The Educational Philosophy and Curriculum of the Palestinian Nationalist Movement

From Arab Palestine to Arab-Islamic Palestine

Bibliographic Data

ID10281533
AuthorsChelsi Mueller (0000-0002-7182-1434, corresponding author)
Year2012
Volume48
Issue3
Pages345-362
Publication date2012-04-26
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueMiddle Eastern Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0026-3206 • E-ISSN: 1743-7881
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/00263206.2012.661721
OpenAlexW1975646886
LanguageEN
Citations received4

The educational curriculum produced by the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority (PA) is said to be situated on the intellectual basis of faith in Allah. The curriculum presents Islam as one of three essential components of the Palestinian identity. The place given to Islam in the educational philosophy and curriculum of the PA signifies a departure from the place given to Islam in the PLO's earlier documents and Fatah's earlier discourse; in fact, owing to the elevated position of Islam, the discourse in the curriculum more closely resembles that of the PLO's Islamist opposition, namely Hamas. This article compares the Palestinian identity discourse as it is presented in the PA educational philosophy (1998) and school curriculum (2000–2006) with the identity discourse in the PLO's earlier philosophy of education as well as Hamas' philosophy of education. The explanation for this change in the discourse of the Palestinian nationalist movement takes into account Fatah's bid to maintain legitimacy in a deeply divided society and Hamas' challenge to Fatah in the Palestinian arena as well as the background of the Islamic revival across the greater Muslim world. Notes 1. For a discussion of collective identities in Palestine prior to the rise of the PLO, see B. Kimmerling, 'The Formation of Palestinian Collective Identities: The Ottoman and Mandatory Periods', Middle Eastern Studies, Vol.36, No.2 (2000), pp.48–81. 2. 'The Palestinian National Charter' (1968), in L.S. Kadi (ed.), Basic Political Documents of the Armed Palestinian Resistance Movement (Beirut: Palestine Research Center, 1969), p.137, article 1. 3. Ibid., article 5. 4. Ibid., article 6. 5. For example, in a speech he gave in Ramallah, Arafat said, 'I salute and welcome my brothers, my kin and the dignitaries of the Christian and Islamic faiths and I tell the Christian sons of my people may you have a good year and may the homeland prosper. Yes to Islamic and Christian national unity.' Quoted from H. Frisch, 'Nationalizing a Universal Text: The Quran in Arafat's Rhetoric', Middle Eastern Studies, Vol.41, No.3 (2005), p.336, n.17. 6. 'Falsafat al-Tarbiya al-Shabb al-'Arabi al-Filastini', Shu'un Filastiniyya, No.10 (June 1972), pp.248–50. 7. Ibid. 8. Ibid., p.248. 9. Ibid., pp.248–9. 10. Ibid., pp.249–50. 11. Ibid. 12. R.P. Mitchell, The Society of the Muslim Brothers (New York: Oxford University Press, 1969), pp.232–59. 13. Z.A. Amr, Islamic Fundamentalism in the West Bank and Gaza: Muslim Brotherhood and Islamic Jihad (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1994), pp.7–9. 14. G. Kepel, Muslim Extremism in Egypt: The Prophet and the Pharaoh (Los Angeles: California University Press, 2003), p.83. 15. M. Litvak, 'The Islamization of the Palestinian Identity: The Case of Hamas' (Tel Aviv University, The Moshe Dayan Center, 1996), http://www.dayan.org/d&a-hamas-litvak.htm (accessed 26 Aug. 2008). 16. Ibid. 17. Mithaq Hamas: Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiyya – Filastin (n.p., 1988) (hereafter the Hamas Charter), article 15. 18. Ibid., article 11. 19. M. Litvak, 'The Islamization of the Palestinian–Israeli Conflict: The Case of Hamas', Middle Eastern Studies, Vol.34, No.1 (Jan. 1998), p.155. 20. Ibid. 21. The Hamas Charter, article 15. 22. Ibid., article 16. 23. Ibid., article 15. 24. Ibid. 25. Ibid. 26. While not developed in relation to the Arab world, Apple and Wong's theoretical literature concerning the relationship between state, education and society and the role that state education plays in state formation provides some valuable tools for understanding the Palestinian case. Michael Apple theorizes that 'official knowledge' contained in state curricula is not just a product of the state apparatus, but is a product of struggles between the state and society. That is because the hegemonic power of the dominant group is not an established fact, but a process. Their hegemonic power is contested and negotiated because the dominant group is constantly trying to achieve an active consensus to its rule. Apple asserts that education and identity discourse is one of the fields in which the dominant group accommodates the culture of the subordinated groups in order to achieve a consensus to its rule. Ting-Hong Wong maintains that the struggle over identity discourse is even more pronounced in the case of state building because state building involves the multiple and conflicting tasks of cultivating a national identity, advancing national and social integration, winning the support from the ruled and outmanoeuvring (internal and external) antagonistic forces. It follows then that the discourse in the Palestinian curriculum related to national identity will reflect both struggles within the state apparatus and negotiations with different elements in the society that lends it legitimacy. M.W. Apple, The State and Politics of Knowledge (New York: RoutledgeFalmer, 2003), pp.1–27; and Ting-Hong Wong, 'Education and State Formation Reconsidered: Chinese School Identity in Postwar Singapore', Journal of Historical Sociology, Vol.16, No.2 (2003), pp.237–65. 27. E. Lavie, 'The Palestinians: Between Unity and Division', State, Opposition and Public Opinion in the Middle East: Conference Proceedings (Tel Aviv University, Moshe Dayan Center, 15 April 2008) (Hebrew). 28. K. Shikaki, 'Palestinians Divided', Foreign Affairs, Vol.81, No.1 (Jan./ Feb. 2002), http://www.foreignaffairs.org/20020101faessay6559/khalil-shikaki/palestinians-divided.html (accessed 29 July 2008). 29. S. Mishal and A. Sela, The Palestinian Hamas: Vision, Violence and Coexistence (New York: Columbia University Press, 2000), p.88. 30. I. Zelkovitz, 'Fatah's Embrace of Islamism', Middle East Quarterly (Spring 2008), http://www.meforum.org/article/1874 31. Jerusalem Media Communications Center, Public Opinion Poll Results (1993–99), http://www.jmcc.org/publicpoll/results/1993/no3.htm (accessed 21 Aug. 2008). 32. Ibid. 33. Ibid. 34. P. Inbari, 'Palestinian Education in the West Bank Under Early Empowerment', Peace Watch Report (Jerusalem: Peace Watch, 1995), p.23. 35. S. Roy, 'Hamas and the Transformation(s) of Political Islam in Palestine', Current History (Jan. 2003), p.16. 36. Assistant Head of Preventative Security to the Head of Preventative Security, PA Official Letter and three attached documents, 13 Nov. 2002, http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam 37. Bassam Jarrar, Interview by G. Usher, 'The Islamist Movement and the Palestinian Authority', Middle East Report, No.189 (July–Aug. 1994), p.28. 38. N. Brown, Palestinian Politics after the Oslo Accords: Resuming Arab Palestine (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2003), p.211. 39. 'The First Palestinian Curriculum Plan' (Ramallah: PA Ministry of Education, 1998), http://www.pcdc.edu.ps/first_curriculum_plan.pdf (accessed 26 May 2008), Preface. 40. Brown, Palestinian Politics after the Oslo Accords, pp.224–6. 41. Ibid., pp.207–13. 42. 'Comprehensive Plan for the Development of the First Palestinian Curriculum' (Ramallah: Curriculum Development Center, 1996), quoted from Brown, Palestinian Politics after the Oslo Accords, p.211. 43. Ibid., p.212. 44. Ibid., p.216. 45. 'The First Palestinian Curriculum Plan' (1998), p.2. 46. Ibid., p.7. 47. Ibid., p.6. 48. Ibid., p.7. 49. 'Roundtable with a Presentation by Dr. Ibrahim Abu Lughod, Director of the Palestinian Curriculum Development Center, Ramallah' (15 Aug. 1996), PASSIA, Meeting Summary, http://www.passia.org/meetings/96/meet28.htm (accessed 4 Aug. 2010). 50. 'The First Palestinian Curriculum Plan' (1998), p.7. 51. Ibid., p.8. 52. 'The First Palestinian Curriculum Plan' (1998), front matter. 53. The Palestinian Curriculum Development Center, http://www.pcdc.edu.ps/textbooks/index.htm (accessed 17 Aug. 2008). 54. For more on the pedagogy of Arab curricula, see A.L. Tibawi, Islamic Education: Its Traditions and Modernization into the Arab National Systems (London: Luzac and Company, 1979); and J.S. Szyliowicz, Education and Modernization in the Middle East (Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1973). 55. Jordan's pre-1967 curriculum also strove to situate the national identity within the greater Arab and Muslim contexts. See, for example, M. Winter, 'The Arab Self-Image as Reflected in Jordanian Textbooks', in A. Susser and A. Shmuelevitz (eds.), The Hashemites in the Modern Arab World (London: Frank Cass, 1995). 56. See, for example, Al-Tarbiya al-Wataniyya, Grade 2 (Ramallah: Palestinian Curriculum Development Center, 2001), part 1, p.16; Al-Tarbiya al-Wataniyya, Grade 5 (Ramallah: Palestinian Curriculum Development Center, 2004), part 1, p.45; Al-Tarbiya al-Wataniyya, Grade 6 (Ramallah: Palestinian Curriculum Development Center, 2000), part 1, p.4; and Al-Tarbiya al-Wataniyya, Grade 4 (Ramallah: Palestinian Curriculum Development Center, 2003), part 1, p.3. 57. Al-Tarbiya al-Wataniyya, Grade 2 (2001), part 1, p.16. 58. Al-Mutala'a wa-l-Nusus, Grade 8 (Ramallah: Palestinian Curriculum Development Center, 2002), part 1, pp.61–2; For a detailed discussion of the 'Arab Canaanite' narrative, see M. Litvak, 'A Palestinian Past: National Construction and Reconstruction', History and Memory, Vol.6, No.2 (1994), pp.25–56. 59. Ibid. 60. Al-Mutala'a wa-l-Nusus, Grade 9 (Ramallah: Palestinian Curriculum Development Center, 2004), part 2, 2004, p.31; See also Tarikh al-Hadarat al-Qadima, Grade 5 (Ramallah: Palestinian Curriculum Development Center, 2002), part 1. 61. Al-Tarbiya al-Wataniyya, Grade 2 (2001), part 1, p.8. 62. Al-Mutala'a wa-l-Nusus, Grade 9 (2004), part 2, p.35. 63. Al-Tarbiya al-Islamiyya, Grade 6 (Ramallah: Palestinian Curriculum Development Center, 2000), part 1, pp.66–9. The same concepts are also presented in the National Education series: see, for example, Al-Tarbiya al-Wataniyya, Grade 4 (2003), part 1, p.10. 64. Al-Tarbiya al-Islamiyya, Grade 5 (Ramallah: Palestinian Curriculum Development Center, 2004), part 1, p.77. 65. Al-Tarbiya al-Islamiyya, Grade 10 (Ramallah: Palestinian Curriculum Development Center, 2004), part 2, p.48. 66. Al-Tarbiya al-Islamiyya, Grade 6 (2000), part 1, pp.66–9. 67. Ibid. 68. The Hamas Charter (1988), article 15; Al-Tarbiya al-Islamiyya, Grade 5 (2004), part 1, p.77. 69. Al-Tarbiya al-Islamiyya, Grade 5 (2004), part 1, p.78. 70. 'The First Palestinian Curriculum Plan' (1998), p.7. 71. Al-Tarbiya al-Wataniyya, Grade 2 (2001), part 1, p.16. 72. Al-Tarbiya al-Islamiyya, Grade 6 (2000), part 1, pp.67–8. 73. Litvak, 'The Islamization of the Palestinian Identity: The Case of Hamas'. 74. The Hamas Charter, article 13. 75. Al-Tarbiya al-Islamiyya, Grade 6 (2000), part 1, p.69. 76. Ibid., p.67. 77. For a detailed analysis of the etymology and historical uses of the word, see J. Chabbi and R. Nasser, 'Ribat', in P. Bearman, Th. Bianquis, C.E. Bosworth, E. van Donzel and W.P. Heinrichs (eds.), Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition (Brill Online, 2010), http://brillonline.nl/subscriber/entry? entry=islam_COM-0919 (accessed 3 Aug. 2010). 78. Al-Tarbiya al-Islamiyya, Grade 5 (2004), part 1, p.78. 79. See, for example, Al-Tarbiya al-Islamiyya, Grade 10 (2004), part 2, pp.48-51; and Al-Tarbiya al-Islamiyya, Grade 5 (2004), part 1, pp.77–9. 80. Al-Tarbiya al-Islamiyya, Grade 10 (2004), part 2, p.50. 81. Ibid., p.50. 82. The Hamas Charter (1988), articles 11 and 6. 83. The Palestinian Declaration of Independence (Algiers: Palestinian National Council, 1988), http://www.palestinecenter.org (accessed 17 July 2008). 84. The Palestinian National Charter (1969), article 16. 85. M. Litvak, 'Hamas: Palestinian Identity, Islam, and National Sovereignty', in A. Susser (ed.), Challenges to the Cohesion of the Arab State (Tel Aviv: Tel Aviv University, The Moshe Dayan Center, 2008), p.168. 86. Al-Tarbiya al-Wataniyya, Grade 6 (2000), part 1, p.6. 87. G. Usher, 'Palestinian Christians after Nazareth', Al-Ahram Weekly, Issue No.458 (2–8 Dec. 1999). 88. Ibid. 89. 'The First Palestinian Curriculum Plan' (1998), pp.1–7. 90. Brown, Palestinian Politics after the Oslo Accords, pp.232–5. 91. See, for example, Al-Tarbiya al-Wataniyya, Grade 2 (2001), part 1, p.8. 92. Al-Tarbiya al-Wataniyya, Grade 6 (2000), part 1, p.71. 93. Al-Tarbiya al-Islamiyya, Grade 1 (Ramallah: Palestinian Curriculum Development Center, 2000), part 1, p.57. 94. For a discussion of nationalism and religious symbolism in the developing world, see E. Kedourie, introduction to E. Kedourie (ed.), Nationalism in Asia and Africa (London: Frank Cass, 1974), pp.66–7 and 74–5. 95. Zelkovitz, 'Fatah's Embrace of Islamism'. 96. L.A. Allen, 'The Polyvalent Politics of Martyr Commemorations in the Palestinian Intifada', History and Memory, Vol.6, No.2 (2006), pp.107–38. 97. Zelkovitz, 'Fatah's Embrace of Islamism'. 98. The Hamas Charter, articles 15 and 27

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