Photographs spread on social media of an elementary-school teacher in Iraq showing a class of young children how to wash bodies in preparation for burial have caused a backlash, says a report in Joseph Farah’s G2 Bulletin.
“Are we training our children to be morticians?” and “In what direction are you taking education?” were just two of the comments.
The negative reaction was documented by the researchers at the Middle East Media Research Institute, who found comments in social media and in the press.
“Alongside harsh criticism of the teacher himself and his decision to teach a lesson deemed inappropriate for children of that age, and of the Education Ministry for allowing the teacher such freedom of action, some claimed that this incident shows how the Iraqi education system is becoming more religious and extreme, with the encouragement of both Sunni and Shiite political Islam parties,” MEMRI reported.
“Some even argued that this reflects a collapse of the country’s education system and its system of moral values.
MEMRI said reports on the incident did not mention the teacher’s name or the name of the school, and there was no official response by the Iraqi Education Ministry.
There were only personal responses by Iraqi teachers and educators.
The report said teacher Nabil Ni’ma called for hospitalizing any educator who thinks school children should be such such subjects.
This incident, the teacher suggested, “is no less grave than (the actions of) ISIS and its ilk.”
MEMRI said another teacher, Taghrid Hadi, asked:Â “Are the destruction, death and horrifying images on TV and social networks not enough? And this is without even mentioning what our children hear from some preachers.”
Education officials said the lesson wasn’t part of their curriculum, and it appears the teacher “erred” by adding it into the school program.
For the rest of this report, and more, please go to Joseph Farah’s G2 Bulletin.
