While no specific threats were given, the backlash to a homework assignment was so fierce that the Superintendent shut all schools in Augusta County, Virginia today.
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The homework assignment was on Islamic calligraphy in their world geography class. The students were required to copy the calligraphy of the Islamic statement of faith.
The assignment read:
“Here is the shahada, the Islamic statement of faith, written in Arabic. In the space below, try copying it by hand. This should give you an idea of the artistic complexity of calligraphy.”
The Shahada reads: “There is no god but Allah, and Mohammed is the messenger of Allah.“
Writing “there is no God but Allah” did not sit well with many parents.
One parent told a local station:
“There was no trying about it. The sheet she gave out was pure doctrine in its origin. I will not have my children sit under a woman who indoctrinates them with the Islam religion when I am a Christian.”
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From CNN:
After a teacher at a Virginia school handed out a standard homework assignment on Islam, such an angry backlash flooded in that it prompted officials to close every single school in the county as a safety precaution.
“While there has been no specific threat of harm to students, schools and school offices will be closed Friday, December 18, 2015,” Augusta County Schools said. Extracurricular activities were shut down Thursday afternoon.
And social media exploded over the school lesson — a simple drawing assignment — into a caustic discussion about religion and education.
Do you have an issue with this assignment? Talk about it in the comments below.
