Parents were disappointed last Wednesday, December 20, 2023, the day after the Government and unions signed an agreement on the new status of national education civil servants. «They came to drop their children off at school after learning about the agreement. They were surprised to discover the strike. We’re finding it harder and harder to reassure them,» confides the principal of an elementary school in Casablanca.
«Although previously we didn’t believe in the scenario of a blank year, today such a scenario is becoming more and more likely» , he added.
Strikes and sit-ins punctuated virtually the entire first semester, making it impossible for pupils to attend school normally. This is unprecedented. «Some of them have not even seen all their teachers yet» , lamented the principal. And the situation is even more problematic for students who have to sit the exams for the sixth year of primary school, the third year of secondary school, and the baccalaureate (end of secondary school exam). Can we still catch up this year?
«Teachers have the ability and the tools to organize catch-ups. All it takes is the will to do so. However, if the strikes continue for another week or two, the situation will become very complicated», says Mohamed Khoufaifi, Deputy Secretary General of the National Federation of Teachers (of the UMT trade union). The national coordination of the education sector is determined to continue its arm wrestling, which does not bode well for students. «Morocco cannot afford a blank year. That would mean throwing more than 30% of the budget down the drain, not to mention the July competitive examinations for the grandes écoles (prestigious engineering schools)», stresses a former senior Education Ministry official. To unblock the situation, the education expert calls for royal intervention. «It is the only solution! After that, we can extend the school year a little and organize catch-up classes», he said.
Even in the private sector, morale is not high, especially among high school students. «If the public sector continues its strikes, we won’t be able to sit the exams either, and it will be a blank year for everyone», say people from the private sector…
Ahlam NAZIH
