Tens of thousands of students were expected to protest across France on Tuesday as nationwide demonstrations over school conditions and education funding enter their third week, with hundreds of schools disrupted and thousands taken into police custody.

The protests, which started in September around Paris, have since spread across the country and focus on problems in the education system, including overcrowded classrooms, staff shortages and deteriorating school buildings. University students, teachers and some labour organisations have joined them.

The movement has also seen violent confrontations, property destruction and claims of police overreach.

A 15-year-old student in the northern city of Lens lost a hand on Monday when a police grenade went off during clashes near his school. Prosecutors said an investigation will determine exactly how the incident happened, including whether the teenager picked up the grenade or whether it struck him directly.

Another teen, 14-year-old Eden, was seriously wounded in the face in Saint-Ouen-l'Aumône on Sept. 28 when he was hit by a tear-gas grenade fired from a launcher. His lawyer said he had a double jaw fracture and serious dental injuries. France’s police watchdog, the IGPN, is investigating the circumstances.

The government said at least 190 students had been injured by Monday, although later reports put the number at 215. The different totals reflect updates made throughout the day and the time each figure was reported.

The ministry of justice said that 5,060 people had been taken into police custody since the start of unrest. Of those, 4,406, or 87%, were juveniles. The prosecution was pending against 1,802 persons, 1,483 minors and 319 adults. Fourteen people had been jailed pending trial.

These figures are distinct from the number of people injured or involved in the demonstrations and should not be reported as simply the number of protesters “arrested” without noting the legal distinction.

The violence has also affected schools. Since the start of the movement, hundreds of establishments have been disrupted, and 24 schools burnt or ransacked, said Education Minister Edouard Geffray. Authorities say that non-students committed some of the violence.

Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu presented measures Sunday to address the concerns raised by students and education workers. The proposals include action on staffing, school facilities and the organisation of school life and a platform for students to report problems at their schools.

But student organizers say the government’s response is not enough.

The Union Syndicale Lycéenne (USL) has called for the mobilisation to continue on Tuesday, stating that the government’s proposals have not provided sufficiently concrete commitments. The teachers' union, the SNES-FSU, has also called on its members to join.

As violence has grown worse, the government’s response has become more severe. Lecornu has said authorities will not give in to violence and has defended students and education workers who have been attacked and police officers and gendarmes injured during the unrest.

Student groups and rights organisations said police used excessive force, while Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez defended the policing of the protests as proportionate. The IGPN is now investigating several incidents involving police grenades and rubber-bullet weapons.

The protests have sparked a more heated political debate.

Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the left-wing La France Insoumise party, has been a strong supporter of the student movement and has compared its scale to the youth mobilisation of the 1968 unrest. LFI denies accusations by government officials and right-wing politicians that it is stirring up the unrest.

Marine Le Pen, president of the National Rally, also condemned the violence, saying some demonstrations have tipped into illegitimate student protests.

The fight comes about six months before France's next presidential election, giving a political edge to a movement that began with demands over schools and education.

Authorities are bracing for further protests and possible violence during Tuesday's national mobilisation. The government has called for classes to restart and for grievances to be aired peacefully, while student groups are urging their supporters to keep up pressure for their demands.

The immediate question is whether Tuesday’s protests will be mostly peaceful, or whether the violence of recent days will continue to obscure the students’ demands for better schools.