing in front of the school, and placed large garbage containers on the ground and set them on fire.
There are concerns that acts of violence similar to those accompanying some previous blockades may occur.
IGPN, known as the 'police of the police,' opened three investigations after students were injured during school blockades. On Wednesday alone, 625 people were detained, and 83 police officers and gendarmes were injured. Since the start of the blockades, 119 students and staff have been affected.