Improving basic academic skills with a remedial education program in Morocco

Although Morocco reported an enrollment rate of 95.1% for children aged between 7 and 12 in 2014, major gaps remain in pupils’ basic academic skills. In 2015, exam results demonstrated that 59% of fourth-grade primary school pupils did not meet basic international standards in math and science (TIMSS 2015). In 2016, further assessments revealed that 64% of fourth graders had a low level of reading literacy. To overcome these challenges, Morocco’s Special Commission on the Development Model decided that the education system required a complete overhaul, and set a target requiring 90% of pupils to have basic academic skills by 2035.

In view of these findings, the Ministry of National Education, Preschool and Sports drafted an action plan to reform the education system by 2026, with a focus on proven, innovative teaching methods, such as the TaRL program developed by the NGO Pratham in India. In line with this strategy, the National Human Development Initiative, together with the Sanady Foundation, ran a pilot for the TaRL remedial education program in 39 schools, from 2022 to 2023. This first pilot was used to estimate the resources needed to implement the TaRL remedial education program, and a second trial is being run for the 2023-2024 academic year, which aims to compare the potential learning gains of TaRL with the conventional school support program that is currently in place.

With the TaRL approach, pupils are grouped together according to learning levels, rather than by age or class. It aims to promote active student participation, shift gender dynamics in the classroom and improve basic language and math skills. The approach also helps pupils to develop fundamental skills and gain self-confidence. Moreover, this program is a particularly good-fit in Morocco because, unlike the Sanady Foundation’s existing program, the TaRL model offers a specific course in Arabic.

The purpose of this evaluation, funded by FID, is to identify the most efficient and effective solution to enhance the basic skills of Moroccan pupils who are struggling at school, reduce drop-out rates and ensure students’ well-being over the long term.

This work involves a comparative evaluation of the two programs:

• The TaRL program, for which a pilot was launched in September 2023 and is currently ongoing, involving 31,500 pupils from 200 schools in three regions covered by the Sanady Foundation with high dropout rates (Casablanca-Settat, Rabat Salé-Kénitra and Souss-Massa).
• The Sanady Foundation’s existing program, launched ten years ago, for primary and secondary school children from disadvantaged backgrounds.

After completing the evaluation and cost-benefit analyses of the remedial education programs, the Sanady Foundation aims to use a network of local NGOs to roll out the most cost-effective approach on a broader scale, in order to close the basic skills gaps in primary education. This model could then be rolled out across the entire country and replicated by other member NGOs of the National Human Development Initiative network.

Another of the project’s objectives is to further apply cost-benefit analysis research and methodology to develop a more evidence-based, decision-making process within the Foundation, and among partner NGOs, the National Human Development Initiative and the Ministry of National Education, Preschool and Sports.