We reported on a JNS story on Friday about an Illinois school district offering teacher’s a blatantly anti-Israel course called “Teaching Palestine.” After hearing objections from teachers and community members, the Niles Township High School District 219 is now withdrawing the course and has apologized for the “mistake.”
According to JNS, the lesson was developed, not by the district, but by the group Teachers for Social Justice, and the district claims it “was never going to provide continuing education credits or lane advancement credit for the course.” StandWithUs and the Simon Wiesenthal Center, which had raised concerns with the district when news first arose, applauded the reversal.
This serves as a reminder that the involvement of the community and the wider public is paramount in fighting the politicization of K-12 education.
