IMPACT-se Review: The Georg Eckert Institute Report on the Palestinian Curriculum

The 2021 Georg Eckert Institute for International Textbook Research report into Palestinian Authority textbooks is a welcome addition to the corpus of knowledge about the most recent iteration of the Palestinian national curriculum. Commissioned by the European Union, this report identifies many of the same systemic problems that other research institutes have brought to light over the past several years: Palestinian textbooks feature content that promotes the glorification of terrorism and martyrdom, violence, antisemitism and hate. The report, however, fails to provide a complete and accurate picture of the state of the PA curriculum. It exaggerates positive features, minimizes negative aspects, and refrains from drawing meaningful conclusions about self-evident problematic findings. It examines minor aspects of the textbooks without attempting to describe how they fit into the greater narrative of the PA curriculum. Overall, the report does not discuss the likely effect of the curriculum on Palestinian students, nor what type of Palestinian national civil society may emerge as a result. These errors and omissions will leave an unwitting reader with an unrealistic understanding of the PA textbooks, which is unfortunate given the time and effort that went into preparing the report. Complete Review HERE