Recent changes in educational assessment in France reflect pressures to modernize the French educational system to align it with prevailing democratic and egalitarian values and to respond to the economy's vocational training needs. After providing background on the French educational system, this paper discusses two areas of secondary school level (ages 11 through 18) assessment change: (1) the 1975 replacement of the 16+ Brevet d'Etudes du Premier Cycle (the qualification examination at the end of compulsory education) with a continuous assessment and guidance process called "orientation" by Rene Haby, then Minister of Education; and (2) the current pressure for reform of the traditional Baccalaureat examination at the upper secondary education level due to both the higher value given the "Bac 'C'" (mathematics and physical sciences) form by universities and its general "devaluation." As in other countries, the general trends of assessment reform in France are: (1) postponing the key point of selection as educational levels expand; (2) making assessment more comprehensive by incorporating more personal qualities and skills; and (3) increasing the delegation of assessment responsibilities to teachers. French teachers, however, are neither committed to, nor prepared for, these new responsibilities and the accompanying exposure to public censure. Assessment may become a major casualty of a heavily centralized education system torn between tradition and change. (BS)