Debate over the Use of Mother Tongue Moroccan Arabic (Darija) in Early Instructio

In Morocco, the pre-independence language policy did not recognize the mother tongue languages, instead it fostered French as the single medium of instruction in public schools. Since Morocco obtained its independence in 1956, Arabization, the monolingual policy, has promoted the use of Modern Standard Arabic (Fusha) as the sole medium of instruction in public schools. While this policy promotes Fusha, the national language, Berber, and Moroccan Arabic (Darija), the two mother tongues were neglected. In 2000 with the launch of the educational Charter, Berber was introduced in public schools. Also, in recent years, there has been a growing interest in advocating for the use of Darija in early instruction. This article seeks to report conflicting views of policy makers, politicians, and educators on this recent policy, and presents challenges of implementing it. It also offers recommendations for using Darija along with Fusha in schools to alleviate the boundaries between the two varieties of Arabic.