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History lessons stymied in Lebanon

by Maira | 3 years, 1 month(s) ago

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Maira

Lebanon has a long and varied history, but schools steer clear of teaching about the country's recent past, as the BBC's Natalia Antelava found out when she visited a school in the capital, Beirut. Kristina and Ali sit side by side in their history class and together they learn about the Phoenicians and the Romans, the Greeks and the Ottomans. But when it comes to Lebanon's more recent, turbulent past - their school teaches them nothing. Modern history is not part of the curriculum in Lebanon and, just like thousands of other children, Kristina and Ali - who are both 14 - turn to their families for answers their history teacher cannot provide. "When I want to know something, I ask my dad," Ali says. Kristina, who comes from a different religious background, says she does the same. Their history teacher does not like the arrangement but, in a country split along sectarian lines, she prefers to stick to it. "Sometimes students ask about more recent events," she says, "but it's difficult to explain things to them without getting into sectarian divisions." Thorny issue In Lebanon, children are not taught modern history because adults cannot agree on it. Even the country's ancient history is a thorny issue here. There are dozens of the government-approved history textbooks that offer different takes on the past. Depending on their religious affiliation, schools can choose books that describe the French as colonialists or liberators and portray the Ottomans as conquerors or as administrators.
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