vorpuni

France has objectively not great schools but also very high inequality of access to the top schools:

https://theconversation.com/inegalites-scolaires-la-france-mauvaise-eleve-joue-son-avenir-economique-et-social-233496

https://www.inegalites.fr/L-essentiel-des-inegalites-d-education-Rapport

https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/8242339?sommaire=8242421

And choosing your path in life is a very early choice and most if not all alternatives to the path to the top are dead ends (not literally but it takes a lot more time to catch up which costs extra money that people may not have): https://www.franceinfo.fr/societe/education/parcoursup/parcoursup/manque-d-informations-choix-trop-precoces-inegalites-quatre-chiffres-a-retenir-d-une-etude-sur-l-orientation-des-jeunes_7289151.html

https://www.banquedesterritoires.fr/cour-des-comptes-lorientation-une-politique-sans-boussole

https://shs.cairn.info/revue-administration-et-education-2021-3-page-35?lang=fr

Sorry all the sources are in French, DeepL does a good job usually, if you have questions I may be able to shed some light on stuff.

A few ideas: poverty is rising, violent crime is rising, TikTok and Instagram are extremely prevalent and most parents seem to let teenagers use them, schooling in France is inegalitarian and deterministic.