The Malian Ministry of Education is responsible for managing public schools in Mali.[1] These secular schools are taught in Mali's national language, French.[6] Many parents often pay fees for their children to attend these schools which is considered illegal according to Malian law.[6] Additionally, teachers are kept under a contract which limits the amount of training these educators have access to prior to beginning teaching.[6] This leads to frequent strikes, a shortage of teachers, and large class sizes.[6]