Changes to Syria\u2019s school curriculum have sparked controversy and a\nwave of criticism on social media. Among the revisions are adding hijabs\nto images of female figures, removing images of women and children,\ncovering statues, and replacing paintings and other works of art.<\/p>\n
According to a report by Euronews, the changes have revived debate\nover the standards used by the Education Ministry when reviewing the\ncurriculum, and how far those standards take account of Syria\u2019s social\nand cultural diversity.<\/p>\n
Changes to images, illustrations and educational\ncontent<\/strong><\/p>\n A Syrian user of social media platform X posted a comparison of old\nand revised editions of school textbooks.<\/p>\n The changes are not limited to text: images and illustrations have\nalso been altered using Photoshop. A female teacher character has been\nreplaced with a hijab-wearing version, a female character is shown\nwearing a long dress, images of women have been removed, statues have\nbeen covered, and statues and works of art have been removed or\nreplaced.<\/p>\n Visual changes to paintings and expressive illustrations have become\nthe main focus of the controversy. The committee removed the famous\npainting Mona Lisa<\/em> and an image in a textbook for young\nchildren showing a girl skipping beside two children.<\/p>\n Pharaoh wearing a shirt<\/strong><\/p>\n One example that prompted mockery and debate on social media was a\nstatue of a pharaoh wearing a striped shirt, which many users said\nresembled a prison uniform.<\/p>\n The revisions also extend to school maps. The occupied districts of\nIskenderun and the Syrian Golan were removed from one map. A paragraph\nabout Syrian women\u2019s role in resisting the French Mandate was also\ndeleted. This has raised questions about the motives behind the changes\nand their impact on the historical narrative presented to students.<\/p>\n Critics and observers have accused the government of seeking to\nimpose a particular ideology through the education system. They argue\nthat changing the visual depiction of female characters and removing\nelements of global artistic heritage reflect an effort to reshape\nchildren\u2019s perceptions and foster a new social identity.<\/p>\n The Syrian Education Ministry rejected the accusations in an official\nstatement on Monday. It said the revisions focus only on removing\nsymbols and ideological content associated with the ousted regime and\ncorrecting images and materials linked to it. The changes are\nconcentrated particularly in social studies and Islamic education\ncurricula, which have been combined and unified, the ministry said, in\norder to preserve Syrian society\u2019s diversity and strengthen the\nrepresentation of all its communities and cultures.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/school-curriculum-changes-pharaoh-image-replaced-and-historic-cities-removed-1793443874",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}