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Reform in HigherEducation: Challenges

and Prospects

Proceedings of MINE 1st ConferenceCasablanca, 23-25 April 2010

2010

MINE: Moroccan Inter-university Network of English


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Reform in Higher Education:

Challenges and Prospects

Proceedings of MINE 1

st

Conference

Editorial Board

Editor-in-Chief

Mohamed Yeou

Associate Editors

Abdelaziz Boudlal

Mohamed Boulahwane

Abdelmajid Bouziane

Taoufik Jaafari

Fouzia Lamkhanter

Abdeljebbar Mediouni

Abdelkader Sabil

Mohamed Sghir Syad


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Reform in Higher Education: Challenges and Prospects

iii

Contents

List of contributors iv

Preface v

Paulo Freires Educational Project or a Plea for Critical Thinking 1Abdelkader Sabil

Incorporating intercultural knowledge into the English curriculum 4Chakib Bnini

A project-based learning approach to teaching language classes in Moroccan

Higher Education: Benefits, promises and constraints 9Reddad Erguig

The integration of E-learning Technology in Two Moroccan Faculties: Insights

from Experience 19Samir Diouny & Mohamed Bennani Othmani

The EFL student and the pedagogical reform at Mohamed V University, Agdal,

Rabat 25Samia Belyazid


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Contributors

Samia Belyazid, Department of English, Faculty of Letters & Human Sciences,

Mohamed V University, Rabat.

Mohamed Bennani Othmani, Medical Informatics Laboratory, Medical School of

Casablanca

Chakib Bnini, Department of English, Faculty of Letters & Human Sciences, Ben Msik,

Casablanca.

Samir Diouny, Department of English, Faculty of Letters & Human Sciences, Chouaib

Doukkali University, El-Jadida.

Reddad Erguig, Department of English, Faculty of Letters & Human Sciences, Chouaib

Doukkali University, El-Jadida.

Abdelkader Sabil, Department of English, Faculty of Letters & Human Sciences,Chouaib Doukkali University, El-Jadida.


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Preface

Like elsewhere, higher education in Morocco has been undergoing important reforms

but the outcomes need more revisions to reach stakeholders aspirations. The reports

issued by both national organisations such as the Superior Council of Education, the

COSEF, R&D Maroc etc. and international ones such as the World Bank have all called

for more drastic measures in the hope of improving education practices. The emergencyplan (plan durgence) has been introduced hoping to retool the reform and, as a result,

many projects are being put in place. Recently, new curricula have been suggested and

are gradually being implemented. Structurally, many changes have taken place: filire

and master new formats, system of accreditation, research labs, and doctoral colleges. It

is the intent of MINE first annual conference to look into these matters and evaluate

them in light of careful evaluation, with a view to suggesting conceptions and ways for

better performance within the department of English Studies.

Given the importance of these issues that are of common concern to all those involved

with graduate and postgraduate studies in English, MINE association has brought its

contribution to the on-going debate on English studies by organising this conference.

The papers present in this volume try to negotiate the need for reform, each from its

own perspective. MINE association has cherished the hope to include all the papers

presented during the conference, but unfortunately MINE received only the five papers

published in this volume. Their concern bespeaks the authors own view-points and are

their own responsibility.


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Paulo Freires Educational Project or a Plea for Critical Thinking

Abdelkader SABIL

This paper is an intervention in the on-going debate on the role of education and the

teaching of critical thinking in Moroccan university educational system. The paper

departs from the seminal work of Paulo Freire (1970&1993), Pedagogy of the

Oppressed. It also raises questions as to the possibility of setting up classes for students

to develop some sort of critical thinking and the possible ways of integrating suchthinking in the curricula.

Introduction: Paulo Freires Educational Project

Freires project starts with argument that educations immediate telos is to develop

some sort of individual awareness of the reality one is living; otherwise, it becomes

oppressive. To Freire, everyday reality experience is the only source of knowledge.

Reality, then, is somehow hermeneutic. In that, the individuals reality is subjective. It

is, in other terms, a continuous construct wherein the individual is a part and parcel. To

this effect, the act of learning turns out to be a means of emancipation from theoppressor. Learning is twofold: developing consciousness and liberating. In this

process, learning is constructive. It cannot be limited to awareness of reality alone, but a

condition for the individuals freedom from the long engrained oppression residuals of

fear; hence, the necessity for critical thinking as the one way for social improvement.

1. Who Needs Educational Reform?

Reform in education has been one of the main concerns of the successive Moroccan

governments since the independence. Every time the educational question is raised, the

state makes resort to technocrat experts far from the field of education to find

remedies to the so called educational systems. For long, this system has been subject to

changes, but to no avail. The immediate remedy proposed has been to relate learning to

work. This has emptied the role of education from its primordial function: to develop

social awareness and civism in individuals. Education simply grows to be some kind of

training for the job market. The outcome of this has been a series of failures wherein the

victims are both teachers and students.

The university is reduced to a mere vocational center; anything that has to do with

critical thinking has been hyphened off. Students, too, take to learning by heart and

parroting whatever information teachers have imparted to them, believing that

undertaking personal research will simply reduce their chances of success. Personal


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effort, in all this process, is neglected. Perhaps this boils down to the nature of the

educational reform system itself, which apparently purports not to warrant some sort of

intellectual independence, but rather the creation of a Panurjan herd. Students

concerns are to get a degree in a very short lapse of time regardless of the quality of

their learning. This, of course, has resulted into the creation of a whole generation withdevaluated degrees, and with no sense of social belonging. To borrow from,

Mohammed Guessous, a Moroccan sociologist, the educational system has created a

whole generation of hyenas. The question that poses itself is who needs reform. A

possible answer would be, to use Freires terms, the oppressor, here, the political elite.

This elite has it that the populace should never rise. Another question persists: to whom

this situation will benefit. One needs to understand that reforms are more political

than educational in their concerns. In that, the political prevails over the social, which is

educational par excellence. In other words, education is primordial in any social

development as it purports to develop some sense of self-affirmation and identity. To

borrow from Martin Heidegger, the university becomes a tool whereby one confirms

ones subjectivity. In this respect, both the student and the teacher will have to worktowards some sort of intellectual independence because, following Heidegger,

knowledge is the highest form ofpraxis. The universitys role is not to provide

vocational training, but rather to help in promoting self-consciousness and

independence to be constructive. Once this objective is denigrated, society merges into

darkness and social crisis.

2. Reform and Economic Dependence

That is the case of Moroccan educational project. It has now and then been subject to

ups and downs simply because those in charge do not answer the call of the populace to

be enlightened, but to the orders of foreign institutions like the World Bank or the IMF.

The financial dependence of Morocco on those institutions has forced the way for this

abysmal situation. The educational system, as a result, becomes the field of a series of

experimentations, but the immediate outcome has been all the time failure and emptying

the university of its basic function: to be the stronghold of knowledge. History has it

that change should come from within not form the outside. To this effect, teachers

unions, particularly University teachers union, have proposed their own insights of

reform, but were marginalized (1985).

A little bit of history is to provide us with some insight into this situation. Up to the

early 70s, universities have been the strongholds of enlightenment. Teachers andstudents alike merge in the concerns of society, be them economic or political. Students

were part of the process of political change and sometimes force that change. Students

debates and challenge of the authority of their teachers as knowledge custodians have

made it possible for a large number of students, each in his/her field, to become

themselves social critics. They even devised their own philosophy of life as knowledge,for them, was the highest form of existence without which they would be faces of

horror, bodies without souls. In a Heideggerian sense, the university and peoples

existence conjoin in the quest for knowledge. This Heideggerian concern meets that of

Freire, of course with certain variations. Freires starting point is literacy in its general

sense: to know how to read and write. This concern has developed to become a source


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of consciousness. In this respect, knowledge, for either Freire or Heidegger, is

concomitant with existence.

Freires philosophy of education was somehow unconsciously implemented ,

particularly, his notions ofdialogue andpraxis. Some would be critics would argue thatFreires educational treatise was meant for informal education. My answer to tho se is

that the Moroccan student is in no better situation than that of the peasants in either

Chile or Brazil, of course, with special and temporal and spatial differences to be taken

into account. Freires objective, in short, is to empower the peasant via access to

knowledge. To his belief, a member of any society who fails to read and write loses the

sense of existence and identity. Dialogue and praxis become the only means whereby

the peasant can overcome his/her limitations. They can grant him/her the capacity to

fashion her/his social being. The same is true for the Moroccan student. He/she is to be

given some sort of leeway to set up his/her own identity. This brings to the role of the

teacher in this enterprise.

3. The Role of the Teacher

I do believe that the role of the teacher is of paramount importance. He or she is

responsible for developing critical thinking in students. His/her approach should allow

students to act as independent and discriminating entities. Here one would agree with

Antonin Gramsci (1970) concerning the role of the intellectual. The teacher is supposed

to be intellectual. In this respect, his role is that of the Organic Intellectual, to borrow

from Gramsci. For Gramsci, the Organic Intellectual is in charge of illuminating his

people and bringing them to consciousness. Being always situated in history, the

teacher/intellectual should operate within the same cultural context. Her/his act is

cultural and culture cannot be separated from politics. Teaching, in this, should not be

separated from the historical actuality of socio-economic and cultural forces. Without

teachers/intellectuals, society will remain fragmented and voiceless. Praxis, again, here

critical thinking, brings together the teacher/intellectual and the simple/ student to

raise an intellectual moral bloc that can smooth intellectual progress.

4. Concluding Statement

So far the argument has been to grant students some sort of power with a view to

developing critical thinking. My stand is that critical thinking is not to be taught, but

encouraged in students via allowing them freedom to voice their opinions. In this way,students education will be more productive. I can but concur with Philip Coombe

(1968) when he argues that what is needed is not an educated person, but an

educable person who can acclimatize to any changing context. What one needs to

understand is that education is cultural and cannot work outside this framework. As

such it is a prerequisite to whatsoever progress as it immediate concern is the individualsocial development. Freires argument, in fine, becomes more than legitimate.


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4

Incorporating intercultural knowledge into the English curriculum

Chakib BNINI

Our students learn English as a foreign language (EFL); that is they learn the language

while living in their own country. They also learn English as an international language

(EIL) so as to be able to communicate with non-native speakers. In both situations,

however, they have little or no access to the target culture and consequently, no

possibility to develop their intercultural competence. In this paper, I will argue that theintercultural approach is necessary for helping students to engage in successful

communication with representatives of other cultures and to respect and tolerate

different world cultures.

I will argue in this paper, following Corbett (2003) and Chlopek (2008), that it is high

time we displaced our focus and changed our goals from teaching English in order to

achieve native speaker proficiency, which is often unattainable, to teaching English in

order to achieve intercultural communicative competence, without forsaking our aim to

improve and develop our students linguistic skills. I will also try to elaborate on thereasons which would justify the incorporation of intercultural knowledge in our English

curriculum. But, to start with, I would like first to shed some light on the concepts of

culture and interculture. I will conclude by putting forward a few suggestions regarding

some ways of implementing the intercultural approach.

1. Definition of culture

Defining culture, according to David Katan (1999:16) is not just an academic exercise;

the definition is necessary to determine how culture is perceived and how it is to be

taught. One of the most frequently cited definitions of culture was given by the English

anthropologist Edward Burnett Tylor in 1871. This definition is found in theEncyclopaedia Britannica. It says:

Culture is that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law,

customs and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society.

Another equally illuminating definition is formulated by Loveday (1981: 34):

(Culture) involves the implicit norms and conventions of a society, its methods of

going about things, its historically transmitted but also adaptive and creative eth os, its

symbols and its organisation of experience.


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From the different definitions of culture proposed, an interesting distinction was made

between two types of culture: big-C culture and small-c culture. The big-C culture is

concerned with literature and factual knowledge about history and certain national and

political institutions. The small-c culture consists of a wide variety of aspects which

may be grouped into two classes:1) the class of unspoken rules of behaviour, which includes assumptions, beliefs and

values, and 2) the class of norms and perceptions which subsumes social relationships,

customs, celebrations and rituals. Many of the elements within these classes are

interrelated.

According to Chlopek (2008), these unspoken rules are given to us from birth, and are

therefore hidden, deeply internalized and subconscious. We become aware of their

existence only when we encounter another culture. These hidden rules have a

tremendous influence on the way people think, their linguistic behaviour and their non-

linguistic behaviour. They also influence our interpretations and expectations of other

peoples linguistic and non-linguistic behaviour.

The type of culture which is of relevance to the topic of this paper is the second one;

that is, it is the culture which is invisible, internal shared by a cultural community.

Moreover, it is a culture that is acquired naturally and unconsciously through informal

watching and hearing (Katan 1999: 32) and which usually takes place before the formal

and conscious learning of culture at school.

The term informal, which is used to refer to this second level of culture, points out the

fact that there are no rules to follow, that in fact this level of culture is learnt

unconsciously or out-of-awareness , to use the term employed by Halle (1982).

According to Halle, it is this out-of-awareness level that we respond to emotionally and

identify with. To back up this point, he raises the case of connotative meaning, which is,

as is commonly known, culturally and socially determined; that is, it is acquired out-of-

awareness. In other words, our response to the connotative meaning of an expression is

a response to the out-of-awareness cultural meaning attached to it. To illustrate this

point, some examples from Arabic can be given, and then contrasted with their

equivalents in English.

Example 1below is translated into English as She is divorced. Example 2 is translated

as He is a dog. Whereas example 1 has a number of connotations in Moroccan

society, some of which are mentioned below, its English translation does not evoke anyof these, according to the feedback which I tried to elicit from a colleague, a British

native speaker. Similarly, example 2, according to my informant, has none of the cited

connotations except that it would be impolite to talk about somebody using the word

dog.

1

Connotations

- She is to blame for the divorce, not the

husband .

- She has a low social status.


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- She knows other men.

2

Connotations

- He is unclean- He has no self-respect- He does not allow angels to come into a

house

In short a person who encounters an unfamiliar culture will lack knowledge of certain

behaviours (verbal and non-verbal), which may lead to amusing situations and even

miscommunication (Chlopek 2008). This happens because he / she are unaware of theunspoken rules behind these behaviours. Even worse, this lack of knowledge may lead

to the formation of a distorted picture of a particular society and its culture.

2. Definition of interculture

Intercultural communicative competence refers to the ability to understand the language

and behaviour (informal culture) of the target community and then explain it to

members of the home community and vice-versa (Corbett 2003). The main goal of this

approach is not achieving native speaker competence.

According to Byram (1997 b), intercultural communicative competence includes five

sub-types of knowledge:

1) Knowledge of self and other2) Knowing how to interpret and relate information3) Knowing how to be critically aware of cultural behaviour4) Knowing how to discover cultural information5) Knowing how to be; how to relativise oneself and value the attitudes and beliefs

of the other.

3. The need for the intercultural communicative approach

Our students learn English as a foreign language in EFL classes in their own country;

they have little access to the culture of the target language and more particularity the

informal culture.

The incorporation of the intercultural approach will surely help our students function

more successfully with representatives of the target language culture by making them

alert to cultural differences and thereby helping them to deal with situations that may

otherwise lead to humorous incidents, or even worse, communication breakdown and

misunderstanding.


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Given the fact that English is now used internationally (English as an international

language (EIL)), extending the intercultural approach to deal with users of English from

non-English-speaking countries would also most certainly help our students appreciate,

tolerate and respect the different world cultures (Chlopek 2008).

4. Suggestions for intercultural activities

According to Chlopek (2000), the implementation of the intercultural approach in an

EFL class will consist of activities that will target three different stages. In stage 1, the

stress will be put on the students own culture. Stage 2 will deal with the British and

American cultures. Stage 3 will be about cultures from other parts of the world.

The purpose of the activities in Stage 1 is to encourage students to observe their cultures

objectively.

Activity 1: The concept of culture is discussed in class and then the students work in

groups to classify the different aspects of culture. For homework, students are asked to

observe their own culture and then note down some of its aspects.

Activity 2: Students work in groups, compare their observations and look at them

critically. A class discussion about the findings then follows.

Activity 3: In groups, students read and listen to descriptions of their own culture given

by representatives of other cultures.

Among the activities that can be used in Stage 2, I will concentrate on those related to

interactional conversations and genre analysis. Interactional conversations pose many

problems for the learner; these have to do first with differences in the conversation

patterns between languages ( more particularly, the periods of silence, and the

paralinguistic features of body language and personal space); second, interpreting

conventional implicatures ( irony, understated criticism and indirect affirmation/ denial

such as :

Is the Pope Catholic? and Do dogs have fleas?).(Examples given by Hassan

Ghazala 1995).

Analysing genres (i.e. the conventionalized forms of texts) can also be used inintercultural activities, especially with regard to writing. Thus, a genre-based approach

to teaching writing will assist students in writing according to the cultural norms of the

target language.

References

Byram, M. (1997a) Cultural Studies and Foreign Language Teaching. In Bassnett

(ed.) Studying British Cultures (pp. 53-64). London: Routledge.


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Chlopek, Z. (2008) The Intercultural Approach to EFL Teaching and Learning.

English Teaching Forum 46 (4): 10-19.

Corbett, J. (2003) An Intercultural Approach to English Language Teaching.

Clevedon, Buffalo, Toronto, Sydney: Multilingual Matters Ltd.

Ghazala, H. (1995) Translation as Problems and Solutions. Beirut: Dar wa Maktabat

Al-Hilal.

Hall, Edward T. (1982) The Hidden Dimension. New York: Doubleday.

Katan, D. (1999) Translating Cultures: An Introduction for Translators, Interpreters

andMediators. Manchester: St. Jerome Publishing.

Loveday, C. (1981) The Sociolinguistics of Learning and Using a Non-native

Language. Oxford: Pergamon.


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A PROJECT-BASED learning approach to teaching language classes

in Moroccan Higher Education: Benefits, promises and constraints

Reddad ERGUIG

This paper is based on an online course I have completed on Project-Based Learning

(PBL). It raises the issue of the extent to which a PBL approach can be implemented in

the teaching of English language classes in Moroccan Higher Education. Recentacademic debates in Morocco have been dominated by a strong emphasis on issues of

infrastructure, and the goal of the present paper is to redress the lack of balance within

such debates by stressing the benefits of PBL as a pedagogical tool that should form

part of the "funds of knowledge" of ELT professionals. While the aim of this paper is to

offer a definition of PBL and to review its characteristics, benefits and potential

outcomes, strong emphasis is laid on the extent to which such an approach to language

teaching/learning can be successfully implemented within the Moroccan socio-cultural

context. The paper concludes with a call to ELT professionals in tertiary education to

try this approach and to assess the outcomes in future meetings.

1. IntroductionThe aim of this paper is to discuss Project-Based Learning (henceforth PBL) as an

approach to English language teaching and learning that could enhance teaching

instruction and promote students learning. First, I will provide a concise background

about the education sector in Morocco. Then I will define PBL and discuss its

characteristics and benefits for both teachers and learners. Particular emphasis is laid on

the discussion of the potential outcomes of the implementation of such an approach. I

will then highlight the situational constraints specific to the Moroccan context that

challenge the effective implementation of PBL. Finally, I will argue that, given its

potential benefits and despite the existing constraints, PBL is worth trying out in our

tertiary education English language classes.

2. BackgroundThe public education sector in Morocco has undergone several reforms since

Independence in 1956 (see Merrouni, 1996, for a review). However, the recent Reform

launched at the turn of the century is considered the most comprehensive. The National

charter of education and training marked an important change in the Moroccan

education policy. When it was launched in 2000, education was made a national priority

and a social duty of the State based on the conception that it is crucial for

socioeconomic development (Charte Nationale, 2001. Education was given second


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priority after the territorial question related to the Moroccan Sahara, and all the parties

and resources have been mobilized to partake of this "national campaign".

The Reform in Higher Education started to be implemented in the 2003-4 academic

year. New filires were created, and faculty from different departments of Englishstarted to meet and share feedback and concerns relating to a variety of Higher

Education matters. One of the first academic meetings took place in Mohamedia in

February 2006 and it addressed issues related to "English Studies: Issues and

Perspectives". It was followed by another one in El Jadida in April 2006, and it focused

on "English Language Teaching and the Reform of University Studies: The Current

State and Future Perspectives". A third one was organized in Agadir in November 2006,

and it was again concerned with "The Educational Reform: Pedagogical and Practical

Considerations and Recommendations".

The academics who took part in these conferences addressed issues pertaining to the

New Reform in Higher Education and its impact on both instruction and learning.

However, although the participants in these events provided different types ofevaluations of the Reform, they mostly focused on issues related to infrastructure. In the

opinion of many, the New Reform was not a complete success due to factors such as the

lack of the basic equipments and pedagogical tools, insufficiency of teachers, and large

classes (among others). Although it is undeniable that the availability of the necessary

infrastructure is crucial for a successful implementation of such a large-scale reform as

the one in which we are currently involved in Morocco, I believe that there is a strong

need for a balance in the academic discourse produced around such a Reform. In

addition to raising issues related to infrastructure, we should equally be concerned with

questions of quality teaching and learning. Within this framework, the present paper is

intended to offer a discussion of PBL as a pedagogical tool that should form part of the

funds of knowledge of ELT professionals in order to enhance teachers instruction

and promote students learning.

3. What is PBL?PBL is a teaching approach in which learning is organized around projects in addition to

textbook reading, lectures and a variety of other activities leading to an end result such

as presentation or publication of the outcomes of such projects. Students are engaged in

complex, real-life issues and they are expected to develop and apply skills and

knowledge in a variety of contexts. They are expected to draw on all the resources

available to them so as to successfully engage in purposeful and real-life tasks. Asdefined by the Buck Institute for Education (2010), "PBL is a systematic teaching

method that engages students in learning knowledge and skills through an extended

inquiry process structured around complex, authentic questions and carefully designed

products and tasks".

Subscription to a PBL approach implies that emphasis is laid on the students themselves

and on the learning process. Of paramount importance is whether learning has taken

place, not whether the teacher has taught well. The major concern is the development of

the students not just as a learner of the language but also as a person and life-long

learner. S/he is fully engaged in the learning process which takes place over a number of

sessions. When planning and implementing their projects, students suggest, clarify,


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organize, reshuffle, interpret and reflect on ideas. Their completion of their projects is a

point when they demonstrate what they have learned by presenting products to members

of their school and possibly the community. The ultimate goal of PBL is to enhancestudents teamwork spirit and to involve them in the construction of knowledge. The

learners become members of a learning community or a community of practice wholearn collaboratively and share resources and goals (Wenger, 1998).

4. Characteristics, benefits and potential outcomes of PBLPBL is a holistic approach to language teaching. Unlike traditional approaches which

view language teaching as a set of discrete stages and in which stress is laid on one

language item at a time, PBL is based on the idea that students are involved in the whole

project of language learning. This approach creates a "constructivist" learning

environment in which students construct their own knowledge. Whereas in the "old

school" model the teacher was the task master, in the "new school" model the teacher

becomes the facilitator. The teachers role becomes that of a coach, a supervisor andfacilitator rather than a lecturer and an information provider.

Research has also shown that PBL has the following characteristics. The classroom has

an atmosphere that tolerates error and change, and students engage in a project where

they make decisions within a prescribed framework and design the process for reaching

solutions. They choose the object of their projects and plan the different stages of such

projects. With the help of their instructor and his/her guidance, the students carry out all

the stages of the project from planning the project to presenting their results or findings

in the form of presentations, reports, essays, etc. This also entails that they solve any

problem they encounter while working on their projects. Working within such an

atmosphere, students self-dependently gain access to the information they need, and

they are responsible for managing it for purposes related to their project (Global

SchoolNet, 2000).

Interestingly, within PBL students are continuously evaluated as they complete their

projects, and they also participate in defining the criteria and rubrics by which their

work will be evaluated. Thus, they learn more effectively compared with the traditional

(teacher-centered) instruction because assessment becomes an impetus for them to learn

and they constantly reflect on what they are doing (Global SchoolNet, 2000; Buck

Institute for Education, 2010).

The use of PBL as a teaching approach has the potential to enhance students learningand develop their mastery of English. As they engage in their own projects, students are

offered a golden opportunity to develop a sense of autonomy. As they form groups and

cooperate to complete a project, they can choose their own partners and select the pace

at which they can complete their projects, for they are involved in the learning process

rather than rely on the teacher to spoon-feed them. They also develop the sense of

responsibility as they carry out the different tasks that relate to their own projects. While

doing this, they compete with other students and strive to make the best achievement.

Given the nature of the task at hand, students also develop their research skills

whether these relate to the use of print resources in the school or community library or

the online resources available on the Web. Moreover, when students are actively

involved in a project, their motivation to learn develops and academic achievement


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increases (Buck Institute for Education, 2010). Indeed, there is strong evidence that "the

instructional strategies and procedures that make up standards-focused Project Based

Learning are effective in building deep content understanding, raising academic

achievement and encouraging student motivation to learn" (Buck Institute for

Education, 2010). Furthermore, beyond the level of the individual, the implementationof PBL brings about a substantial increase in student-student communication and

development of the spirit of teamwork within them. The fact that students carry out a

task as a group over a period of time requires that they share the work among

themselves and assign tasks to each member of the group; hence different-level students

partake of the learning task.

As a flexible teaching and learning approach, PBL also has potential outcomes for

teachers as well. PBL is a particularly enabling pedagogical tool for teachers in that it

also allows them to take account of the variety of students learning styles and habits of

mind. When designing the overall project, teachers are highly encouraged to find out

and take account of - the students preferred learning style; one may even be so overt asto try to negotiate with students the issue of learning style. Teachers awareness of their

students learning styles is instrumental in helping them to anticipate the difficulties that

they may face and suggest relevant solutions. Because a group of students may have a

wide range of learning styles - ranging from the active to the reflective and from the

auditory to the visual (see Soloman & Felder, undated) it is recommended that a

teacher should teach in a manner that can cater for the learning styles and needs of the

majority of students because one cannot possibly teach each student according to his/her

own learning style. Interestingly, Felder (2007) argues that in the same way that learners

have different learning styles (visual, auditory and kinaesthetic, etc.), teachers also have

different teaching styles (lecturing, involving students, etc.), and it is crucial that

students and teachers should have somewhat similar learning/teaching styles for

learning to take place.

5. Evaluation within PBLWithin the PBL evaluation system, assessment is favored over testing. Testing or

summative assessment takes place at the end of a course or a program and is intended

to measure the learning outcomes; whereas assessment or formative assessment takes

place throughout the course or program and aims to check the progress students make

while they are engaged in the learning process. The goal of assessment within a PBLapproach is to inform teaching and also enhance learning. It allows students to obtain

feedback in due time so that they can learn from and make up for their mistakes.

Assessment is therefore not simply a tool used to rank students and judge their

performance but rather it is a way of engaging them in the learning process, and as such

it is an essential component of learning rather than a separate issue. Indeed, research hasalso shown that there is a strong link between assessment, students motivation and

learning (McMillan, 2000). Besides engaging students in the learning process and

enhancing their motivation to learn, assessment can also inform instruction: continuous

or formative assessment of students performance allows teachers to reflect on the

course they teach and make changes that can boost students learning. On the basis of

the feedback that teachers obtain about the way they teach a course, they can improve


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their teaching practices reorder the sections in their course, provide more supplementary

material in another or delete a section altogether. In short, assessment within PBL is part

and parcel of the teaching and learning processes (see Hancock, 1994; McMillan, 2000).

PBL is also based on the premise that no assessment tool can be absolutely reliable(McMillan, 2000). The triangulation of evaluation methods and tools is a fundamental

feature of the assessment system of such an approach. Thus, to avoid the hit and miss

strategy which consists in administering one test, it is advisable to use different tools

and to assess students at different points in the course. When implementing PBL, I

personally try to combine both testing and assessment. Formative and summative

assessment can be complementary, and their combination is very useful for students,

teachers and decision makers (Spolskys, 1992, as cited in Hancock, 1994). In addition

to the midterm test and the final exam that my university students have to take in each

one of the 16-week semesters, I also administer quizzes and occasionally have open

discussions with them about the progression of the course and the obstacles they face.

On the basis of their commentary, I often make changes in my teaching instruction. Therationale behind this is that since students are involved in a project, they need feedback

throughout its completion, so there is need for both continuous and terminal assessment.

That is, in the same way that students are rewarded for the completed tasks, they also

need to be rewarded for the process of its completion. Students also need to have a say

in the way they can be assessed because different learners have different learning styles

and competencies. Students may be asked to keep a reflective journal in which they

record their feedback about the course, and this in turn can be used by the teacher to

evaluate the extent to which students have assimilated the course and developed the

target skills and competencies.

6. A Sample projectEach project that a group of students are asked to carry out is unique, yet most projects

include a number of components. First, background information about the course,

number, age, language level of the students, and the prerequisites as well as the number

of contact hours must be clearly defined. Second, a clear and concise description of the

content and the objectives of the project as well as its rationale and ultimate goals

should be provided. Third, the benefits that the students will draw from the project

together with the challenges that they may face while completing the project and the

strategies that could be used to handle them should be identified. Finally, a step-by-step

description of the project as well as its assessment plan must be clearly defined andexplained to the students (for more details, review the sample project in the appendix at

the end of this paper)

7. PBL implementation in MoroccoHaving defined PBL and reviewed its characteristics and potential outcomes, I would

like now to turn to the issue of the extent to which such an approach to English

language teaching and learning can be successfully implemented in the Morocco

context. First, generally speaking, despite its great benefits, the actual implementation

of PBL in any classroom raises several questions. First, different students may have


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different attitudes towards collaborative learning; one may have been educated in a way

which does not favor its adequate implementation. If implemented inappropriately or if

the context is unfavorable, it could just become a failure and a waste of time. The

second issue relates to learning styles: different students may have different study

habits, which could affect the project they carry out as a group. The third issue is that oftime: for students to form groups and to start performing a give task effectively the

teacher should invest some time and energy to bring the students to the stage where they

can make real accomplishments. Finally, PBL raises issues of reliability since group and

individual performance is a very controversial issue. Some members of a group may

learn much more than the others because they are willing and motivated to learn;

whereas others who may be less motivated can easily make it without contributing to

the completion of the project. Although a teacher can take measures such as asking each

member of the group to evaluate the others (as an additional evaluation method),

students can still make it without making a satisfactory performance (O'Donnell, 2002).

To ensure that all members of the group are actively involved in the project, researchers

have put forward suggestions to boost the use of such an approach; namely "assigningspecific roles, alternating roles and activities, or requiring that consensus among group

members be reached" (O'Donnell, 2002).

With specific reference to the Moroccan context, informal discussions with many

Moroccan Higher Education ELT professionals have led me to suggest that, although

they are not totally opposed to the adoption of such an approach in their classes, they

are reluctant to do so because of the numerous situational constraints on its

implementation. Most ELT professionals point out that students need a great deal of

help with motivation. It is also highlighted that students need pedagogical assistance

particularly with the acquisition of the prerequisites; namely languages proficiency,

background knowledge and the adequate learning strategies and study habits so that

they can satisfy both the current and subsequent academic and professional

requirements. Most importantly, teachers agree that students need to develop the sense

of autonomy which is an essential feature of any college student. In addition, it is

argued there are teacher-related obstacles that face the successful implementation of

PBL. For instance, some teachers do not have favorable attitudes towards a pedagogical

innovation such as PBL. They consider such an approach a luxury given the

overcrowded classrooms and time constraints, etc. Further, an approach such as PBL is

viewed by some as threatening their traditional roles as the dominant figure in the

classroom and the source of information and knowledge.

However, given the benefits of PBL reviewed in the previous sections and despite

factors that can obstacle PBL implementation, I would like to argue against such a claim

and stress the fact that PBL is a valuable and rewarding teaching and learning approach.

PBL implementation cannot happen overnight; it is a long-term pedagogical investment

and a way of teaching and learning that should be cultivated among both teachers and

students. Efforts should be made to encourage the use of PBL starting from primary

school. To this end, PBL should be part of teachers pre-service and in-service training,

and emphasis should be laid not only on how to implement or make optimal use of PBL

but first and foremost on how to develop positive attitudes towards it as a pedagogical

tool. Indeed, it is essential that teachers should be willing to invest time and energy into

such an approach so that its implementation can become a reality. Moreover, for these


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efforts to be fruitful, a strong conviction among parents is also needed. Parents

awareness of the value of PBL and their knowledge that it is a valuable pedagogical tool

are basic requirements so that they can take part in the endeavor to introduce it in the

Moroccan Higher Education classes. Finally, curriculum developers and syllabus

designers should take into account this approach when designing curricular and syllabi.

Conclusion

The aim of this paper has been to define PBL as an approach to language teaching and

learning and to discuss its characteristics and the potential outcomes of its

implementation. I have highlighted some of the constraints that face the implementation

of PBL in the Moroccan Higher Education language classes. I have also tried to argue

that given its characteristics, benefits and potential outcomes, PBL is a valuable

approach. I would like to conclude with a call to all ELT professional in Morocco to try

out PBL. The outcomes of using such an approach can then be assessed in futureacademic meetings.

References

Buck Institute for Education. (2010). What is project-based learning? Retrieved March

20, 2010, fromhttp://pbl-online.org/About/whatisPBL.htm

Charte nationale de lducation et de formation, La. (2001). Rabat : Publication du

Centre Marocain de lInformation.

Felder, R. M. (2007). An Introduction to learning styles: How students learn, how

teachers teach, and what usually goes wrong with the process. Transcript.

Retrieved February 20, 2010, fromhttp://ctl.csudh.edu/SpeakerSeries/Felder.htm

Gaer, S. (1998). Less teaching and more learning. Focus on Basics: Connecting

Research and Practice, 2, (D). [Electronic version]. Retrieved March 10, 2010,

fromhttp://www.ncsall.net/index.php?id=385

Global SchoolNet. (2000). Harnessing the power of the Web: A tutorial for

collaborative project-based learning. Retrieved January 15, 2010, from

http://www.globalschoolnet.org/web/index.html

Hancock, C. R. (1994). Alternative assessment and second language study. Retrieved

March 10, 2010, fromhttp://www.ericdigests.org/1995-2/language.htm

McMillan, James H. (2000). Fundamental assessment principles for teachers and school

administrators. Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation, 7(8). Retrieved

February 2, 2010, fromhttp://PAREonline.net/getvn.asp?v=7&n=8

Merrouni, M. (1996).Al-islah at-taalimi bi Al Maghrib: 19561994 [The educational

reform in Morocco: 1956-1994]. Rabat: Facult des Lettres et des Sciences

Humaines.
http://pbl-online.org/About/whatisPBL.htmhttp://pbl-online.org/About/whatisPBL.htmhttp://pbl-online.org/About/whatisPBL.htmhttp://ctl.csudh.edu/SpeakerSeries/Felder.htmhttp://ctl.csudh.edu/SpeakerSeries/Felder.htmhttp://ctl.csudh.edu/SpeakerSeries/Felder.htmhttp://www.ncsall.net/index.php?id=385http://www.ncsall.net/index.php?id=385http://www.ncsall.net/index.php?id=385http://www.globalschoolnet.org/web/index.htmlhttp://www.globalschoolnet.org/web/index.htmlhttp://www.ericdigests.org/1995-2/language.htmhttp://www.ericdigests.org/1995-2/language.htmhttp://www.ericdigests.org/1995-2/language.htmhttp://pareonline.net/getvn.asp?v=7&n=8http://pareonline.net/getvn.asp?v=7&n=8http://pareonline.net/getvn.asp?v=7&n=8http://pareonline.net/getvn.asp?v=7&n=8http://www.ericdigests.org/1995-2/language.htmhttp://www.globalschoolnet.org/web/index.htmlhttp://www.ncsall.net/index.php?id=385http://ctl.csudh.edu/SpeakerSeries/Felder.htmhttp://pbl-online.org/About/whatisPBL.htm


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O'Donnell, A. M. (2002). Cooperative and collaborative learning - theoretical

perspectives on collaboration, collaborative learning in dyads and groups, group

and individual performance. Retrieved March 5, 2010, from

http://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/1885/Cooperative-Collaborative-Learning.html

Soloman, B. A. & Felder, R. M. (undated). Learning styles and strategies. Retrieved

March 25, 2010, from

http://www4.ncsu.edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/ILSdir/styles.htm

Wenger, E. (1998). Communities of practice: learning, meaning, and identity.

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Appendix

A sample project

1) Course description:

Name of course: Writing II

Number of students: 30

Age of students: 19-21

Language level of students: upper-intermediate

Contact hours: 1.5 hour (once a week)Other information: As a prerequisite to this project, students have been

exposed to writing different genres (different types of

letters, reports, diaries, and essays, etc) and writing for

different purposes (description, argumentation, etc).

2) Project description:

This project spans 12 weeks and aims to engage students in writing activities the outcome of

which will be a variety of contributions to the school magazine. The ultimate goal is for eachgroup to build on the writing skills they developed in a previous course (Writing I) in order to

contribute to this school project through (i) addressing a community issue and (ii) suggesting

adequate strategies that can help improve the town in the area that each group chooses to focus

on. To this end, students work in groups of three to:

choose a topic related to their town (e.g. the environment and garbage, schooling andeducation, local agriculture, the media, traffic jam, employment, the Internet, or foreign

investments, etc);

choose a genre (a report, a letter to the city council, a poem, a short story, an article, acaricature, an article or book review, etc);

assign tasks for each member of the group; and conduct research (do readings, interview local people, search the web, etc).
http://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/1885/Cooperative-Collaborative-Learning.htmlhttp://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/1885/Cooperative-Collaborative-Learning.htmlhttp://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/1885/Cooperative-Collaborative-Learning.htmlhttp://www4.ncsu.edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/ILSdir/styles.htmhttp://www4.ncsu.edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/ILSdir/styles.htmhttp://www4.ncsu.edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/ILSdir/styles.htmhttp://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/1885/Cooperative-Collaborative-Learning.htmlhttp://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/1885/Cooperative-Collaborative-Learning.html


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3) Rationale:

This project is intended to achieve the following objectives:

In terms of content skills, this project aims to make students reflect on issues relevant totheir community. They are encouraged to (i) identify a specific problem and then (ii)

suggest adequate solutions. In terms of standards skills, and drawing on the writing skills that students have already

developed in a previous course (Writing I), this project aims to give students the

opportunity to acquire more writing skills through carrying out meaningful and

authentic writing tasks. Writing in this project is viewed not just as a decontextualized

skill of meaning-making but rather a means through which students reflect on issues

inextricably linked to their vicinity and then share their ideas with the community at

large.

4) Benefits to be drawn from the project:

As they engage in this project, students will draw the following benefits:

Learn how to work in groups and collaborate with other students to complete a task; Draw on and develop their writing tasks; Carry out writing tasks that satisfy academic requirements and more importantly serve

the community by engaging in real-life issues and authentic writing activities;

Make a contribution to the school magazine; and thus Reflect on and suggest solutions to problems and issues strongly linked to their

community.

5) Possible challenges to be faced:

Students may face some or most of the following challenges (among others that may appear in

the course of their completion of the project):

Difficulty and/or delay in finding partners and thus forming a group; Difficulty and/or delay in carrying out the task which forms the object of the projectbecause of lack of harmony between the members of the group (which may be due to

the variety of their learning styles);

Difficulty and/or delay in completing the task in due time because of the lack of clarityof the project for the students or their disagreement on which community issue to

address;

Difficulty in keeping in touch with the other members of the group possibly becausesome may not be have good research skills (including ICT skills);

Failure of the groups to interact among each other and thus to benefit from theirfeedback; and

Failure of some groups to complete and/or submit their project in due time.6) How the challenges described in Question 5 could be addressed?While allowing room for students to (i) select their partners, (ii) agree on the community issue

they are interested in addressing, (iii) choose a genre, and (iv) set up an appropriate time line,

the teachers task as a facilitator-coach-counselor should be to observe the progress of the mini-projects at all stages. S/he should particularly attend to the following points and ensure that:

The groups are formed and in due time; Each member of the group is assigned a role within the group (leader, researcher,

coordinator; time manager) while allowing for some accommodations to be made

subsequently);

Each group has selected a specific community issue and a genre and also suggested atimeline;

There is communication flow between the members of each group and with the teacher(preferably using e-mail as a means of communication);


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Interaction among the different groups is facilitated; Each group is provided with timely and useful feedback; and The mini-projects are completed in due time.

7) Description of the steps and timeline of the project:

Table 1: A week-by-week plan for the implementation of the project

Week

number

task

1-2 Introduction of the project (its object, objective and goal); and

Groups are formed and roles are tentatively assigned.

3-4 Group formations and role assignment revisited; Agreement on a way of communicating and timesslots when the members would

meet outside class; and

Groups would think of the community issue to address and the genre (brainstorming).

5-6 Facilitator and each group agree on the community issue to be addressed and the genreto be selected;

Groups suggest the preliminary objectives of their mini-projects; and

Groups suggest a timeline.

7 and 10 Groups start work on their projects; Groups suggest a sketch or a first draft of their projects;

Facilitator supervises the progress students make and provides feedback; Facilitator provides feedback to each group and then to all the groups; and

Facilitator ensures that the different groups interact among each other.

11-12 Groups submit the final version of their projects; Facilitator provides formal feedback to all the groups - each about their mini-projects;

Final evaluation of the overall project: facilitator and students exchange feedback aboutthe whole project; emphasis should also be laid on how students assess the project as a learning

experience.

8) Assessment of the project:

The assessment plan for this project will be based on the following rubrics with three level of

performance for each rubric (unsatisfactory, satisfactory, and very satisfactory): How effectively students have organized their work and assigned roles; The extent to which students have respected the timeline; The kinds of research that students have carried out and the kinds of data that they have

collected (the interviews conducted, information collected readings, reflections, etc);

The importance, relevance and clarity of the community issue that the students havechosen;

How adequate and realistic are the strategies that students have suggested to handle thecommunity issues they have addressed;

How students have presented their final productthat is the final shape or the quality ofthe final product of the project;

The feedback that each group offers other groups about their projects; and The feedback that each group provides about the overall project.

Therefore, the assessment plan outlined above will be informed by the following: (i) the

feedback that each member of the group would be asked to offer about their respective

groups, (ii) the evaluation that the whole group would be asked to provide about their

own project, and (iii) a class-level evaluation of the OVERALL project.


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The integration of E-learning Technology in Two Moroccan Faculties:

Insights from Experience

Samir DIOUNY & Mohamed BENNANI OTHMANI

In recent years there has seen a dramatic increase in the use of e-learning within higher

education in different parts of the world. The integration of e-learning in higher

education offers a number of advantages compared to classical methods of distance

learning. In fact, this new way has changed both teaching and learning through itspotential as a source of knowledge, a medium to transmit content, a means of interaction

and dialogue. The development of Learning Management System (LMS) methods has

generated a much better interactivity (Teachers-students; students-teachers) which is

central to the development of communicative language skills. The present paper reviews

the experience of e-learning in two Moroccan Faculties: The Faculty of Medicine in

Casablanca the Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences in El Jadida with a view to

evaluating both experiences.

Introduction

Economic, social and technological forces have changed the global economy, and the

way of life in the world. Specifically, these forces have revolutionized teaching and

learning. Technology, the rapid obsolescence of knowledge and training, the need for

just-in-time training delivery, and the search for cost-effective ways have redefined the

processes that underlie design, development and delivery of training and education.

E-learning is defined as the acquisition and use of knowledge distributed and facilitated

primarily by electronic means (Jansen, Hooven, Jgers & Steenbakkers, 2002). It may

incorporate synchronous or asynchronous access and may be distributed geographically

with varied limits of time. In recent years, e-learning has captured the interest of

professionals from different disciplines. North American and Europe have seen realadvances in the understanding of different types of e-learning applications. However, if

these advances have helped to take care of the special needs of the universities to which

they belong, they have not, on the other hand, begun to make an impact in developing

countries. For example, in Morocco, little progress has been registered in the field of e-

learning whether in the area of academic studies, or research. It is with the hope to

promote this area of research that the Faculty of Medicine in Casablanca the Faculty of

Letters and Human Sciences in El Jadida used e-learning as teaching and learning tool

in 2006. For ease of exposition, the article consists of three sections: Section I discusses

the context within which such projects were implemented; section II is devoted to the

relative merits of e-learning as a means of teaching and learning. Section III outlines the


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experience of two Moroccan Schools, namely the School of Medicine in Casablanca

and the School of Letters and Human Sciences in El Jadida.

1. University reform and the integration of E-learning in higher education

The reform in the overall Moroccan educational system was elaborated in a national

Charter, whose main characteristics were drafted in 1999, then translated in a regular

bill in the year 2000. An issue that received the most attention in the new reform was

strengthening the link between university studies and the needs of the job market.

Degree transparency, the pooling of resources and collaboration instead of stark

competition were ingredients of the new educational reform. Changes have affected

goals-linking university studies to the needs of the job market, structure- granting

universities academic & financial autonomy and content-diversify programs to increase

the quality and to attack the problem of waste and repetition.

However, the implementation of Higher Education reform experienced a lot of problemsand strong resistance from cynics (Diouny, 2006). The designers did not put enough

elements and directions to prepare it for an eventual implementation. It was up to

different schools to come up with their programs that would translate those directions.

Such a situation resulted in improvisation, confusion and chaos. Course objectives were

not clearly defined in terms of learners expectations; most programs were characterized

by a lot of overlapping which could have been avoided, had coordination taken place.

Other obstacles included teachers and students negative attitudes towards the reform

and the slow administrative procedures. Updating teachers disciplinary knowledge and

expertise, coordinating and widening channels of communication to provide better

coordination all needed due attention. The lack of infrastructure and understaffed

departments were in the way of teaching students in small groups. It was against this

background that the e-learning projects were undertaken. Both e-learning projects

offered both teachers and students a golden opportunity to solve a number of problems

related with related to the reform in Higher Education. E-learning was a golden

opportunity for students who are often absent, who drop out because of social

constrains, and who are slow learners. Using this technology would allow them to study

at their own pace. For teachers, e-learning gave them the chance to cover a huge

program, which could not have been covered, had traditional methods of teaching been

implemented.

E-learning offers learners a number of advantages (Ruiz, Michael, Mintzer & Leipzig(2006): Control over content, learning sequence, learning pace, and time allowing them

to tailor their experiences to meet their personal learning objectives (2006:207. In our

context, e-learning appears to be at least as effective as traditional instructor-led

methods such as lectures. Students do not see e-learning as replacing traditional

instructor-led training but as a complement to it, forming part of a blended-learning

strategy. Such a strategy has allowed the shift from a teacher-centered approach to a

learners centered approach, where teachers are involved as facilitators of learning.

E-learning plays two main roles (Jansen et al. 2002). First, it is seen as a learning

environment. E-learning offers students more opportunity to engage in learning

activities independently Furthermore, e-learning makes it possible to offer the same


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learning content in various forms. Students themselves can then choose the form which

suits them best. Through e-learning the content can be tailored to personal needs (Jansen

et al. 2002). Second, e-learning is viewed as a management environment; it can monitor,

stimulate, and adjust the learning process by means of various testing, registration,

administration and communication possibilities (Jansen et al. 2002).

In short, e-learning has a positive impact on the experience of learning (Laurillard,

2004); there is a cultural impact; students are comfortable with e-learning methods,

because they are not different from the communications methods they use in their

everyday lives; there is an intellectual impact, there is a technological interactivity that

offers an online mode of involvement. There is a social impact; students take greater

responsibility for their own learning. Lastly, there is a practical impact, e-learning offers

the ability to manage quality at scale, and share resources across networks; its greater

flexibility of provision in time and place makes it good for widening participation

(Laurillard, 2004).

2. E-learning: 2 case studies

Before outlining the implementation of e-learning technology at the Faculty of

Medicine-Casablanca and the Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences-El Jadida, it is

very important to say a few words about the participants involved. Both projects

involved relatively small groups: 15 students in each group. These students take Master

courses (Master in Neuroscience and Master in translation) at both faculties. The

platform used is Moodle an open source platform. Before the launching of both

projects, a number of training sessions were set up. About 10 teachers and 30 students

took part in those sessions. The purpose of the sessions was to train teachers how to

devise courses, exercises, and tests. Students were trained how to get online and how toget the maximum out of this technological tool. Let us now examine Case Study 1

below: Master Neuroscience at the Faculty of Medicine-Casablanca.

\


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Figure 1: Master Neuroscience (Medical Faculty of Casablanca)

An examination of the platform above reveals the following advantages of e-learning:

Using the above platform allowed Master Students in Neurosciences to have access to

the lectures, references and web sites; by a simple click, students are directed to these.

In addition to this, the platform allowed them to chat with their classmates, ask their

teachers/tutors questions they did not understand, and above all, they could record their

reaction to the lectures and the assignments given. Such a technique, however, helped

teachers to track their students progress; how often they accessed the platform, how

many assignments they submitted and the content of their conversation with their

classmates. Isnt that amazing? In traditional settings theses advantages would be

impossible to achieve. One more advantage of using e-learning technology is time

management. Students know ahead of time when assignments are due, when they haveexams; this is possible due to the calendar on the right side of the platform. Let us now

turn to Case Study 2: Master in translation- Faculty of Letters- El Jadida below.


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Figure 2: Case Study 2: Master in Translation (Faculty of Letters- El Jadida)

In addition to the benefits mentioned above, there are other advantages that e-learning

technology offers both teachers and students. You can compose a web page, add a

resource, display a dictionary and add an activity as the platform below shows. In the

context of Faculty of Letters, the courses were organised differently. At the beginning

of each week, students could get on the platform and download the reading material for

the chapter to be studied. The class is a kind of forum, where students present their

readings and discuss ideas, hence the notion of interactivity. In addition to this students

have to post at least two reactions to their classmates comments. Lastly, they have to

submit a short paper based on the readings the made. What a wonderful way to involveall the students? By the end of course, the 15 students wrote about 10 short papers each

and commented 20 times. There was a cyber cafe, too, where students and teachers

interacted; it was a sort of platform, where students raised questions, sought help from a

classmate or a teacher.

In short, e-learning was used very effectively in both faculties for improving the

traditional forms of teaching. Students had web access to the lecture notes and selected

digital resources in support of their study, the personalized web environments in which

they can join discussion forums with their class or group, and this new kind of access

gives them much greater flexibility of study (Laurillard). E-learning could do more if


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universities are to rethink their methods of teaching; they need a management structure

that is capable of supporting innovation (Elton, 1999: 215):

The process of change must be initiated from both bottom up and top down,

with the bottom having the knowledge and the top the power The top must useits power, not overtly and directly, but to facilitate the work from the bottom and

to provide conditions under which it can prosper

Conclusion

The integration of e-learning requires a perfect organization in terms of sequencing and

the structuring of courses; we should keep in mind the pedagogical norms and the

mastery of technology tools dedicated to this effect (e.g. e-learning platform). Thus,

before the launching of an e-learning project, a number of training courses are necessary

for teachers and tutors involved. The development of e-learning is a strategy thatinstitutions should adhere to. The success of e-learning projects depends on the degree

of involvement of all parties involved (management, faculty, tutors, students, etc)

(Bennani.

References

Bennani M., Diouny, S., Balar, K., (2007).Medical informatics in Morocco:

Casablanca medical informatics laboratory. IMIA Yearbook of Medical

Informatics.

Diouny, S. (2006). Key issues in reforming university studies: The case of El Jadida. A

paper given at the Faculty of Letters and Humanities-Mohammedia.

Elton, L., (1999). New ways of learning in higher education: Managing the change,

tertiary education and management5; pp: 207225.

Laurillard, D., (2002).Rethinking university teaching: A conversational framework for

the effective use of learning technologies (2nd

edition) London: Routledge

Falmer.

Laurillard, D., (2004).E-Learning in higher education inAshwin, P. (Ed.), Changinghigher education. London: Routledge Falmer.

Ruiz, J. G., Michael J., Mintzer, MD, and Leipzig, R. M. (2006). The impact of e-

Learning in medical education. Academic Medicine, Vol. 81, No. 3; pp: 207-

212.

Jansen, W., Hooven, H.M v.d. , Jgers, M. & Steenbakkers, J. (2002). The added value

of e-learning


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The EFL student and the pedagogical reform at Mohamed V

University, Agdal, Rabat.

Samia BELYAZID

Whereas banking education anesthetizes

and inhibits creative power, problem -

posing education involves a constant

unveiling of reality.

Paolo Freire.

The aim of this paper is to report, analyze and update the findings of a research that was

done with the students of the English Studies Track at Mohamed V University in 2006.

This study has a twofold objective: not only to undertake an evaluation of the

pedagogical reform, but also to let the students take an active part in the research. Thus,

the paper proposes a shift away from traditional educational matters such as curricula

and teaching materials, to the student who should take the role of an active partner in

the teaching learning operation, and the academic context. For so doing, two groups of

students in the present survey: one in 2006 (271 students) and the other in 2010 (80

students). These students were all provided with the opportunity to state their views andperceptions of the University Reform through a questionnaire which included closed

and open questions. Surprisingly, beyond answering the questions asked, the students

also raised issues that were of particular concern to them, and expressed their hopes for

more a effective change at the university. This problem-posing approach to evaluation

allowed the students to become the main actors in the study as they suggested practical

solutions to their specific needs. Finally, a conclusion and some pedagogical

implications were drawn.

Introduction

Since in the late 90s the traditional system of higher education had become obsolete,

there was an urgent need to introduce change both at the level of organisation and

curricula. With these challenges in mind, officials and specialists in our country

established the University Pedagogical Reform in 2003. This is a new system of higher

education based on three major components namely; Semesters, Modules and Continual

Assessment. In addition, the main objectives of the reform are meant to be modernity

and flexibility; two basic principles which pave the way for a better integration of our

graduates into various socio-economic fields and academic disciplines. Furthermore,

another important aim of the reform is to place the students at the heart of the new

academic context. In other words, students are no longer passive recipients, as the case


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in the old system; rather, they are supposed to have become potential members of the

academic community in the new university system. They have responsibilities to

assume and contributions to make. It is this new concept of the student which gave the

first impetus for the present study.

For the purpose of this paper, this updated version will contain the same parts as the

original paper with one major modification; the analysis will include the results from

both the initial study and the recent one. Besides, attention will be especially given to

the students role in the new system. It is important to mention that great efforts have

been made both by the administration and the English Studies Track to sort out several

pedagogical problems in the last four years. Among the obvious achievements that were

made, a new administration building was set up in the Annex of the Faculty namely

Suissi II with the aim to allow for proximity of the administration. Indeed, since the

offices of the Vice-Dean and the different Studies Tracks were made more available to

both students and teachers alike, communication between the different parts concerned

has often become easier. Furthermore, the English Studies Track has made remarkableprogress in sorting out some issues like the system of grade compensation which is

made much more effective. Besides, differently from before, the students no longer

have to repeat the whole module but only the courses they have failed within the same

module. So, for this reason, some parts of the original paper will be omitted here since

the issues that were raised have been practically solved in the last few years. In this

version of the study, there will be an attempt to highlight some major comparisons or

contrasts between the two sets of data findings. So, the following are the two main parts

of this paper: the Research Context, and Data Analysis.

1. The Research Context

1.1. Motivation for the StudyAs the first generation of students who had experienced the reform was about to

graduate in the spring of 2006, that year seemed the ideal time to undertake an

evaluation of the University Reform (UR). Since the students are supposed to be the

major component of the new system, the goal of this study was to provide them with the

opportunity to take an active part in the evaluation process. The idea to involve them

directly had occurred to me long before as I was reading my students writings about

their life at the university. I had discovered then that many students had found

themselves immersed in the new system with almost no knowledge about it. This lackof information justifies their prolific essays on the matter which led to the initial data

that allowed for a preliminary analysis of the students problems in the context of the

infant reform. The same data triggered the idea for a questionnaire which is used in the

present study. Another source of information was the strong relationship that had

developed between the students and me; I acted as a teacher / counsellor, which

encouraged them to vent out their feelings and impressions on different aspects of their

life at the university. Finally, the students written and oral contributions both motivated

the research and laid the groundwork for the present study.

1.2. The Research Method


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As a result, I developed a questionnaire especially for the students in the English

Studies Track at Mohamed V University. The purpose of the questionnaire was to

highlight their perceptions of the Pedagogical Reform. For the sake of data analysis, the

original closed questions were turned into Items (pp.7-9). On the whole, two sets of

questions were designed: twenty eight closed questions (C.Qs:1-28, pp.7-8), and fiveopen questions (O.Qs.4, 6, 9, 14 & 15, p.9). The C.Qs. consisted of multiple choice and

yes / no questions, and yielded quantitative data, whereas the O.Qs. yielded qualitative

data. Actually, the OQs. were added in order to give the students more freedom to

express themselves on issues that were of particular interest to them. During the

analysis, the findings provided evidence to show that the responses to the two sets of

questions were rather complementary and the combined answers provided exhaustive

information. Indeed, the O.Qs. actually allowed the students to express themselves

more freely. They not only responded, but they also raised other issues that had not been

predicted in the initial hypothesis but which seemed quite important for them.

Eventually, the questionnaire was given to 271 students in Semesters 2 and 4 in 2006.Then four years later, in 2010, it was given to 80 students in Semester II. During the

analysis, it was noticed that there were recurring issues and ideas in the answers to the

two sets of questions. Therefore, it seemed more convenient not to present the findings

in a linear manner, but rather, to make a synthesis; which led to the development of the

second part of this paper entitled; Data Analysis which includes three subsections 2.1

The Students Perceptions of the University Reform, 2.2. The Major Pedagogical Issues

raised by the Students, and 2.3. The Students Own Suggestions for Change in our

University. Furthermore, for the sake of convenience, the answers to items 5, 8, 10 and

11 are not discussed in this paper. In fact, these items include C.Qs. 7 & 12 to 17.

Besides, for the purpose of clarity in this analysis, all the quotes taken from the

students answers to the O Qs are printed in italics. Finally, a Conclusion and

Pedagogical Implications were drawn.

2. Data Analysis

2.1. The Students Perception of the University Reform (C. Qs. 1-5 & O.Q. 6)

Concerning the students perception of the U.R., there is a slight difference between the

responses of the two generations of students; 2006 and 2010. As for group1 of the

students, the responses to Item1 (C.Q:1-5) provide evidence to show that 105 thought

that the reform was a negative change while 150 considered it either a positivechangeor anenigma, which means that the reform was still not clear to most of them.

Conversely, more than 80% of group 1 checked . In other words, the latter group

considers the reform a positive change while 20% only stated that they still do not

understand some important features of the university system including modules, and

grade compensation.

Interestingly, almost the same results came out in the replies to O.Q.4 to which 172

students from group 1 responded by making comments / questions which revealed either

vague or negative perceptions of the reform. They describe it as a mysterious, complex

and confusing phenomenon. Most of them express their anger in sentences like: we

hate it all studentshate it. Whats more, they believe that this new system ignores


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them; they even suspect thatit does not encourage themto study. As for group 2,

the responses are somehow contradictory. Indeed, although in the CQs. about 90% of

the students considered the Reform a positive change, some of them asked the followingquestions in the OCs.: why dont we have audio-visuals in the classroom, why is it that

all tests and exams are written and not oral? What is the purpose of this reform ifthere are no modern means of communication? Why dont we have electives?

Others made recommendations such as the following Somecourses need to be better

organized and taughtetc

Furthermore, it is worth noting that the early group of students expressed doubts and

negative feelings which show that most of them actually lacked basic information about

the university reform. Indeed, a majority of 179 students (Items 2 & 3 p.7) stated that

they had very little information about the reform. Yet, only 72 students were quite

informedabout it. However, this data should be handled with caution since a striking

majority in both groups of students was informed only by theirfriends. Actually, this

unexpected response was written in the slot named (d) other; which was an alternativechoice in Item 2, Q. 5 (p.7). It may be interesting to note that neither the administration,

nor the teachers, nor the media proved to be sources of information for our students.

Besides, the above findings were reinforced by the following answers to OQ.4 (p.9):we need to understand more, to get more information, we are studying and still do

not know what this reform is about; What is the ultimate goal of the reform? What

opportunities does the new reform offer, other than developing educational skills? Is

the purpose of the reform to help us succeed orto destroy us? These comments clearly

demonstrate that both teachers and administration could have devoted more time and

effort to conveying a clearer picture of the university reform to the students from the

outset. In contrast, the present generation of students who are mostly in Semester II

seem to be satisfied with the system since most of them have passed the semester I

modules.

2.2. Major Pedagogical Issues Raised by the Students (O.Qs.7-11+22-28)

Considering the complexity of our educational context, this questionnaire did not

address one specific issue, but instead, touched upon several inter-related variables as

parts of a whole. Besides, the C.Qs. somehow brainstormed the students which

encouraged them to write exhaustively in their answers to the O.Qs. This way, they did

not only write answers, but they also described their immediate needs and concerns as

well. The major source of the students problems concerns the following interrelatedvariables, which for the sake of analysis, were grouped under the following headings:

Continual Assessment (C.A.) or class attendance (C.A.) and exam requirements (E.R.),

failure and grade correction (E.F. & G.C.), course requirements and the prerequisite

course (C.R. & P.C.), and finally, the students lists (S. Ls.). It is noted that most

students expressed their views and frustrations about each of the above variables either

by making comments or raising significant questions based on their personal feelings

and experiences concerning the university reform and context. This section is divided

into the four paragraphs below.

First, it is worth noting that the responses to Items 7 (on E.R.) and 10 (on C.A.) were

rather positive and revealed many students understanding of

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