Towards a reduction in school hours in Morocco?

The Moroccan education system is at a crucial crossroads, with intense discussions on the potential reduction of teaching hours in the primary cycle. This issue, which emerged during negotiations between the Ministry of National Education and teachers’ unions before the agreement of December 26, is generating keen interest and many questions among education professionals.

Currently, primary school teachers are required to provide 30 hours of lessons per week, including 4 hours of so-called “solidarity” hours. This number of hours, considered excessive by many, is the subject of requests for revision. Supporters of this reduction argue that it could improve the quality of teaching, by favouring a more qualitative than quantitative approach.

The ministry, headed by Chakib Benmoussa, launched a field study last April to assess the management of school time. This survey, which covered a large sample of establishments and actors in the education system, demonstrates the importance given to this issue by the authorities.

A change eagerly awaited

Primary school teachers, in particular, are stressing the need to reduce their teaching hours. They see this measure as a motivating factor for both themselves and their students, and as a tangible result of the recent protest movements in the education sector.

Faisal Al-Arbawi, a teacher and educational activist, points out that the educational community is still waiting for the implementation of several points agreed last December, including the reduction of working hours. He highlights the current imbalance between different levels of education in terms of working hours.

For his part, Abdelilah Al-Jabri, a trade unionist at the National Federation of Education, recalled that the ministry had recognized the importance of this issue during previous discussions. He insisted on the need to review not only teachers’ working hours, but also students’ learning time, considering the current system to be exhausting for the latter.

The ministry, for its part, appears to link this issue to a broader review of curricula and teaching methods. A source within the ministry indicated that no changes were planned in the immediate future, but that all options remained open, pending the conclusions of the Standing Commission for the Renewal and Adaptation of Curricula.

This commission, set up last February, is tasked with supporting the reform projects planned in the 2022-2026 roadmap. Its work could have a significant impact on the structure of school time in the years to come.

The issue of reducing school hours in Morocco is part of a broader debate on the quality of education. It reflects a desire to modernize the education system to make it more efficient and better adapted to the needs of students and teachers. As discussions continue, all stakeholders in the sector are eagerly awaiting concrete decisions that could profoundly transform the educational experience in Morocco.

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