Bias in education

Bias in education can refer to real or perceived bias in the educational system.

Bias in school textbooks

The content of school textbooks is often the issue of debate, as their target audience is young people, and the term "whitewashing" is the one commonly used to refer to selective removal of critical or damaging evidence or comment. The reporting of military atrocities in history is extremely controversial, as in the case of the Holocaust (or Holocaust denial) and the Winter Soldier Investigation of the Vietnam War. The representation of every society's flaws or misconduct is typically downplayed in favor of a more nationalist or patriotic view. Also, Christians and other religionists have at times attempted to block the teaching of the theory of evolution in schools, as evolutionary theory appears to contradict their religious beliefs. In the context of secondary-school education, the way facts and history are presented greatly influences the interpretation of contemporary thought, opinion and socialization. One legitimate argument for censoring the type of information disseminated is based on the inappropriate quality of such material for the young. The use of the "inappropriate" distinction is in itself controversial, as it can be used to enforce wider and more politically motivated censorship.

Religious bias

Religious bias in textbooks is often observed in countries where religion plays a dominant role.

Many countries and states have guidelines against bias in education, but they are not always implemented. The guidelines of the California Department of Education (Code 60044) state the following: "No religious belief or practice may be held up to ridicule and no religious group may be portrayed as inferior." "Any explanation or description of a religious belief or practice should be present in a manner that does not encourage or discourage belief or indoctrinate the student in any particular religious belief." [California State Law, Education Code 60044, [http://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/cr/cf/documents/socialcontent.pdf Standards for Evaluating Instructional Materials for Social Content, 2000 Edition] . Retrieved on 15 June 2008]

Bias in education by country or region

United States

Many recent allegations against the United States have surfaced about them hiding many historical facts from the public through public education and thus luring the public to believing that the actions taken by the U.S. government are justified and provide a global benefit. Such bias is typical in most countries.

Howard Zinn and James Loewen are among the well-recognized critics of US history as presented in school textbooks. A People's History of the United States, by American historian and political scientist Zinn, seeks to present American history through the eyes of groups rarely heard in mainstream histories. Loewen spent two years at the Smithsonian Institution studying and comparing twelve American history textbooks widely used throughout the United States. His findings were published in "Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your High School History Textbook Got Wrong".

Middle East

Danielle Glazer has claimed that some textbooks show a bias against Israel [http://www.campus-watch.org/article/id/2081] . In the article "The Arab Image in Hebrew School Textbooks" by professor Dan Bar-Tal of the Tel Aviv University makes a study of 124 textbooks used in Israeli schools and reports that "over the years, generations of Israeli Jews were taught a negative and often delegitimizing view of Arabs." The two main traits of Arabs in the textbooks are "primitiveness, inferiority in comparison to Jews" and "their violence, to characteristics like brutality, untrustworthiness, cruelty, fanaticism, treacherousness and aggressiveness.". In the 1980s and 1990s "Geography books for the elementary and junior high schools stereotype Arabs negatively, as primitive, dirty, agitated, aggressive, and hostile to Jews … history books in the elementary schools hardly mention Arabs … history textbooks of the high schools, the majority of which cover the Arab-Jewish conflict, stereotype the Arabs negatively. Arabs are presented as intransigent and uncompromising." [ [http://www.jewishsf.com/content/2-0-/module/displaystory/story_id/21480/format/html/displaystory.html Reports on Palestinian kids’ hatred grossly exaggerated] [http://www.mideastjournal.com/israelitextbooks6.html Israeli Textbooks and Children’s Literature Promote Racism and Hatred Toward Palestinians and Arabs] ]

South Asia

Bias in education has been a common feature in the curriculum of many South Asian countries. According to Waghmar, many of the oriental societies are plagued by visceral nationalism and post-imperial neurosis where state-sanctioned dogmas suppress eclectic historical readings.Waghmar, B. (2005). " [http://www.dawn.com/weekly/books/archive/050227/books4.htm Pakistan Studies: The State of the Craft] ". Dawn. 27 February. p. 5. Retrieved on 9 June 2008.] Issues such as the preaching of hatred and obscurantism in India, and the distortion of history in Pakistan have led the international scholars to suggest the need for coordinated efforts amongst the historians to produce a composite history of the subcontinent as a common South Asian reader. [Verghese, B.G. (2004). " [http://www.hinduonnet.com/2004/06/23/stories/2004062301721000.htm Myth and hate as history] ". The Hindu. 23 June. Retrieved on 7 June 2008.] However, Nelson here stresses the need for any educational reform to be based at the needs of the level of local communities. [Nelson, M.J. (2006). [http://caliber.ucpress.net/doi/pdf/10.1525/as.2006.46.5.699?cookieSet=1 Muslims, Markets, and the Meaning of ‘A Good Education’ in Pakistan] . "Asian Survey". 46(5). pp. 699-720.]

ee also

* Eurocentrism
* Early Childhood Education
* Pedagogy
* Critical pedagogy
* Philosophy of education
* Japanese history textbook controversies

References

External links

* [http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/6-25-2004-55919.asp Indian school textbooks to be scrapped because of anti-Muslim bias]
* [http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/papers/genderbias.html Gender bias]
* [http://www.eshiusa.org/Documents/SamplesCATextbook2005.htm Examples of inaccuracies and biases in Californian textbooks] [http://www.eshiusa.org/ESHI_Anant_TextbookJan2006.htm]