A pilot project for a start-up phase, which will cover some 628 public primary schools, in urban, semi-urban and rural areas. Objective: to improve the basic learning of students by adopting new effective teaching methods and approaches, the ministry said in a press release on Tuesday.

The Ministry of National Education, Preschool and Sports has announced the deployment, for the start of the 2023/2024 school year, of the « Pioneer Schools » project in public primary schools, with the aim of improving the quality of basic learning, reducing school wastage and student development.

This project is part of the deployment of the 2022-2026 Roadmap for a quality school for all, and with a view to improving students’ basic learning by adopting new effective teaching methods and approaches. It aims to lay the foundations of the public school of the future based on a participatory approach that meets the expectations of students, their parents and educational managers, explains the ministry.

The “Pioneer Schools” model involves a global transformation of the performance of establishments based on the voluntary commitment of the teaching team and the provision of educational, digital and material resources for student success. A certifying training and local support system has been set up to help teachers adopt effective practices in the classroom, the impact of which has been demonstrated by scientific research. Improvements in student learning will be measured and monitored on a regular basis through objective assessments.

Thus, the deployment of this project will take place, as part of a start-up phase, at the level of 628 public primary schools, in urban, semi-urban and rural areas, with a number of beneficiaries of up to 322,000 students. , the voluntary participation and mobilization of 10,700 teachers, and by calling on 158 pedagogical inspectors for supervision and support in the implementation. The extension of the project to the majority of public primary schools will be done gradually at the rate of 2,000 per year, as part of the implementation of the 2022-2026 Roadmap.

The “Pioneer Schools” model was designed according to a multidimensional approach covering the three axes of the 2022-2026 Roadmap, namely: the student, the teacher, and the school, it is underlined. The pedagogical teams engaged in this process will implement four key components, namely, a massive remediation program aimed at correcting students’ fundamental deficiencies in reading and arithmetic. The implementation of this component is based on the TaRL (Teaching at the right level) method, the positive impact of which has been established within the framework of an experimental project. All students will be able to benefit from remediation on a daily and intensive basis during the month of September and on a weekly basis throughout the year for the benefit of students in difficulty.

It is also about implementing effective teaching methods in the classroom whose positive effects on learning have been proven by scientific research. These methods are based on the principle of progressive learning: « we only move on to the next stage of the lesson after having checked the understanding of all the students », notes the same source. This so-called “preventive” approach makes it possible to avoid the accumulation of new shortcomings. To implement these methods, teachers will benefit from educational resources and materials that will facilitate teaching activities, complete training, and regular support within the classroom. Likewise, the 3rd component relates to the specialization of teachers in the disciplines that best correspond to their areas of training and skills. The implementation of the specialization system is optional and depends on the choice of the teaching team according to the characteristics specific to each establishment.

Finally, it will be a question of the management of the establishment, in particular the material conditions (state of the classes and toilets, safety, hygiene, the quality of the equipment, the availability of the didactic material), the implementation of the project establishment, the relationship with families, etc.

The implementation of these four aforementioned components will enable the schools concerned to obtain the « Pioneer School » Label, which gives the right to material incentives for the members of the teaching team, and an individual allowance of 10,000 dirhams net per year. , in accordance with the agreement signed on January 14, 2023 between the ministry and the social partners, the statement concludes.