English-Medium Instruction in Morocco's Higher Education: Center-Periphery Disparities

 In Morocco’s higher education system, the shift toward English-medium instruction (EMI) is framed by the sources as a complex negotiation between colonial legacies, national identity, and the pressures of globalization. The primary policy driver for this transition is the National Plan for Accelerating the Transformation of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Innovation System (PACTE ESRI 2030), which positions English as a vital tool for internationalization, scientific research, and aligning university programs with labor-market needs. This policy shift primarily targets STEM programs, though it is gradually expanding into the humanities.

The broader context of this policy includes the following key dynamics:

• Layered Linguistic Hegemony: For decades, French has maintained a hegemonic role in Moroccan academia and professional life, governing access to knowledge and social mobility. The sources describe the current transition not as a clean replacement of French by English, but as a superimposition of hierarchies where English functions as a new layer of "global capital" added onto an entrenched French-dominant prestige order.
• Center-Periphery Disparities: A significant contextual challenge is the "center-periphery" rift between flagship universities and annexed or peripheral faculties. While institutions in major cities like Fez or Rabat may have more resources and language centers, peripheral sites like the Polydisciplinary Faculty of Taza struggle with basic support, limited exposure to English, and fewer subject-specific materials. This geographic inequality suggests that the benefits of EMI may be restricted to those in urban centers.
• Socio-Economic Inequity: EMI policy risks exacerbating existing social divides. Students from private or urban schools often enter higher education with higher linguistic capital in both French and English, whereas students from public or rural backgrounds may find the transition to EMI to be an additional form of exclusion. Without equitable investment, English may simply reproduce the elitism historically associated with the French language.
• Identity and National Languages: The expansion of English occurs within a multilingual landscape where Modern Standard Arabic and Tamazight serve as symbols of national identity. However, these local languages often carry limited academic reward and are marginalized in the production of advanced scientific knowledge. Participants in the sources expressed concerns that EMI could further marginalize these national languages if not implemented as part of an inclusive policy.
• Institutional Path-Dependence: The transition faces resistance from a "clash of habitus" between generations. Senior faculty members anchored in Francophone networks often view French as central to their academic identity and professional status, while younger researchers and doctoral students see English as the "language of the future" and a necessary resource for international mobility.

Ultimately, the sources argue that for EMI policy to achieve social and academic justice, it must move beyond top-down directives to include incremental reforms, such as faculty pedagogical preparation, student bridging supports, and a redistribution of resources to ensure parity between central and peripheral institutions.

The sources define the center-periphery disparity in Morocco's higher education through a comparative study of two specific sites: Mohammed Ibn Abdellah University in Fez (the flagship "center") and its annexed Polydisciplinary Faculty of Taza (the "periphery"). Within the context of English-Medium Instruction (EMI), this geographic divide creates a "rift" that determines how effectively students and faculty can convert English proficiency into academic and professional success.

The following key points detail these disparities as presented in the sources:

1. Uneven Distribution of Institutional Resources

The most immediate disparity lies in the "material support" available at each site.

• Flagship institutions (Fez/Rabat): These centers typically house dedicated language centers, offer more robust English programs, and benefit from more frequent visits by international academics.
• Peripheral faculties (Taza): Participants from Taza reported struggling with "basic support," noting a lack of subject-specific materials in English and fewer opportunities for formal English instruction. This lack of a language center makes students in peripheral areas feel the system is "against" them.

2. Forced Academic Mobility

The resource gap creates a "rationale for mobility," where students feel they cannot achieve their potential in the periphery. Doctoral researchers noted that they often complete undergraduate studies in peripheral provinces like Taza but feel compelled to move to urban centers like Fez or Rabat because those locations offer the "opportunities and horizons" necessary for advanced research and international engagement.

3. The Role of Micro-Level Support

Interestingly, the sources highlight that the center-periphery divide is sometimes mediated by individual agency.

• In the periphery (Taza), some students reported "excellent support" from supervisors who personally annotate drafts in English and provide informal tutoring to bridge the gap.
• Conversely, in the center (Fez), some students found themselves restricted by "laboratory culture" where senior supervisors—anchored in Francophone networks—insisted on publishing in French, effectively blocking the transition to English despite the institution’s central status.

4. Theoretical Implications: Reproduction of Inequality

Using Bourdieu’s sociology, the sources argue that EMI may inadvertently reproduce historical class and geographic inequalities.

• Linguistic Capital: English functions as a new form of "global capital" that is unevenly distributed.
• Systemic Exclusion: Because students in peripheral regions often come from public or rural school backgrounds with less early exposure to English, the shift to EMI—without significant investment in peripheral infrastructure—acts as an "additional form of exclusion".

5. Policy Recommendations for Parity

The sources conclude that for the PACTE ESRI 2030 reforms to be equitable, the government must move beyond top-down directives and focus on resource equalization. This includes:

• Establishing bridging supports and language centers specifically in peripheral faculties.
• Ensuring parity of resources so that the "institutional label" of an annexed faculty does not disadvantage its members in the global academic market.
• Investing in pedagogical preparation for faculty in remote areas to ensure they have the confidence to deliver disciplinary knowledge in English.

The sources highlight a diverse and often conflicting set of stakeholder perspectives regarding the expansion of English-Medium Instruction (EMI) in Morocco, specifically focusing on university lecturers and doctoral students from both flagship (center) and peripheral institutions,,. These perspectives are shaped by individual career stages, geographic locations, and the historical dominance of the French language,,.

1. Perceptions of English as Global Opportunity

There is a broad consensus among both lecturers and students that English represents a "gateway" to the global academic community.

• Scientific Advancement: Stakeholders associate English proficiency with the ability to access recent literature, participate in international conferences, and secure publication in high-impact journals.
• Employability and Mobility: For many, English is viewed as a practical necessity for career development and international research collaboration,. Doctoral students, in particular, frame English as a resource that allows them to bypass the "past historical constraints" and colonial legacies associated with French,.

2. The Generational Gap and "Clash of Habitus"

The sources identify a significant divide in attitudes between senior faculty and younger researchers, described as a "contest over legitimate linguistic capital".

• Senior Faculty Resistance: Many older professors, whose professional identities and networks are deeply anchored in Francophone circles, express resistance to a full transition to English,. They view French not just as a tool, but as a core part of their "academic identity" and fear that shifting to English feels like "erasing" that history,.
• The "Language of the Future": Conversely, younger scholars and doctoral students overwhelmingly see English as the "language of the future". This generation is more likely to view the persistence of French as an obstacle to global competition,.

3. Pedagogical Concerns and Instructor Confidence

Despite the enthusiasm for English as a resource, lecturers express significant anxiety regarding their ability to teach complex disciplinary knowledge in a foreign language,.

• Lowered Confidence: Some lecturers reported that teaching in English "lowers one's confidence" and makes it difficult to provide their "best to students",.
• Classroom Confusion: Students observed that when professors are not fully proficient, they often resort to code-switching between English and French, which can "slow the course" and lead to confusion during assessments.

4. Perspectives from the Periphery

Stakeholders at peripheral sites, such as the Polydisciplinary Faculty of Taza, offer a more critical perspective on the equity of the EMI transition.

• Institutional Labeling: Faculty and students in remote areas feel the system is "against" them because they lack the language centers and visiting international academics found in urban centers like Fez or Rabat,.
• Forced Mobility: Doctoral researchers in these areas often feel they must move to larger cities to find the "horizons" and resources necessary to leverage English proficiency into actual academic opportunity.

5. Student Agency and Adaptation Strategies

In the absence of formal institutional support, students have developed their own strategies to navigate the linguistic shift,.

• Peer Networks: Stakeholders reported creating WhatsApp groups and informal "writing circles" to share links, glossaries, and tutorials.
• Unofficial Translation: Students often rely on peers who are more proficient in English to help translate abstracts before they are submitted to international journals,.

6. Identity and National Languages

Finally, many stakeholders express concern that the focus on global languages (French and English) further marginalizes Arabic and Tamazight in the production of scientific knowledge,. They argue that an inclusive policy should ensure that English does not simply "reproduce the elitism" of the French era, but instead safeguards local cultural identity and social justice,.

In the context of Morocco’s higher education, the implementation of English-Medium Instruction (EMI) faces multifaceted challenges that stem from institutional resource gaps, pedagogical limitations, and deeply ingrained linguistic hierarchies,. The source identifies these challenges as critical barriers that could determine whether the PACTE ESRI 2030 reforms lead to genuine internationalization or merely reproduce existing social inequalities,.

The following are the key implementation challenges highlighted in the source:

1. Pedagogical Preparedness and Instructor Confidence

One of the most significant hurdles is the lack of specific training for faculty to deliver complex disciplinary knowledge in English,.

• Reduced Confidence: Lecturers expressed that teaching in English "lowers one’s confidence" and prevents them from giving their "best to students",.
• Classroom Friction: To compensate for linguistic gaps, professors often resort to code-switching between English and French. This can confuse students, slow down the pace of courses, and complicate the clarity of assessments.
• Need for Scaffolding: There is a pronounced need for discipline-specific glossaries, targeted reading materials, and professional development focused on EMI-specific pedagogies,,.

2. Institutional and Geographic Disparities

The "center-periphery" rift creates a landscape of unequal access to necessary resources,.

• Resource Depletion in the Periphery: Peripheral faculties, such as the site in Taza, report a lack of language centers, few English classes, and limited exposure to visiting international academics compared to flagship universities in cities like Fez or Rabat,.
• Institutional "Labeling": Participants from peripheral areas feel the system is "against" them, as they lack the material support required to convert English proficiency into tangible academic gains,.

3. Curricular and Structural Alignment

The transition to EMI requires more than a simple language shift; it necessitates a complete overhaul of institutional routines,.

• Assessment Misalignment: Currently, there is a risk that students are penalized for their English proficiency rather than their content knowledge. The source suggests that assessments must be redesigned to test only disciplinary mastery.
• Phased Implementation: Experts argue that EMI should be "incremental and phased," starting with building teacher capacity and aligning administrative routines (such as thesis templates and reviewer networks) before full scaling,.

4. Generational Resistance and the "Clash of Habitus"

Implementation is hindered by a contest over "legitimate linguistic capital" between different generations of academics,.

• Senior Faculty Anchored in French: Many older professors view French as core to their academic identity and professional networks,. They may resist a total shift to English, which they perceive as "erasing" their history,.
• Institutional Path-Dependence: Because bureaucratic procedures and supervisory practices remain deeply rooted in French, a clean "handover" to English is difficult,.

5. Risks of Social and Linguistic Injustice

Without equitable investment, EMI implementation risks exacerbating the elitism historically associated with the French language,.

• Reproducing Inequality: Students from private or urban schools often enter university with higher linguistic capital. In contrast, those from public or rural backgrounds face an "additional form of exclusion" if they are forced into EMI without bridging supports or writing workshops,,.
• Marginalization of National Languages: There is concern that the focus on English will further sideline Arabic and Tamazight in the production of scientific knowledge, making the policy feel less inclusive regarding national identity,.

The source concludes that addressing these challenges requires moving beyond "top-down directives" toward collaborative reform that includes resource equalization and structured support for both faculty and students,,.

The key takeaways from the sources regarding English-Medium Instruction (EMI) in Morocco emphasize that while English is highly valued as a resource for global integration, its implementation faces significant structural and social hurdles,. The core findings center on the following points:

1. English as a Gateway to Global Capital

The primary takeaway is that stakeholders—particularly doctoral students—view English as essential linguistic capital for international research, publication, and career mobility,. It is framed as the de facto language of modern science, enabling researchers to bypass historical constraints associated with the French colonial legacy,.

2. The Persistence of the Center-Periphery Rift

A critical finding is that geographic location determines the effectiveness of the EMI transition,.

• Flagship institutions (the "center") enjoy better access to language centers, visiting academics, and English programs.
• Peripheral, annexed faculties struggle with a lack of basic support and material resources, creating a "rationale for mobility" where students feel they must move to urban centers to succeed,.

3. Superimposed Linguistic Hierarchies

The sources argue that English is not simply replacing French; instead, it is being layered onto an entrenched French-dominant prestige order,. French remains deeply encoded in bureaucratic procedures, thesis templates, and the professional identity of senior faculty, leading to a "clash of habitus" between generations of academics,,.

4. Pedagogical and Structural Gaps

A significant takeaway regarding implementation is the lack of faculty preparedness,. Disciplinary mastery does not equate to EMI pedagogical proficiency, and many lecturers report lowered confidence when teaching in English,. This often results in classroom code-switching that can confuse students and complicate assessments.

5. Student Agency and Inequality

In the absence of formal institutional scaffolding, students have developed autonomous adaptation strategies, such as informal peer-led WhatsApp groups and writing circles,. However, these strategies highlight existing inequities, as students from private or urban backgrounds enter with higher linguistic capital, while those from public or rural backgrounds face an additional form of exclusion,,.

6. Priorities for Equitable Reform

The sources conclude that for EMI to achieve social and academic justice, the government must move beyond top-down mandates toward phased, incremental reform,. Key recommendations include:

• Resource Equalization: Investing specifically in peripheral faculties to ensure parity,.
• Faculty Support: Providing professional development in EMI pedagogies and reducing teaching loads for those adapting to the new medium.
• Student Scaffolding: Implementing bridging courses and academic writing workshops,.
• Safeguarding Identity: Ensuring that the focus on global languages does not further marginalize Arabic and Tamazight in the production of local knowledge,.