Amazighs in Moroccan EFL textbooks: An integrated critical discourse analysis

Abstract

This study is a critical appraisal of official knowledge about: (1) Amazigh ethnic groups in Morocco; (2) the socio-semantic resources for representing them; and (3) the interaction between Amazigh ethnic groups and the dominant Arab group in 33 EFL textbooks which have been developed, approved, and distributed by the Moroccan Ministry of Education, and have been required to be used in every school, public or private from the early 1980s up to the present. Examined though an integrated CDA model which is inspired by Van Leeuwen’s (1996) social actor analysis, Scott's (2018) sociology of the (un)marked, and Bank’s (1989) Ethnic Content Integration model, the findings demonstrated that Amazighs have received varying degrees of discursive representation, ranging from suppression, fixation, cataloguing and backgrounding to partial inclusion and fractional participation. The analyzed EFL textbooks were also found to promote an official stance that can be lexicalized in five main discourses about Amazighs. Such a stance, I argue here, is a clear instance of an exclusionary discourse whose impacts, the study recommends, should be well-adjusted by integrating more precise and wide-ranging ethnic knowledge in Moroccan EFL textbooks.

Keywords:

• Amazighs
• EFL textbooks
• Morocco
• critical discourse analysis
• social actor analysis
• (un)marked
• textbook analysis

Public interest statement

The ethnic composition of Morocco- a strategically North African Country- is made up of Arabs, the dominant social group, and Amazighs, the majoritarian minority. This multicultural composition has been a constant source of diversity and an asset to strengthen national unity. Notwithstanding this apparent socio-ethnic pride, Moroccohas always had to face the arduous task of “nation-building” that requires the fulfilment of a unified and continuing national narrative that would articulate a distinct Moroccan identity. This study positions official school textbooks in their context of micro-dynamics of power negotiation and critically appraises the portrayal of Amazighs in EFL textbooks. The analysis has shown the fragility of the discursive inclusion of Amazighs, limiting them to specific social activities that define them in terms of who they, permanently or unavoidably, are, which, in turn, leads to the objectification of Amazigh social actors through the fixation of their way of life.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Correction

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Khalid Said

Khalid Said* ([email protected]) is a lecturer and researcher at the English department, Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences, Cadi Ayyad University Marrakech. He holds BA in linguistics, MA in Linguistics and Advanced English Studies, and PhD in Applied Linguistics (Hassan II university). He also holds a professional Diploma in Language Supervision (Option: English) from Centre de formation des inspecteurs de l’éducation (CFIE), Rabat. Khalid Said is currently an academic staff and also a member of ‘The Translation, Intercultural Communication and Knowledge Integration Laboratory. He has interest in Systemic Functional Linguistics, Stylistics and Critical Discourse Analysis, curricular ethnic narratives, critical pedagogy, and foreign language teaching and learning. He has taught, New Trends in CDA, English Sound Patterns, Media Studies, and Initiation to Translation. His current research interests include Positive Discourse Analysis, the discursive construction of resistance, and Cognitive Load Theory.