Images of Moroccan Geological Heritage in Life and Earth Sciences Textbooks of Second Year College from 2004 to 2017: Case of the Volcanic Chain of the Middle Atlas

Abstract

The textbooks of Life and Earth Sciences (LES) are tools of learning and essential vectors of the geological heritage or "geosites". Based on this observation, we analyzed the content of two textbooks of the  LES of the second year of the secondary school cycle, operative in Morocco (El Moufid and El Massar) from 2004 to 2017 about the geological heritage of the national territory relating to the volcano concept, more precisely, the volcanic chain of the Middle Atlas. This comparative analysis allowed us to determine whether there was an evolution of the content of this heritage through these years and the usefulness of the presence of this volcanic geological heritage in textbooks. For this comparative analysis, we used as an investigation tool an analysis grid. Our study revealed that there are indeed deep gaps in this concept. The conclusion, therefore, concerns the need to improve the contents of these two manuals, which have not changed over the years. Therefore, a major effort must be made to give a place to this volcanic geological heritage as part of the teaching of the LES and environmental education and heritage of learners.