The Texas State Board of Education gave final approval to high school social studies curriculum that dictates how students will learn about Islam and Christianity.
Under the new curriculum, students will learn that radical Islam was behind the September 11, 2001, terror attack. The educational material states that students will “identify the significance of September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks motivated by radical Islam, including the roles of George W. Bush, Colin Powell, and Condoleezza Rice, the launch of the Global War on Terror in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the decline of civil liberties due to the PATRIOT Act,” American Faith previously reported.
Students will also separately learn about the “teachings of jihad and how these teachings led to the expansion of Islam and the conquest of Christian lands including Jerusalem, Syria, and Egypt,” and explain the “rise of radical Islam, including Iranian proxies, terrorism, Al Qaeda, September 11, 2001, and Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).”
According to a report from ABC13, the curriculum will also include the use of the term “brutal” to describe Islamic campaigns against Jewish and Christian groups.
“I think we can all agree military battles and wars are all brutal, but we have not described any others that way,” said board member Will Hickman.
“We’re whitewashing and watering down a part of history that I think is very consequential to understanding world events throughout history and understanding the context of one of the what’s considered one of the major religions of today. And, so I think that would be just a grave mistake to remove this word,” fellow board member Brandon Hall said.
Texas students are also set to incorporate Bible reading within their academics in a separate approved curriculum.
