More than 8.23 million pupils are expected back in classrooms on Monday as the 2026-27 school year gets under way.
Public schools account for seven million of them, with 313,975 teachers working across 12,661 schools, according to figures released by the Education Ministry.
Of these schools, 7,015 are in rural areas—more than half the national total.
For more than 533,000 children, Monday will be their first day in primary school.
The numbers are also up at preschool level. More than 650,000 children are expected to enroll this year, an increase of 7.7 percent from last year.
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The ministry has made more than 37,000 preschool classrooms available in public primary schools, adding 1,700 in a year. More than 37,000 educators will work with children at this level.
It expects preschool enrollment to reach 90%.
The new school year also brings another big expansion of the Pioneer Schools program.
There are now 6,753 Pioneer primary schools, 2,125 more than last year. They will take in more than 2.64m pupils—an increase of around 744,000—with 105,000 teachers.
The program has grown at the middle-school level too. The number of Pioneer middle schools has risen by 572 to 1,358, with more than 1.09m pupils and 33,800 teachers.
Another 288 schools are due to open this year: 117 primary schools, 24 community schools, 100 middle schools and 71 upper-secondary schools.
There is more capacity for pupils who live away from school as well. Twenty-seven new boarding facilities have opened, bringing the total to 1,176.
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More than 126,000 pupils use these facilities, including over 71,000 girls.
Second-chance centers, which cater to pupils who have dropped out of school, are expecting around 40,000 beneficiaries this year. That is up 74 percent, with 35,000 places in new-generation centers.
Education Minister Mohamed Saad Berrada marked the start of the school year at Ibn Battouta Primary School in Amer, Salé, on Monday.
First-year pupils there took placement and learning assessment tests as preschool and primary classes got under way.
