Israeli History Textbooks and the Palestinians: Remarks on a Critical Theory of Israeli School Education

Abstract

This article first of all illustrates how Israeli history schoolbooks fail to represent or misrepresent the culture of Palestinian citizens of Israel, and then explains the ways in which such mis- or non-representation hinders the cultivation of vital democratic virtues like empathy. Following that, the article identifies three obstacles for rendering Israeli school education more democratic: Israel's identity as a ‘Jewish and democratic state’, the socio-political domination of Palestinian citizens of Israel outside the educational system, and the unwillingness to recognise the existence of moral dilemmas. The article concludes that overcoming these obstacles is crucial for improving democratic education in Israel.