This morning, my father forwarded me an article, printed yesterday, April 2, 2007 in The London Daily Mail.

Shocked does not even begin to express my initial reaction…appalled is more like it. I should preface my outrage with the statement that I do my best to respect and tolerate all cultures, religions and diverging points of view. However, I believe, in this instance, we have crossed the line from religious and cultural tolerance to the perpetuation of IN-tolerance and blatant propaganda.

I offer two scenarios:

Theoretical

You are teaching in a public school and a child beings touting the belief that all redheads are witches. They have actually stolen the fire from hell and should be burned at the state. Ok, wait. Let’s pick a scenario that’s a tad more universally outrageous….

Ok, so you’re teaching and a child starts spouting offensive, racial epithets against African Americans, saying that slavery never happened and that, in fact, the entire Civil War was a hoax. Furthermore, it was their religious and cultural belief that Abraham Lincoln is on the same plane of existence with Santa Clause and the Easter Bunny. Would you ….

A) Attempt to ignore the child and encourage the school to devise some sort of independent study for them during the class’s President’s Day celebration.

B) Resolve to teach American History only POST the 13th Amendment, obscure all photographs of the Lincoln Memorial in text books and ban the use of pennies and $5 bills on school grounds and grant the child’s petition to start a Future Members of the KKK Organization – after all, the school shouldn’t trample on anyone’s religious beliefs.

C) Continue your history lessons as planned teaching the ENTIRE class the historical facts surrounding the Civil War and slavery and assign the students to memorize the Gettysburg address. Then promptly threaten the little racist urchin with suspension for the use of inappropriate and offensive language towards classmates of all color.*

Factual

Teachers Drop the Holocaust to Avoid Offending Muslims

By LAURA CLARK

Schools are dropping the Holocaust from history lessons to avoid offending Muslim pupils, a Government backed study has revealed.

It found some teachers are reluctant to cover the atrocity for fear of upsetting students whose beliefs include Holocaust denial.

There is also resistance to tackling the 11th century Crusades - where Christians fought Muslim armies for control of Jerusalem - because lessons often contradict what is taught in local mosques.

The findings have prompted claims that some schools are using history 'as a vehicle for promoting political correctness'.

The study, funded by the Department for Education and Skills, looked into 'emotive and controversial' history teaching in primary and secondary schools.

It found some teachers are dropping courses covering the Holocaust at the earliest opportunity over fears Muslim pupils might express anti-Semitic and anti-Israel reactions in class.

The researchers gave the example of a secondary school in an unnamed northern city, which dropped the Holocaust as a subject for GCSE coursework.

The report said teachers feared confronting 'anti-Semitic sentiment and Holocaust denial among some Muslim pupils'.

It added: "In another department, the Holocaust was taught despite anti-Semitic sentiment among some pupils.

"But the same department deliberately avoided teaching the Crusades at Key Stage 3 (11- to 14-year-olds) because their balanced treatment of the topic would have challenged what was taught in some local mosques."

A third school found itself 'strongly challenged by some Christian parents for their treatment of the Arab-Israeli conflict-and the history of the state of Israel that did not accord with the teachings of their denomination'.

The report concluded: "In particular settings, teachers of history are unwilling to challenge highly contentious or charged versions of history in which pupils are steeped at home, in their community or in a place of worship."

But Chris McGovern, history education adviser to the former Tory government, said: "History is not a vehicle for promoting political correctness. Children must have access to knowledge of these controversial subjects, whether palatable or unpalatable."

The researchers also warned that a lack of subject knowledge among teachers - particularly at primary level - was leading to history being taught in a 'shallow way leading to routine and superficial learning'.

Lessons in difficult topics were too often 'bland, simplistic and unproblematic' and bored pupils.

Could someone please help me understand the logical rationale behind this….because I am at a loss.

Frankly,

 * This quiz was brought to you by the letter ‘C’.