Spain: Courses on Islam in Public Schools

TEHRAN (IQNA) – The Spanish government has published new guidelines for teaching Islam in public preschools and primary and secondary schools.

The guidelines are said to serve to prevent Muslim children and young people from being drawn into extremism by exposing them to a moderate interpretation of Islam.

Drafted by the Islamic Commission of Spain and approved by the Ministry of Education, they are also said to be aimed at promoting Islamic identity among young Muslims in Spain.

The new plan, which is the most ambitious in all of Europe, is a government-approved program to establish an Islamic studies curriculum at public schools nationwide.

There are up to 300,000 Muslim students between the ages of 3 and 18 and the government has agreed to allow local Muslim organizations to draft the course syllabi, choose the textbooks, and determine who will teach the classes.

Spain's Ministry of Education published the guidelines in the official state gazette (Boletín Oficial del Estado) on March 18.

Source: Gatestone Institute