Figure 1.--This is the CE1 class at the Ecole Maraval during 1949. The school is lovated in Oran, Algeria. Only a few of the boys here are wearing smocks.

The Ecoloe Maraval was a state primary school located in Oran, Algeria. We do not have any details on the history of the school, but note that it was operating after World War II. It appears to be a boys' primary school. Most of the children look French, but there are a few boys who look to have been Algerian.

The School

We have virtually no information about the school except that it was a state primary school for boys in Oran. It looks to have been a relatively modern school.

Students

It is a little difficult to tell, but the children look mostly like French children. We do see, however, some children that are clearly Algerian. This shows that the school admitted Algerian children, but that apparebntly few Algerian parents wanted to send their children to French schools. The language may have been a factor as the schools like the Ecole Gambetta were taught in France. There may well have been other factors which kert the Algerian children from the school. Onereader tells us that there were French and Algerian neigborhoods which reflected the makeup of the different schools.

Gender

School photographs from the Ecole Maraval suggest that it was not common to teach boys and girls togerher in the same class. Some schools were separate. Others separated the classes within the school. The only major exception was the nursery class. This school looks to be an all boys school.

Classes

We note school photographs of classes from different grade (form) levels at the Ecole Maraval. We notice all the different grade levels from maternelle through CM2. The boys in these different grades wore a wide range in outfits which varied both by age and chroolgically. We also note a difference seasonally with more boys wearing short pants in the warm weather. Kneesocks were not very common, except when worn with knickers, but we note a few boys wearing them with shorts..

Chronology

We do not know when the Ecole Maraval was founded, but the building looks quite modern. The images we note come from the post-World War II era. There are quite a few photographs from the 1940s and 50s. We do not have any photographs from the 1960s. Algeria gained its independence in 1961 and most of the French people returned to France at this time.

School Internet Site

The school has an internet site. There are quite a number of photographs, but very little information about the school.

French Grade Levels

The grade levels at the French schools in Algeria followed the system in France. This would of course be the old French system before the reforms of 1968.