Recent changes in policy and research regarding immigrants and schools in France are examined in this paper. The first part discusses changes in France's social and political context--in the immigrant population and in educational policies. The second section reviews theoretical explanations of immigrant school performance with regard to social class and cultural differences, institutionalized discrimination in the schools, and the role of family mobilization. Most of these theories focus on school processes without considering their link to other socializing agencies, such as the neighborhood and workplace. A multilevel analysis of these agencies is needed to understand the structural factors that influence minority school performance, such as neighborhood segregation and job discrimination. A model is presented that uses three parameters to compare the differences between immigrants of different nationalities in school attitudes and performance: the degrees of integration, assimilation, and participation. Two tables are included. (Contains 43 references.) (LMI)