Navigating Knowledge Hierarchies: An Ethnographic Study of French Secondary Schools in Morocco

This research examines how French secondary schools in Morocco navigate the competing demands of internationalization, alignment with the French national curriculum, and their specific context within Morocco. These schools, while officially aligned with the French curriculum, display flexibility as students increasingly look toward higher education in Anglophone countries or at international-oriented institutions within Morocco. This trend gradually shifts towards knowledge flows that traditionally prioritize French perspectives, signaling a shift in educational goals and priorities.

Through a year-long ethnographic study in three French schools in Morocco, this study explores how members of the school community (including students, teachers, and administrators) adapt and negotiate the curriculum to align with new educational pathways. By prioritizing certain aspects of the curriculum and reshaping others, these schools act as microcosms of broader global dynamics, illustrating how knowledge hierarchies rooted in traditional educational norms can be challenged even at the secondary level.

The findings highlight how secondary education in these French schools responds to students’ aspirations beyond French-speaking regions, contributing to the ongoing debates on global education and knowledge hierarchies. By understanding these schools as spaces of negotiation and adaptation, this research brings to light the ways in which educational practices at the secondary level reflect larger trends in higher education, ultimately suggesting a rethinking of dominant structures in global knowledge flows.