Some school children in Texas' Mansfield Independent School District will soon be required to learn Arabic, thanks to a federal government grant.
According to a Dallas CBS News affiliate, Mansfield ISD received the Foreign Language Assistance Program (FLAP) grant last summer. It is one of only five districts in the country to be awarded the grant.
Parents were caught by surprise and learned of the grant Monday night in a meeting with district Superintendent Bob Morrison.
CBS News reported:
As part of the five-year $1.3 million grant, Arabic classes would be mandatory at Cross Timbers Intermediate School and Kenneth Davis Elementary School. The program would also be optional for students at T. A. Howard Middle School and Summit High School.
According to a PDF file provided by the school district, Cross Timbers was selected because it has "the highest percentage of native Arabic speakers in the district." The district sees these students as a resource to help develop the program.
Students will not only learn the language - the curriculum will include Arabic culture, government, art, traditions and history.
Some parents were concerned their children would be taught Islam as part of the program.
"The school doesn't teach Christianity, so I don't want them teaching Islam," said parent Baron Kane.
Although Superintendent Morrison reassured parents their children would not be taught Islam, the concern is valid since many Arabic nations - like Saudi Arabia - are governed by Sharia law, which is based on Islam and teachings from the Koran.
Arabic has been identified by the federal Department of Education as a "language of the future", and the district believes the grant provides an excellent opportunity to prepare students for the economy of the future.
According to the district, the program provides several benefits:
• This project is federally funded for $ 1.3 million dollars over a 5 year period.
• This project adds a critical foreign language option for students in MISD.
• Successful Arabic foreign language studies (Arabic I, II, III) increases college and scholarship opportunities.
• This allows students to be prepared to compete globally for jobs that are not in existence yet.
• This project supports the diversity within MISD.
• This project allows students and teachers to learn about the Arab impact on our country.
• This grant allows for us to develop a partnership with the University of Texas at Austin.
Some, like Kheirieh Hannun, believes the program will help tear down some of the stereotypes people have of the Arabic culture, but the move may cause concern for those who see a creeping Islamization of America.