Ten Reasons to Change the Moroccan English Textbooks Noureddine Boutahar

The new school year is here. But not much else is new as our schools are still harping on the same string and not responding to the repeated calls of parents, students and teachers for real educational reform. Among the things that real reform would have to address is the textbooks which have been on the back burner for a long time despite having long outlived their usefulness and time. For reasons of focus and space, I have chosen to shed some light only on English language books for Moroccan high schools and the necessity to change them.

First, the world is changing and so should textbooks. Most of the texts in the Moroccan textbooks are informational and that makes them grow old very quickly and become outdated pretty fast. That is to say, the topics of such texts deal with data and information which need to be constantly renewed and replenished to keep pace with this fast-changing world where information overload and update is a daily occurrence. Additionally, because the Moroccan high school textbooks are more than a decade old, much of the information in them is either obsolete, timeless, or representative of old approaches (or all three at once). Novelty will certainly provide interest and motivation and will connect learners with the real world outside the classroom.
Second, the Moroccan Baccalaureate English books (11th and 12th grades) share some defective commonalities, one of which is the difficulty of the texts in terms of lexis, syntax, and topics covered. The reading and listening texts teem with in unfamiliar vocabulary and challenging words and structures as well as concepts students have difficulty understanding. This has rendered the texts esoteric and alienates most readers/students. Yet, the textbook writers have not bothered to edit or simplify the material to suit the learners’ levels and ability. It might be argued that they don’t want to sacrifice content and authenticity for form which is, in my opinion, another way of saying that “the best there is, is the best there was, and the best there ever will be”. This claim is, of course, false as the libraries and bookstores worldwide are full of simplified versions of great works of literature including Shakespeare, Dickens, Twain and others that readers of all ages and levels enjoy. This is not to propose that we simplify the texts to the level of boring the learners; per contra, a balance should be struck between simplicity and complexity as is suggested by Stephen Krashen’s theory of “i plus one”.
Third, the textbooks lack reasonable progression of text difficulty which is a crucial strategy to support and facilitate the learners’ linguistic growth. Unfortunately, the Moroccan baccalaureate books put the metal to the pedal right from day one without giving the students the opportunity to smoothly build up their lexical repertoire and improve their linguistic competence. Furthermore, listening and reading texts should be sequenced from easy to difficult to give students enough time and opportunity to gradually develop and make the necessary but smooth leap to the next stage. Of course, jargon and sophisticated language and concepts on the first pages of the textbook do not scaffold students’ progression but, on the contrary, discourage and dissuade them.
Fourth, the Moroccan First and Second year Baccalaureate English books, mainly, have ignored the other easier text genres. As mentioned earlier, most of the reading and listening texts in these textbooks are informational and difficult on both linguistic and conceptual levels. This leaves education professionals and teachers to wonder why the textbook writers have opted for this approach which does not lead to any advancement in students’ proficiency because of loss of pleasure and motivation in reading such unfamiliar and demanding texts. Students, conversely, need to know and understand other different text forms and genres that they encounter everyday inside and outside school. The most regrettable absence here are the narrative and recount genres which are often easy to understand because students can predict or guess the meaning of unfamiliar words and structures with the help of the story theme, plot, and organizational structure. In addition, narratives and stories usually present information in a common sense kind of way that facilitates comprehension. Other striking examples of missing types of texts include localized texts, descriptive and procedural genres as well as functional and electronic-transactional texts with which students need to familiarize themselves because they are required to use or produce them either as an exam requirement or outside the classroom.
Fifth, speaking from personal experience, most of the topics in the textbooks do not match students’ interests. This choice of topics and text genres makes it reasonable to wonder if there had ever been any authentic research to identify Moroccan students’ interests or concerns. These imposed ‘foreign’ topics are at odds with Moroccan students’ interests and they do nothing but further daunt and frustrate students. Bottom-line, new studies need to be conducted to enhance our understanding of young Moroccans’ concerns and needs and how they learn effectively in this fast-paced world. We then need to adjust the reading and listening texts accordingly.
Sixth, the books lack aesthetic appeal. The insufficiency of beautiful and relevant illustration is off-putting and makes the books less enjoyable. We should not discount the importance of the aesthetic aspect and layout of the textbook because it may help in making the book attractive as well as help in understanding the information and vocabulary. Relevant, big-enough, and high resolution images function as a visual text and as a stimulus to the reader’s imagination which is the key to understanding and interpreting texts and lexica. It is a known fact that a well-designed textbook has plenty of tips and best practices including the opportunity to learn from illustrations and adequate visual elements.
Seventh, and in connection with the aesthetic appeal, it is worthwhile noting that the present textbooks are jam-packed with almost no space between various texts and exercises which makes the books look fuzzy for (especially, visual) learners. These (visual /spatial) learners like organization and ‘well-ventilated’ pages because the information in them is a lot less daunting and helps learners focus and minimize distractions.
Eight, the books need some grammar editing. For example some grammar errors need to be corrected like “can have visited”, and “do you know the girl whom danced with me”. Also, tricky grey areas of grammar have to be avoided at this level. In addition, detailed explanations of grammar points may confuse rather than clarify as is the case with restrictive and non-restrictive clauses in one of the baccalaureate books. Moreover, textbooks have to take grammar difficulty gradation into consideration. That is to say, books should start with simple grammar points and gradually progress to more complex ones at the end.
Ninth, Moroccan English textbooks are a one-size-fits-all kind of a garment. All sections and streams study the same book and cover the same texts and grammar points regardless of the number of hours of English courses they have per week and despite differences in interests and needs. Present books are not doing any justice to the Moroccan learners from a variety of families and backgrounds and with a variety of learning strengths and needs because they are feeding everyone the same content in the same way. What I suggest, then, is that textbook writers write specific books for each stream (science, literature, theology), or at least modify the ‘original’ textbook slightly for each of the main streams in the Moroccan high school.
Tenth, and as said earlier, Moroccan textbooks are so jammed that they leave no time or space for teachers’ creativity. Tyrant textbooks that dictate to educators absolve teachers of responsibility and stifle innovation and initiatives which in turn dissuades teachers from learning to build internal capacity through reflection, on-the-job mentoring, professional network communities, and specialized courses.
That said, I appreciate the effort put forth by the Moroccan textbook writers who should be credited for ‘liberating’ English language textbooks which had been straining at the leash of foreign powers. Also, I can say from personal experience that there is a lot of unseen effort and hard work behind the current textbooks. As Lao Tzu said, “a journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step”, and the Moroccan textbook writers took the first giant steps and made auspicious beginnings. So now, the future of these textbooks rests squarely on the shoulders of the next generation of young Moroccan textbook writers to win the spurs.

A Government for … the Rich Noureddine Boutahar

The price of staple foods and services are skyrocketing in Morocco and the reasons behind these hikes are twofold: the government’s decision to reduce the Compensation Fund's subsidies in an amateurish manner, and the failure of some of the most vital sectors due to a lack of qualified persons in positions of authority. In both cases, it is largely the lower and middle classes who pay the price while the wealthy and privileged continue to win as before, right under the nose of the government.
Moroccan people pinned too much hope on this government for bold and genuine political and economic reforms such as the improvement of living conditions, the creation of jobs, and the provision of quality education. However, optimism quickly turned to disappointment and frustration as these hopes failed to materialize. They have remained, instead, electoral slogans and promises shelved until the next elections. The severity of the disappointment makes “the last of the Mohicans” among Moroccans put the Islamist Party on the same line as all the rest of the political parties that have ruled the country since ‘independence’. That’s why there is, now, a general feeling that Morocco keeps changing its administration but not its habits and mentality.
This government, for example, used clever speeches to delude people into believing that a reduction in the Compensation Fund's subsidies would bring prosperity and improve the living standards of all. Conversely, what the rich have surrendered to the government, they have gained from the people because they did not wait long before raising prices in order to make up for the lost subsidies. The end result, unfortunately, is that the poor are compensating for the rich, who are always in a win-win situation.
It is true that the Compensation Fund's subsidies weigh heavily on the state budget, but resorting to simple, ordinary, and easy solutions hurts rather than helps. In spite of its many shortcomings, the system helped Morocco avoid social tensions and protect the purchasing power of the population for decades. So, addressing the issue by digging deep into the pockets of the underprivileged is not only bad politics, but bad policy: it simply relocates the problem rather than solves it.
Unfortunately, despite the growing public frustration, the government stubbornly refuses to listen to the voice of the people as spoken through the media and in the street, choosing, instead, to engage in empty and fierce polemical shouting matches with anyone who opposes its policy. The Prime Minister has let no opportunity pass without reminding us that he “will not abandon this reform... whatever the price to be paid". Sadly, it is the Moroccan poor, not he, who will pay and suffer from the price hikes in staple foods, petrol, education, and more. Also, his ministers almost never miss an opportunity to seek out “devils and alligators” with which they can distract the public instead of keeping their nose to the grindstone and creating viable and cost-effective solutions to the problems they mentioned in their election manifesto.
Regrettably, the call for people to go back to the old ways of making bread and, indirectly, to boycott expensive products reflects the government’s inability to carry out real reforms. It follows from this logic that anyone who cannot afford something expensive should a fortiori compensate for it with a primitive alternative: for example, a Barraka (shack) will do if you cannot afford a house.
The other issue which testifies to the government’s impotence in the face of powerful bigwigs is its failure to prosecute those responsible for the bankruptcy or defective state of many government services and ‘offices’. Ironically, the government has decided instead to cut corners and bail them out with consumers’ money. As is custom for this government, it has called upon the weakest link in the chain, demanding that it pay for the failures of others who get away without repercussion in accordance with this government’s infamous motto of “Let bygones be bygones” when it comes to the wealthy and powerful. It is no surprise, then, that the rich who still enjoy their privileges, perks, and benefits are completely unruffled by these so-called reforms.
I’ll level with you, the current government’s policy is untenable, absurd, and illogical: it is fanning the fears it has come to assuage because it threw itself into the arms of the wealthy and powerful and shook off the hoi polloi upon whom it had ridden piggyback to power. Even worse is that it is serving the agenda of the powerful Bilderberg Group by establishing a society of rulers and serfs with no middle class so as to win the favor of the group and those that orbit it.
I hope, though, that this patchwork government will stop its populist lingua that butters no parsnip, redeem itself, and seek a way to lift the Moroccan people out of the dungeon of despair and hopelessness; otherwise, as Oscar Arias Sanchez said, "Out of poverty sprout social instability and desperation, which delegitimize governments that declare themselves democratic." God forbid this were to happen.

The Moroccan Baccalaureate in French Section: Neocolonialism! Noureddine Boutahar

It is perfectly evident from the recent agreement between the Moroccan and French ministers of education to implement the 'Moroccan Baccalaureate in French Section' that top-down decisions is the rule governing education reforms in this country. It seems many of the de facto rulers of this country who pull the strings from behind the curtains push their own agendas and advance their interests with little or no regard at all of what Moroccan pupils need, want, or think.
The first question that sprang to mind when I heard the news was: who really needs the other, Morocco or France? French education is in a crisis and Moroccan officials are clutching at a drowning man to save them. French education system is not even among the top ten and “what’s taught in French classrooms is not particularly interesting or relevant to most pupils”. This means the French system is lagging behind major industrial countries and does not deserve to be a model for countries – like ours – wanting to build an educational system that will prepare young people for the challenges of a fast changing world. So, it’s not a surprise anymore that our system of education has gone awry. We have been betting on the wrong horse since ‘independence’, and it's high time we took off the blinders and looked for better working education systems that leave no student behind.
Having experienced both the Francophone and Anglophone systems, I think I am in a good enough position to judge the French system of education as a failing one. It is an elitist system whose objective “since Napoleon, has been about producing brilliant elite who will run the country, and to hell with the rest”. It is, in addition, a system too theory-oriented and rarely includes discovery and hands-on learning. Its survival, though, is insured only by the dependency of Francophone countries, and particularly ex-colonies. So, the establishment of the so-called ‘Moroccan Baccalaureate in French Section’ is yet another French tactic to ensure the supply and the flow of the best cadres from Morocco to France because of the fierce international competition to gain the brains of the world. On the other hand, the Francophone students who come back home are prospective securers and protectors of long-term French interests in Morocco. They will defend French interests, bring more soccer coaches, favor French companies, buy villas and chalets in France, spend their holidays and free time in France, and marry French blondes and so on.
Another reason in support of the claim that it is France that needs Morocco is that the Moroccan-French partnership has never been a win-win one. Economically, the scale of partnership has always favored the old colonizer. Politically, France has often straddled our national issues and causes. In the field of education, which is the main focus of this post, France has usually been the biggest winner – brain gain – though “they eat our salt and lead the assault” as recent events testify: At a time when the Moroccan and French ministers of education, Rachid Benmokhtar and Vincent Peillon were signing three agreements that would benefit France more than Morocco, the Ambassador of France in Washington was describing Morocco as a “mistress with whom we sleep every night and, though we are not particularly in love with her, must defend.”
Also, this Moroccan Baccalaureate in French Section will certainly discriminate against average and struggling students and students from economically and socially disadvantaged families. That is to say, French famous Grandes Ecoles doors will be shut to the 'ordinary' Moroccan students. And once successful students are divided between the private school and the French school, public school will then be a laughing stock and a shameful place to go to.
As a reminder to those who need to be reminded, a whole slew of newspaper and website articles, the World Bank, and the Royal speech of August 2013 all admitted that our educational system is in a state of catastrophic collapse and needs serious reforms. However, the Moroccan Baccalaureate in French Section is not a serious reform but a zero-sum game where Morocco loses and France wins. Worse still, it is an exacerbation of the crisis because it will discriminate against students from poor backgrounds and against national public school, and will strip our public school from the little remaining value it has left.
All in all, the best performing education systems worldwide are those that give priority to public rather than private or elite schools and those that take public opinion into account. Conversely, less performing systems perpetuate social differences through elitism, disregard public opinion, and practice top-down bureaucratic management. So, which of the two diverging roads do the new education bosses want to lead us down? Wait and see.

Massar: The Software that Broke our Education's Back Noureddine Boutahar

Students are taking to the streets in Morocco these days to demonstrate against Massar software because the proverbial little bird told them that it would hurt them more than help them. Although the Ministry of Education might have acted with good intentions to insure transparency and fairness in testing and grading, its untimely action has awakened a long dormant issue and truth: our education system is failing our students because of a myriad of reasons. This post, however, will cover only the ones which characterize teachers-ministry relationships and, consequently, affect the students and the teaching-learning process.

First, the teachers-ministry relationship has often been one of mutual suspicion and distrust. Both sides have been exchanging accusations for decades over the failure of our education system. Teachers have often pointed an accusing finger at the ministry and its bureaucrats and held them responsible for all the failures and disappointments of our education system. They have also criticized the department as ineffective and unproductive, spinning its wheel aimlessly. Teachers, on the other hand, have been stigmatized and labeled as instigators and education profiteers, and have been blamed for all the problems in education and for everything that goes wrong in schools. They, also, have too often been vilified and depicted as part of the problem instead of partners, experts, and authorities to be respected, consulted, and heard. This cat and mouse game is simply outrageous and has created an atmosphere of mistrust and has had devastating results and a serious negative impact on the teaching of Moroccan children.

Second, the above mentioned chronic, underground conflict is the outgrowth of the Ministry tightening its grip on all aspects of education. So, all the decisions have been made in a top-down fashion with almost no input from teachers who have and are still asking for an honest and open communication as well as a true partnership with the Ministry and other stakeholders. The Ministry, instead, practices the old Moroccan chauvinist saying of “ask for their advice, but never take it.” In fact, reports are regularly written by teachers about the appalling state of our education system and suggest reform strategies and options to improve educational outcomes. However, education officials – wise guys – usually take the propositions, if ever, with a grain of salt so as not to let the voice of hands-on men and women drown out or overpower their own. So, teachers have usually been the last ones to know of these superficial and limited patchwork reforms made at a ‘higher’ level.

Third, teachers have been, for decades, implementers of failed educational policies that they have had no hand or say in creating, and they are almost never partners in the policy development process. The deployment of Massar software a few weeks ago bears out on this claim. It came like a clap of thunder because neither the administrators nor the teachers nor the students were prepared for it. Certainly, the digital school management system will not hurt the students, but it has created a tense and uncomfortable atmosphere and roiled suspicion and fear because of the Ministry’s rashness and arbitrariness in introducing it. If it is natural for students to fear what they don’t know, it is not necessary for the Education Department to rush out the software until those it would affect get familiar and acquainted with it. It would have been better if the Ministry had piloted the software for enough time and allowed all the parties concerned to comment on it and make suggestions. The present version of the software has a few flaws that have to be fixed. These include – at this writing – things like a contradiction with ministerial memos in terms of the number of quizzes and tests and the overlooking of some subjects. So, what soured many is not the software itself, but the Ministry’s modus operandi.

Fourth, and I hope to be wrong on this one, our Makhzen – in general– often creates distractors to occupy people when it feels there is mounting dissatisfaction and/or frustration with substantive issues. Distracting people with side issues is a formula that never fails our de facto rulers (Makhzen). Most probably, Massar is one of these smoke screens used to hide the real and urgent need for a better and fundamental reform in education that involves all the stakeholders in the formulation of the purposes, ends, and means of our education. My last worry, though, is whether this software will survive and live up to the expectations of committed and dutiful teachers or it will suffer the fate of Gally Software, Genie, Programme d’Urgence, and others.

Last, but not least, is the frustrating bureaucracy which pervades every nook and cranny of this sector and hinders initiative, stifles creativity, and impedes innovation. I, myself, suffered the cudgel of bureaucracy time and again. A good – or maybe bad – example that still stands out in my mind happened back in 2006 when I dropped a project for my school that was to be funded by the UME and RELO for the simple reason that I could not cut through the meandering procedure of bureaucracy. Red-tape is not only frustrating and dissuading but also wastes so much time and energy and costs so much money.

To be able to make serious inroads into reforming our education system and into dealing with the current horrible situation, the Government and Education Department need to treat teachers, administrators, supervisors, and parents as true partners for the equal benefit of all. These partners contribution will make work lighter because, as Henry Ford said, “If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself.”