Turkey’s education ministry reportedly announced a new school curriculum that excludes lessons on Charles Darwin’s theory of biological evolution while allowing religious schools to teach the concept of Islamic jihad.
Education Minister Ismet Yilmaz said during a news conference Tuesday that evolution is too difficult for students to understand before college and that the theory would not appear in the 2017-2018 curriculum, Reuters reported.
The curriculum also allows Turkey’s religious schools to teach the concept of jihad as a spiritual struggle.
“It is also our duty to fix what has been perceived as wrong. This is why the Islamic law class and basic fundamental religion lectures will include [lessons on] jihad,” Mr. Yilmaz said, Reuters reported. “The real meaning of jihad is loving your nation.”
Alpaslan Durmus, who chairs the board of education, first announced the move last month, saying evolution was too controversial and complicated for young students.
“If our students don’t have the background, the scientific knowledge, or information to comprehend the debate around controversial issues, we have left them out,” Mr. Durmus in a video published on the education ministry’s website, translated by CNN.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has spoken before about raising a “pious generation,” has been accused of hurting secularism with the new curriculum, Reuters reported.
“The new policies that ban the teaching of evolution and requiring all schools to have a prayer room, these actions destroy the principle of secularism and the scientific principles of education,” said Mehhmet Balik, chairman of the Union of Education and Science Workers.
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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