The X-File: White Silhouettes, Pink Collars, and the Feminization Path in Morocco. Exploring Teacher Trainees' Perspectives on the Feminization of Teaching in Morocco – CRMEF Fez as a Case Study

Abstract Educational policies in Morocco have been the subject of numerous reform attempts and ongoing discussions. Since gaining independence in 1956, the country’s educational system has faced persistent challenges. This long-streamed reform project gained scrutiny in 2016 following the partnership between the Ministry of Education and that of Finance commissioning the recruitment of teachers under interim contracts. As the waves of dissent orchestrated by “the forcibly contractual teachers” swayed the scene, attention drifted, especially at the beginning of the school year 2020-2021, to what was framed as an “orchestrated state-driven feminization of teaching” as the number of females admitted into training centers that year quadrupled that of men’s. Social media users, especially amid teaching-focused Facebook and WhatsApp groups, interpreted this as a governmental plot to subdue the objecting calls of teachers regarding their work conditions. This article seeks respectively to critically explore the disproportionate increase of women in the teaching profession in Morocco. The article stands through a mixed-method approach to presents the results of a field study capturing the perceptions of 100 teacher trainees at the CRMEF Fez vis-à-vis the factors and the outcomes of the increasing waves of feminization within the teaching profession. Keywords: conspiracy, feminization, forcibly contractual teachers, teaching