The Colonial Heritage: the French Language and the Question of Education in Morocco Today

Abstract:This article undertakes to address the problematic of Morocco’s colonial linguistic heritage, and principally the impacts and implications of the strong presence of the French language in Moroccan institutions and public sphere. In fact, while some Moroccans, principally the elite, strive to normalise and justify this presence, others, on the contrary, perceive it as henceforth ineffective to the country’s education and hence very much detrimental to its identity, culture and development at a number of significant levels. In this connection, the article intends to investigate the following controversial questions: As a colonial heritage, how has this language become a problematic issue in Moroccan society? How has it succeeded to survive and to markedly consolidate its status in the domain of education and knowledge decades after Moroccan independence? Does its reinforced presence in this field relate only to the colonial past? In what ways is it useful or detrimental to education? How will its influence be affected amid this contentious atmosphere and in a context locally invaded technologically and culturally by a seriously competing language, English. These and other related vexed questions undoubtedly offer an insight into the implications and impacts of this colonial heritage and the ways Moroccans deal with it.