Below are reviews and criticism of the Arab World Studies Notebook, which was used extensively in Newton high school history classes until public protest forced its removal from most classrooms in June 2012. (School official's contentions that the Notebook was removed in 2011 are false. One chapter was removed in 2011; however, at least seven other chapters of this widely criticized text remained in use. Administrators who claimed otherwise were aware of this when they told parents that the Notebook was removed).
These reviews were available to teachers and administrators through a simple internet search. With so much available information about the Notebook's inadequacies, as well as the fact that its inaccuracies should be apparent to anyone familiar with the subject matter, why did Newton schools continue to use the Notebook for years, until a fourteen-year-old student protested its blatantly untrue claims?
If you have a child in the Newton school system, find out what they are learning. Read the textbook, handouts, and tests. School materials will improve only when parents become involved in reviewing what their children learn in class and ensure that curriculum materials are accurate and non-biased.
Propaganda, Proselytizing, and Public Education - American Jewish Committee
Arab World Studies Notebook Inappropriate for Public School Teachers - American Jewish Committee
The Stealth Curriculum - Manipulating America's History Teachers (pp. 20-22) - Fordham Foundation
At Newton South, A Lesson in Propaganda - Jewish and Community Research Institute
Indoctrinating Our Youth (pp. 16-21) - Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA)
Tainted Teachings - Jewish Telegraph Agency
Saudi in the Classroom - National Review