Arsonists torch Palestinian school in East Jerusalem for adopting Israeli curriculum

A school in East Jerusalem in 2021

Nir Hasson reports in Haaretz on 5 September 2023:

A school building in East Jerusalem was set on fire early Tuesday morning following its recent establishment by the Jerusalem municipality to teach Israel’s educational curriculum rather than that of the Palestinian Authority. No injuries were reported.

The building in the Kafr Aqab neighborhood, beyond the separation barrier, was also recently fired upon by Palestinian gunmen last week.  Students on Tuesday were taken to a separate location for the school day.

Schools in East Jerusalem have historically been taught the Palestinian curriculum and their students are tested in the Palestinian Authority’s Tehujihi exams (which are equivalent to the Israeli matriculation program). However, in recent years Israel’s Education Ministry and the Jerusalem municipality have increased pressure on introducing the Israeli curriculum to East Jerusalem schools.

Today, most neighborhoods have at least one school that teaches the Israeli curriculum, and in many cases within an existing school, some of the classrooms have been opened or changed to teach Israeli programs.

As a result, around 18 percent of East Jerusalem students currently study Israel’s education curriculum, which is a sharp increase within the last decade. One reason is an increased demand by Palestinians to integrate into Israeli academic institutions in recent years, however, many Palestinians still see it as a violation of the students’ national identity.

Until today, Kafr Aqab, a large neighborhood close to Ramallah, has had its schools only employ the Palestinian Authority’s curriculum. In order to establish the new school, called Ilia, the municipality moved an existing school that operated there to another building, and has encountered difficulties since. At least four educators have backed out of being employed as the school’s principle after being threatened by gunmen.

Simultaneously, a teacher strike that broke in schools in the Jebel Mokbar neighborhood in southern Jerusalem due to the municipality’s decision to move an existing school to open one that will teach the Israeli curriculum.

This article is reproduced in its entirety