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In 1961, Louis Legrand published a work that is very seldom referred to: L’influence du positivisme dans l’œuvre scolaire de Jules Ferry. Les origines de la laïcité (The Influence of Positivism on Ferry’s Educational Reforms. The Origins of the Secular Tradition). Yet this work is by no means insignificant in its educational and political thought. In fact, it illustrates the importance of positive philosophy in its main aspects: the epistemological, political, moral, and religious aspects. While studying the work of Jules Ferry in the light of positivism, Louis Legrand continued to develop his own educational thought and thus shaped his own intellectual growth, enabling him to finally get a picture of the challenges encountered in schools.