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Rabat – A new study published in the Moroccan Journal for Educational Research and Evaluation warned that online learning in Morocco could have negative consequences for students who live in rural areas or belong to lower classes.
The study was published under the title “Distance Education In The School District Of Morocco: Means And Obstacles – The Case Of Rural Areas Of The Provincial Directorate Of Sidi Bennour” and surveyed 90 students on their experience with distance learning.
Abdeljallil Ait Ali and Brahim Tarqi, the researchers behind the study, attribute these difficulties to a host of reasons, including lacking infrastructure, the socio-economic conditions for students and families in rural areas, as well as the national educational policies being unsuited to online learning.
Most notably, the study remarks that among its sample population, only 3% of students had internet access at home, and 78% reported that they do not have access to a computer, making smartphones their method of choice for attending classes.
It was also noted that families in rural areas often suffer from lacking socio-economic conditions which were only made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic, the economic effects of which cause the loss of a significant number of jobs, especially among lower classes.
These factors, in addition to the sudden and surprising manner in which distance learning was implemented in the country, resulted in increased difficulty in understanding school lessons, according to the students interviewed for the study. Further complication is posed by the lack of training for teachers and the fact that many of them face similar difficulties.
Ait Ali and Tarqi add that for these reasons, in person attendance was a crucial part of the rural learning experience, allowing for better and more direct communication between educators and students.
Moroccan schools and the educational system switched to an online learning model in March of 2020, to ensure the continued operation of the educational apparatus following strict lockdown measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus. Schools all over the country were still using distance learning, as well as in person attendance during the recent 2020/21 school year.
The study mentions that Morocco’s educational policies are not well-suited to an online educational system and makes several suggestions to try and improve the country’s online education policy.
The researchers suggest that the academic curricula of the country should be digitized and easily accessible to students, and also stress the importance of training teachers to use online modes of instruction more effectively. They also suggest providing students from lower socio-economic classes with the material and technical assistance required to be on equal footing with more affluent students.
Morocco has been taking steps to improve infrastructures and accessibility in the country, as the Ministry of Education started an initiative to donate tablets to students, and El Othmani put improving Morocco’s internet quality and coverage as a priority for the country.
