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British kids get a lesson in avoiding extremists
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Muslim teachers question whether some of curriculum is appropriate for young students
May 24, 2007 04:30 AM
Raphael G. Satter
Associated Press
LONDON–Britain is funding a curriculum that aims to teach children in Muslim religious schools how to steer clear of extremism, but some of the lessons are worrying Muslim educators.
One lesson plan goes something like this: A group of Islamic extremists want to buy fertilizer that could be used to make a bomb. Should the shopkeeper sell it to them? Or take Ahmad, whose friends want to attack a local supermarket in retaliation for the war in Iraq. Is it right for Ahmad to harm innocent Britons because their government invaded a Muslim country?
The curriculum's answer in both cases is no, but the fact these scenarios are being considered at all has prompted concern among Muslim teachers, who question whether they are appropriate for young students.
Some also feel insulted that the program appears to make the assumption the religious schools, or madrassas, are teeming with budding terrorists.
"In an educational setting, those propositions are a bit stark," said Tahir Alam, chair of the Muslim Council of Britain's education committee.
The British government acknowledged the curriculum raised sensitive issues, but said they were needed to give Muslims the practical skills they needed to reject extremism.
"The project ensures that young Muslim students learn the true teachings of Islam," said a spokesperson for the Department of Communities and Local Government.
"There will be difficult issues and scenarios to discuss – but it would be wrong to shy away from them," she said.
Ten Muslim clerics have been teaching the lessons in six madrassas and a school in Bradford, north of London. About 500 students have completed the course. The department hopes to eventually roll out the program nationally to some of the 100,000 madrassa students.
The project, called "Nasiha," or "guidance," draws on the Qur'an, sharia law, and traditional Muslim scholarship to show that British laws are in harmony with Islamic values.
The stated objective is to teach children, most between the ages of 8 and 14, "to realize that to harm or terrorize citizens in the U.K. is not something permitted in Islam," and "to be able to identify individuals or groups who preach hatred and learn ways of avoiding them."
While some of the lessons cover things like bullying or good manners, others are explicitly aimed at defusing Muslims' anger over the war in Iraq.
Teachers are asked to remind students that some of their schoolmates may be in the military, and that as citizens "they should take an active role for their safe return in what many may consider an unjust war."
One counterterrorism expert had mixed feelings about the project. "One lesson from school is not going to change fundamental attitudes," said Peter Neumann of the Centre for Defence Studies at King's College, London. But as part of a broader strategy, he said, the lessons could play a key role in getting Muslims to place more trust in British authorities.
The curriculum, due to be published as a book in December, is still open to amendments, said project manager Sajid Hussain, acknowledging that some of the examples – like the fertilizer bomb – were a little too explicit.
The program has received more than $200,000 in government money as part of a larger program intended to fight extremism in the Muslim community.
