Parents, have you read your child's textbook lately? | The Tennessean | tennessean.com

One of the many benefits of homeschooling is not only knowing what's in your children's text books, but also choosing those textbooks.  Everything your children are taught will meet your approval.

There are two areas that should be a nationwide concern for parents due to the pressure of certain political organizations and activist groups. I will only discuss one in this article due to the length. After checking my child's homework one night, I found an entire chapter dedicated to Islam. I understand that the formation of religion is a part of history and therefore should be discussed briefly; however, the length and depth of material are completely inappropriate. In the Holt World History book, the Islamic World chapter covers the roots of Islam, Islamic beliefs and practices, Islamic empires and cultural achievements. (14 pages of Islam compared to three pages of Christianity). Christianity was covered in one section under the Roman empire chapter. Furthermore, the chapter of Islam was whitewashed from clearly explaining the aspects of Sharia Law, the treatment and rights (or lack thereof) of women, and how Islam is "tolerant" (or not so much) toward other religions. The textbook glosses over the spread of Islam through bloodshed of non-Muslims and points out that trade "helped" non-Muslims convert (page 363). The post 9/11-issued book explains that jihad is "to make an effort, or to struggle." Only in the last sentence was jihad also translated as "holy wars." Although 96 percent of all social studies text books have been revised since that horrifying historic event, one-third of the textbooks make no mention of 9/11 according to the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement. Another disturbing discovery, the textbook refers to Allah as God several times. As a Christian, I find the interchanging of "Allah" and "God's" name offensive. Any studied Christian or Muslim would attest that the two religions believe in two different beings as God. Why, then, are the two different beliefs of God being presented as one?

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20111223/HENDERSONVILLE06/312230080/Parents-have-you-read-your-child-s-textbook-lately

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