Teachers in British schools drop the Holocaust to avoid offending Muslims

[The Monkey]

Schools are dropping the Holocaust from history lessons to avoid offending Muslim pupils, a Governmentbacked 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.

Source

I almost thought this was an April Fool's joke when I read it. I guess not.

 

[Jintor]

How the hell does it offend muslims?

 

[Gray Fox]

How the hell does it offend Muslims?

How doesn't it. Practically everything we do in the west offends Muslims, we can't take a dump without a Muslim somewhere being offended.

 

[Jintor]

Taking a dump is pretty offensive, though, especially if you do it on their wall or something. -___-

 

[Remus]

Oh, ffs next thing you know they're gonna stop teaching biology out of fear that they're going to offend creationists. Yeah this makes just as much sens as that.
And another thing, holocaust denial is one of the most f**** up things I've ever heard of.

 

[Dekstar]

This makes me hate living in this country. I just want to leave while the rest of this nation consumes itself, like a big pansy black hole.

 

[CptStern]

The Daily Mail is a British, tabloid newspaper, first published in 1896. It is Britain's second most popular daily paper after The Sun and arguably the most conservative in viewpoint...

"Daily Mail reader" has become something of a phrase in its own right in the UK. The stereotypical Daily Mail reader is characterised as an insular, stupid, slightly racist, homophobic, aspiring middle-class, closet Nazis, conservative who lacks the intelligence to read the broadsheet equivalent the Daily Telegraph.

oh my... any other sources on this story, cant find any

...if true that's pretty stupid of the educational system to cave in over something that's historical fact

 

[Ren.182]

This country seriously needs a kick in the back-side. Everything we do these days is offending the muslims. If they don't like what we do in our country they should go away.

 

[Beerdude26]

Lol Daily Mail

"Daily Mail reader" has become something of a phrase in its own right in the UK. The stereotypical Daily Mail reader is characterised as an insular, stupid, slightly racist, homophobic, aspiring middle-class, closet Nazis, conservative who lacks the intelligence to read the broadsheet equivalent the Daily Telegraph.

Ding Ding Ding

In short: Don't listen to this bullshit, they're just blowing one tiny thing out of proportion. As long as there isn't an official report on this, I call shenanigans.

 

[Pulse]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/6517359.stm

It also said the way the slave trade was taught could leave both white and black children feeling alienated.

Thank you political correctness!

 

[Beerdude26]

All right all HL2.netters gtfo out of Britain I've asked an army officer friend of mine to "accidentally" send a few nukes flying

 

[CptStern]

thanks for the link, much less alarmist:

the national curriculum encouraged teachers to choose content "likely to resonate in their multicultural classrooms" - but some found it difficult to do that.

The Historical Association report claimed: "Teachers and schools avoid emotive and controversial history for a variety of reasons, some of which are well-intentioned.

pretty stupid if you ask me

 

[Llama]

I find Islam offensive, how come we can't ban that?
Such blatant hypocrisy :dozey:
(Sarcasm btw)

To be more serious, we are about to start the holocaust in our RE classes, so I can't say that those reports are wholly true. Sounds like making a mountain out of a molehile

 

[brink's]

if they can teach evolution then they can teach the holocaust. The passing of time and ignorance seem to be going hand in hand recently.

 

[tehsolace]

At least this proves that America isn't the only f***ed up country

 

[Qonfused]

This makes me hate living in this country. I just want to leave while the rest of this nation consumes itself, like a big pansy black hole.

It's the same in America. It's disheartening.

 

[kirovman]

History should be taught as it is - horrifying shocking stuff.

You can't wrap it up in cotton wool because people might become upset. It literally leads to Holocaust denial.

 

[brink's]

At least this proves that America isn't the only f***ed up country

Yea, the more ****ed up counties the better!

 

[repiV]

It's the same in America. It's disheartening.

At least you have two sets of loons that pretty much balance each other out. We don't have many right-wing loons over here (Muslim extremists aside), only the leftie variety.
And we have the choice of voting for slightly left of centre, moderately left of centre or very left of centre, all with varying degrees of authoritarian overtones.

 

[CptStern]

hmmm lamenting the fact that there's no knee-jerk reactionist right wing movement in the UK ..wow did the brits ever get the shit end of the stick

 

[repiV]

hmmm lamenting the fact that there's no knee-jerk reactionist right wing movement in the UK ..wow did the brits ever get the shit end of the stick

The knee-jerk reactionist left wing movement is even worse than the knee-jerk reactionist right wing movement, and it's as abundant here as the opposite in the USA.

 

[CptStern]

what do they have to react against? I thought you said politics were left of centre in your neck of the woods

 

[repiV]

what do they have to react against? I thought you said politics were left of centre in your neck of the woods

Politics are right of centre in the USA, it apparently doesn't stop them having a knee-jerk reactionary right wing movement.

 

[CptStern]

?

but there are policies/issues in the US that the right sees as "liberal scum sucking leftism" put forth by the "left" ..so there's balance at work here ...

...what would british lefties have to comment on if there's no right wing to balance them out?

 

[repiV]

Foreign policy, not making enough concessions for immigrants, investment banks paying large bonuses to their employees, any hint of national pride...to name but a few.
There's an ingrained attitude in this country of looking down on successful people - reverse snobbery, if you will. Much of it probably stems from that.

 

[Solaris]

At least you have two sets of loons that pretty much balance each other out. We don't have many right-wing loons over here (Muslim extremists aside), only the leftie variety.
And we have the choice of voting for slightly left of centre, moderately left of centre or very left of centre, all with varying degrees of authoritarian overtones.

Strange that you say that.

I'd say we have the choice of voting center, right of center, and pretty damn right of center.

 

[Stigmata]

^ ding ding ding

 

[repiV]

Strange that you say that.

I'd say we have the choice of voting center, right of center, and pretty damn right of center.

That's because you're a communist whackjob with no grounding in reality. There's absolutely nothing right-wing about the nanny state, an extensive welfare system, 40% tax, banning England flags, multiculturalism, state school quotas, endless legislation restricting our freedom, pussy justice that favours criminals and stops innocent people from defending themselves or their property, surrendering our sovreignity to the EU and the USA or any of the other socialist hold-my-hand and tell me how to live my life nonsense that's come to define this country.

 

[Raxxman]

That's because you're a communist whackjob with no grounding in reality. There's absolutely nothing right-wing about the nanny state, an extensive welfare system, 40% tax, banning England flags, multiculturalism, state school quotas, endless legislation restricting our freedom or any of the other socialist hold-my-hand and tell me how to live my life nonsense that's come to define this country.

Little harsh...

However I think somebody needs to start taking a stand and knocking (government) heads. Currently all they're doing is hammering massive cultural wedges in society.

 

[repiV]

Little harsh...

However I think somebody needs to start taking a stand and knocking (government) heads. Currently all they're doing is hammering massive cultural wedges in society.

Labour haven't made a single good decision since they took power. All they have done is feed this country to the lions - it's incompetence so profound and surely so obvious it borders on treason.
Red Ken has meanwhile fed London to the dogs with his politics of envy, and has the audacity to try and arrange a huge taxpayer-funded street party to honour Castro! This country is run by a bunch of complete kooks.

 

[Solaris]

Lol "banning england flags".

Someones been reading a little too much of the daily mail.

 

[repiV]

Lol "banning england flags".

Someones been reading a little too much of the daily mail.

I don't read the Daily Mail, asshat (and if there weren't overzealous moderators hanging about, I wouldn't be that polite).
It's not a wholly uncommon occurence to hear of schools banning pupils from bringing in anything with an England flag on it.
Actually have a point and don't cherry-pick what you choose to reply to or just shut up.

 

[Solaris]

I don't read the Daily Mail, asshat (and if there weren't overzealous moderators hanging about, I wouldn't be that polite).
It's not a wholly uncommon occurence to hear of schools banning pupils from bringing in anything with an England flag on it.
Actually have a point and don't cherry-pick what you choose to reply to or just shut up.

Repriv,
That England flag comment is just typical of what you say, it's all over exaggerated rubbish. I've never heard of any school banning the England flag and it just doesn't happen. Maybe once, everything happens once, but you and your right-wing media blow it all out of proportion and rant about it.

 

[repiV]

Repriv,
That England flag comment is just typical of what you say, it's all over exaggerated rubbish. I've never heard of any school banning the England flag and it just doesn't happen. Maybe once, everything happens once, but you and your right-wing media blow it all out of proportion and rant about it.

If you've never heard of it, you live with your head in the sand (yet you're still certain you have all the answers, despite not even being an adult yet).

We do live in a nanny state, we do have an extensive welfare system, we do have 40% tax, certain organisations do ban the England flag, we quite obviously have multiculturalism, state school quotas for university entry are an accepted policy, this government has passed endless legislation restricting our freedom and defining exactly what we can or cannot do in every conceivable situation, we do have a useless justice system that favours criminals and stops innocent people from defending themselves or their property, we are surrendering our sovreignity to the EU and the USA, and this country is leaning towards authoritarianism.
The only person spouting exaggerated rubbish here is you and your LOLZ DAILY MAIL READER (whilst, ironically, lapping up whatever the socialistreview or whatever crap it is you read spoonfeeds you).

This country is a ****ing shithole, why do you think people are leaving in droves where they never used to?
We have the third largest overseas population in the world, and the countries in front of us are both third world nations with over a billion citizens. Wake up.

 

[gick]

I wouldn't worry too much about this. Its typical Daily Mail bullshit - it probably happened in a few isolated cases and they, as always, blow it all out of proportion and make it seem like TONY 'BIG-BROTHER' BLAIR and GYPSY ASYLUM SEEKING DEGENERATE MARXIST HOMOSEXUAL WHITEHALL-MANDARIN UNELECTED-EUROCRAT FRENCH MUSLIM UNION HIPPY DRUG ADDICT ASIAN HOMELESS IMMIGRANT BENEFIT-CHEAT SINGLE-MOTHER LIBERAL-ELITE MULTICULTURALIST LOONEY-LEFTIES are using it in their insidious plot to ban cricket, crumpets, the middle classes, christianity, white people and THE QUEEN GOD BLESS HER SOUL, SIEG HEIL!

I've had a grudge against the Daily Mail ever since they gave Hot Fuzz a bad review because the bad-guys were middle class. I shit you not.

Labour haven't made a single good decision since they took power.

Hyperbole?

They've certainly made a shitload of bad ones, but to say they've made no good ones is'nt very sensible.

 

[repiV]

Hyperbole?

They've certainly made a shitload of bad ones, but to say they've made no good ones is'nt very sensible.

Name three.

 

[gick]

Name three.

These aren't decisions per-se, but you get the idea:

- Lifted 800,000 children and 1,000,000 pensioners out of poverty since 1997
- National minimum wage introduced (and raised to 5.35)
- Devolution for Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
- Record numbers of people in work.
- Longest period of economic growth for 200 years.
- Winter fuel allowance for pensioners (dont get my nan started on this one, she'll talk your ear off) as well as free bus passes and eye tests.
- Dads have the right to two weeks paid paternity leave, and everybody guaranteed 4 weeks paid holiday
- 85,000 more nurses and 27,000 more doctors.
- Waiting times for most operations have halved since 1997
- Independence for the Bank of England
- Personally, I think being part of the intervention in Kosovo was the right thing to do as well.

I could go on, but i've made my point.

Now i'm not saying that they're particularly good, and I probably wouldnt vote for them, but like I said, its not as though they've never done anything beneficial for the nation.

On topic - remember what I said earlier about this being The Daily Mail making a mountain out of a molehill? Well, it is refering to something that happened in ONE department of ONE school. There are three thousand five hundred and ninety four secondary schools in England (1996 stats, sorry, couldnt find them more up to date), not including Northern Ireland, Scotland or Wales.

Here's the report the story came from:

http://www.dfes.gov.uk/research/data/uploadfiles/RW100.pdf

It also says:

"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."

So one teacher is teaching the Crusades, but not the Holocaust, and another is teaching the Holocaust and not the Crusades. To me, this sounds less like EVIL PC GONE MAD and more like an incompetent head of department.

 

[Nemesis6]

Heh, reminds me of something here in Denmark - During Christmas time, it's apparently popular to eat something called j?dekager(means Jewcakes), and the Muslims didn't want to eat them because of the name. At times like this, I wish there was a service allowing ordinary citizens to send hired thugs to beat people up for their stupidity, the before-mentioned being reviewed by a council before being approved. The best part, the creamy center of this is that it was canceled out of fear. Multi-culturism is best served with fear in Britain's case, apparently.

Anyway, this is a new low for England I think.

 

[gick]

Heh, reminds me of something here in Denmark - During Christmas time, it's apparently popular to eat something called j?dekager(means Jewcakes), and the Muslims didn't want to eat them because of the name. At times like this, I wish there was a service allowing ordinary citizens to send hired thugs to beat people up for their stupidity, the before-mentioned being reviewed by a council before being approved.

HOW IRONIC

Anyway, this is a new low for England I think.

Well it would be if it ACTUALLY HAPPENED IN MORE THAN ONE SCHOOL!

 

[mastag]

Who gives a crap about Muslims?


*hides*