When language becomes an obstacle: the challenges of teaching immunology in french for moroccan students

The teaching of sciences, and more specifically immunology, in a foreign language presents numerous challenges, particularly in terms of understanding and assimilating knowledge. In this context, teaching sciences in the native language would be more conducive to learning, as students have been familiarized with these linguistic structures from a young age. Nevertheless, since 2014, Morocco has decided to teach scientific subjects (mathematics, physics, and life and earth sciences) in French starting from middle school to help students in scientific fields, initially educated in Arabic, to better pursue their higher education in French. This approach creates a double barrier for students whose mother tongue is Amazigh or Arabic, they must both master complex scientific concepts and express them in a foreign language. This article aims to examine these challenges through two studies targeting a sample of 185 (n1+n2+n3) teachers, one quantitative based on a questionnaire, and the other qualitative using the focus group technique. Both studies focus on the opinions of life and earth sciences teachers regarding the teaching of immunology in French the high school, a discipline with particularly complex concepts, and whether teaching scientific subjects in French is hindered by difficulties, and finally to propose possible alternatives to improve the effectiveness of this teaching. The results obtained show a negative appreciation from the teachers in our sample regarding the teaching of immunology in French, as it poses problems for students' understanding of this discipline. In fact, the results suggest that the majority of students lack interest and motivation in immunology courses taught in French, with low engagement in classroom discussions.