Schools in England block lessons on Middle East over fears of bias claims

Jews pray at the Western Wall, beside the Temple Mount, known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary, or the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, in the Old City of Jerusalem. Photograph: Jon Gambrell/AP

A generation of young people are not learning about the history of the Israel-Palestine conflict because schools are afraid of being accused of bias, according to teachers in England.

Fewer than 2% of GCSE history students in England studied a module on the Middle East in 2020, and experts estimate that only 27 schools in England currently teach it. The Observer has learned that some schools are blocking attempts to introduce the subject, in spite of active interest from pupils, due to the amount of “heat” the topic draws and worries about “bad publicity”.