The Bernard Mejean Fund for Girls' Education

The earthquake in the Al Haouz and surrounding provinces caused profound loss. NGOs mobilized their resources to provide vital assistance to the affected families. The High Atlas Foundation established partnerships with international organizations, including Project Hope. Together, we launched psychosocial empowerment sessions with communities, as we continue to distribute essential supplies, such as food, blankets, and tents, and assess and implement water infrastructure projects.

Psychosocial empowerment comprises a series of support workshops aimed at healing the emotional pain and trauma caused by the crisis. As part of a collaborative effort, 4-day workshops were introduced to the affected areas, including Tikste, Tinmel, Tizgharine, Ait Ayoub, Azro, Ashbarou, Tafza, Tagherghis, and Tifkritt. A total of 279 women and girls benefited from these workshops.

Recognizing HAF’s commitment to serving to restore the emotional balance of families, we provide parallel care of school age children. This was particularly important due to the disruption of regular schooling caused by damaged infrastructure and school buildings awaiting repair. Approximately 186 children, aged between 4 and 11, both boys and girls, benefitted from this initiative.

Upon our initial encounters with women in these areas, grief and pain in their eyes were evident. Their faces were swollen from mourning over the lost relatives and neighbors. The landscape was dominated by damaged homes, rickety fences, and scattered furniture. It was difficult for anyone to witness the extent of devastation, with the memories of these events deeply etched in the minds of those impacted.

Upon our arrival in Tinmel, we were greeted by Ms. Widdad, who guided us to the school where we met with women who were desperately seeking support.  Among them were those who had lost their entire family and those who had lost their main sources of support.

The first workshop centered on themes of mourning and surviving disaster, evoking most deep emotions. However, as the facilitators began their discussions, the woman regained composure and expressed their readiness to share their experiences.

Fatima shared her story, saying, "I don't know how I survived the wreckage and the sound of the earthquake still didn't make my head apart, wherever I went, I heard that sound." She continued, “the sound rarely leaves my head and it causes me pain in my whole body, wondering when that pain will end.” Rashida added, "I lost my son who was the age of flowers, how can I live with the situation?"

The tragedies these women experienced were heart-wrenching, and words cannot capture the extent of their suffering. And so while we cannot alter reality, the aim of these workshops is to offer hope with these women.  The workshops seek to encourage them to believe that the future can hold better days. While the material losses cannot be fully compensated, we can gain mercy and work towards supporting these individuals in their recovery.

The workshops were designed to explore the psychological trauma experienced by the women; not to rekindle the painful memories, but to assess the impact of the trauma on their well-being. The trauma of the earthquake affected every woman differently. Each woman has varying degrees and types of trauma based on their personal experiences. Each woman has unique ways of processing trauma. Given the diverse reactions to trauma, facilitating a space for all to feel comfortable expressing their feelings is challenging, and imperative.

In contrast, children responded more positively to the workshops. They actively engaged in activities such as drawing, coloring, and games that involve numbers and letters in Arabic. While schools remained closed, it was essential to create a suitable learning environment for these children. Through their engagement at the workshops, it was evident that the children held significant hope and aspirations for a better future, despite the challenging circumstances. This observation highlighted the resilience of children in coping with crises compared to adults.

The project of psychosocial empowerment recognizes that the road to recovery for those who have lost their loved ones and homes will be neither swift nor easy. But it is necessary to sustain to help these families recover their lost self under the rubble, which has not yet been recovered even though they are alive. The project will require sustained efforts and support to help these families regain their sense of selves and rebuild their lives, a task that remains ongoing.

I first met Miriem, Sarah, and Naima at a community room in the village of Achbarou, which is about a thirty-minute drive from Marrakech, Morocco. We instantly bonded over drawing and forming hearts with our hands, teaching each other the words for “love” in Tachelhit and English. Eyes twinkling with wonder, they told me of their dreams to become doctors, singers, and police officers. They were eager to learn English, and I was excited at the opportunity to support their bright futures. When joined by the boys in a co-ed classroom, however, their inner sparkles dwindled. Miriem, Sarah, and Naima rarely participated and preferred the boys to speak for them.

Would a single-sex classroom instill in these girls, and girls everywhere, the confidence to pursue their ambitions?

The benefits of all-girls schools are numerous and well documented: single-sex schools have consistently produced graduates with significant academic capabilities and confidence. School officials in single-sex schools report that test scores and attendance rates increase, and studies have shown that single-sex private schools produce higher SAT scores and AP scores than comparable co-ed private schools.

The benefits of single-sex education spread beyond that of test scores. Girls are more likely to “participate in discussions,” ask for help, and feel “comfortable being themselves.” Strikingly, female graduates of single-sex schools self-report higher academic confidence than graduates of other institutions, which is incredibly important, given that “pride in schoolwork is the most important factor in girls’ self-esteem.”

Female graduates from single-sex schools also pursue traditionally male-dominated fields and majors at higher rates than co-ed graduates, aspire to more prestigious careers, and hold less stereotypical attitudes about male and female sex roles. Based on my observations, villages like Achbarou benefit tremendously from girls in their community pursuing education. Most girls and women in Achbarou yearn for knowledge. Trusted role models and mentors from their village can expedite the process of girls completing their degrees and transform perceptions of educated women.

Despite the academic benefits of single-sex education for girls, co-ed education has the potential to eradicate gender stereotypes and uphold classroom equity. In many school systems, boys are becoming the disadvantaged group (in America, the average eleventh-grade boy writes at the same level as the average eighth-grade girl). Co-ed instruction has been found to be more conducive to boys’ learning styles and to reduce gender stereotyping. In English classes, for example, it is beneficial to “hear the views of the other sex on the social and emotional issues discussed.” Co-ed schools also have social benefits; graduates of single-sex schools have been found to take longer to adjust to university.

However, studies argue that co-ed or single-sex education makes no significant difference, and instead, one should focus on systemic change to education systems. Many studies of single-sex education have found the data unsubstantial due to the difficulty of controlling for a single variable like gender. For example, one case study in the UK found that the quality of the teacher was more important than their gender. Another UK study even found that the girls involved preferred mixed classes.

Given the ambiguous answer on single-sex versus co-education, Moroccan development organizations can utilize aspects of single-sex education when empowering girls. One example is girls' support groups within co-ed schools. Girls have specific gender-based needs, such as confidence and navigating family and stereotypes, that can be positively addressed in support groups. Girls on the Run, an empowerment program based in the United States, found that “85% of girls improved in confidence, caring, competence, character development, or connection to others.” The benefits of girls’ empowerment programs are not limited to the participants. A 2002 USAID scholarship program for girls in Morocco led to participants hosting literacy classes for other girls and changing the stereotypes of educated women in their village.

Single-sex education has many benefits for girls, including higher test scores and confidence in the classroom. Yet, co-education is important for social development. Ultimately, what matters most is providing girls the opportunity to attend school. Once a secondary school, or even a university, is built within walking distance of Achbarou, those promoting development should utilize girls' support groups in co-ed schools as an effective tool for girls' empowerment.

Miriem, Sarah, and Naima are bright stars, capable of illuminating their village and Morocco with swaths of glorious energy bound up in their wide smiles and welcoming hearts. We must help keep their lights alive, adding fuel to their fire wherever we can.