Changes to Syria’s school curriculum spark online outrage

CNN — Syria’s new government is facing backlash after announcing changes to the school curriculum, including introducing what some critics say is an Islamist slant to teaching. The changes, published in a list of amendments on the education ministry’s official Facebook page, include changing the phrases “path of goodness” to “Islamic path,” and “those who have are damned and have gone astray” to “Jews and Christians” – which pertains to an ultra-conservative interpretation of a verse in Islam’s holy book, the Quran. Some social media users questioned why an interim government is making amendments to the curriculum, while others rejected what they perceived as attempts to “erase” parts of the country’s history. “The current government is a caretaker government that does not have the right to make these amendments to the curricula,” one user commented on the ministry’s Facebook post. Amid the backlash, the ministry sought to play down the changes saying, “the curricula in all schools across Syria remain unchanged until specialized committees are formed to review and audit them.” A statement issued on behalf of education minister Nazir Mohammad al-Qadri said that the ministry “only instructed the removal of content glorifying the deposed Assad regime and replaced images of the regime’s flag with those of the Syrian revolution’s flag in all textbooks.” The ministry said its announcement pertained to the correction of certain “inaccuracies” that were present during the Assad regime in the Islamic education curriculum, “such as the misinterpretation of some Quranic verses.” The new education minister has previously said that Syria’s school curricula will not change beyond the removal of references to the former ruling Baath party.