Rabat – French mission schools in Morocco have said that their educational approach combines “openness to the world” with respect for Morocco’s cultural context, following controversy over a book featuring same-sex parents found in a school library at a French school in Rabat.
The mission responded to Morocco World News’ (MWN) questions about whether they have guidelines to ensure that teaching materials align with Moroccan culture and principles. Morocco criminalizes same-sex sexual relations and same-sex marriage is not legally recognized.
Their response comes amid an uproar over the book “Le Jeu de cette famille,” featuring a child with “two fathers.”
Initial reports suggested that the book had been introduced through a teacher’s personal initiative at a French-mission-affiliated school, sparking controversy among many on social media.
However, the mission said the book was among the titles held in the institution’s BCD, or school library, as part of its documentary resources, without specifying which school was involved. They stressed that the book’s presence was “neither the result of a specific educational initiative nor intended to promote any particular subject.” The mission also did not identify who had brought the book into the library.
“The concerns raised by its content were immediately taken into consideration by the school’s management, which engaged in a very constructive dialogue with parents,” the mission told MWN.
The mission emphasized that their schools carry out their educational mission with particular attention to the Moroccan cultural context and the interests of the families who entrust their children to them.
While highlighting the importance of “openness to the world,” the French mission schools said this approach goes hand in hand with respect for Morocco’s cultural reference points. They added that the selection of teaching materials and the way certain subjects are addressed take into account students’ ages and their environment.
The French mission schools said the atmosphere remained peaceful, both in their relations with families and students and among staff members.
“The priority remains to provide students with a calm learning environment and preserve the trust of families,” the mission concluded.
France’s secularism rules and schools abroad
MWN also contacted the French Embassy in Morocco seeking clarification on the guidelines provided to French educational institutions regarding the country’s cultural and religious context, particularly when selecting teaching materials addressing sensitive subjects. The embassy had not responded to MWN’s questions at the time of writing.
The inquiry comes amid broader questions about how French educational principles are applied in schools operating abroad, particularly in countries with different religious and cultural frameworks.
In France, the principle of “laïcité,” or secularism, underpins the country’s public education system. A 2004 law prohibits students from wearing signs or clothing that conspicuously display religious affiliation in public primary and secondary schools.
Previous controversies
Yet this controversy is not an isolated case in the mission’s record in Morocco, as Moroccan politicians and public figures have previously raised concerns about LGBT-related content in international schools operating in Morocco.
Moroccan attorney Abderrahim Jamai previously said parents were shocked to learn that a teacher had presented information about homosexuality in an international school in Kenitra, describing it as involving “abnormal trends.”
Hanane Atarguine, a member of the Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM), has also questioned what the government could do to prevent French mission schools from engaging in practices she argued ran counter to Morocco’s religious values.
Atarguine cited a case involving a French school in Kenitra, near Rabat, in which the controversy angered families who did not expect educational institutions to become spaces for what she described as the promotion of ideas conflicting with their values.
