British schoolchildren are set to have “problematic” words like “immigration” and “homosexuality” removed from papers, while history teachers should avoid the term “medieval”, under new plans from woke exam bosses.
Exam boards across the country have hollowed out so-called “outdated terminology” and are “decolonising” syllabuses in a new inclusivity drive – with one, Edexcel, labelling a series of words, including “immigration”, “slave”, “native Indian” and “gypsy”, as “problematic”.
Edexcel’s latest GCSE history syllabus, which covers topics like Elizabethan England, the USA and Nazi Germany, swaps out “slaves” for “enslaved people” and “native Indians” with “indigenous people”.
Elsewhere, “gypsies” must now be called “Roma and Sinti”, while “Jews” has been cast aside in favour of “Jewish people”.
It also replaces “immigration/immigrant” with “migration/migrant” – and references to tensions caused by immigration to the UK have been axed.
Exam boards across the country have hollowed out so-called “outdated terminology”
PA
In one section, “Whitechapel, c1870–c1900: crime, policing and the city”, pupils would study “the tensions arising from the settlement of immigrants from Ireland and Eastern Europe, pressures caused by the increase in Jewish immigration during the 1880s and the tendency towards segregation”.
But now, in the new course – whose exams will fall next year – teens will cover “the impact of changing patterns of migration: the settlement of migrants from Ireland and Eastern Europe, and the increase in Jewish migration during the 1880s”.
In another historical revision, this time from Welsh board WJEC, the terms “medieval, early modern and modern eras” have been labelled “Eurocentric”.
WJEC’s latest draft GCSE history syllabus tells teachers that in light of the “debates regarding the decolonisation of history” – which are, of course, “welcomed” – they may “wish to avoid using these terms”.
Such “decolonisation” has already been seen at top UK universities, which have already pushed to cancel the term “Anglo-Saxon” this year.
It’s not just history – “homosexuality” has been removed from Edexcel religious studies GCSE in favour of “same-sex sexual relationship” to “use more inclusive, up-to-date terminology which is better suited to the context in which it is used”.
MORE WOKE MADNESS:
Edexcel’s latest GCSE history syllabus swaps out “slaves” for “enslaved people” and “native Indians” with “indigenous people”
PA
Cambridge University exam board OCR, like its competitor Edexcel, has also decided to rename the early inhabitants of North America.
To avoid “outdated terminology”, “Plains Indians” will henceforth be known as “Native Americans of the Plains” – though students have been told they will still receive their marks if they use the “old” words.
Chris McGovern, chairman of the Campaign for Real Education, said: “These changes represent a declaration of educational warfare against British and Western identity. It is akin to China’s Cultural Revolution under Chairman Mao.
“Public examinations are being weaponised to force children to conform to the tyranny of woke ideology. It is an outrageous abuse of the power that exam boards have over young people.”
A spokesman for Edexcel, which is owned by Pearson, said: “Pearson is committed to ensuring content is clear and accurate for teachers and students. We regularly update content in our specifications and involve teachers and other external experts where relevant in this process.”
In another historical revision, this time from Welsh board WJEC, the terms “medieval, early modern and modern eras” have been labelled “Eurocentric”
Jeremy Black, British historian and ex-history professor at Exeter University, said: “It would be welcome if exam boards would focus on maintaining and improving teaching standards rather than addressing passing fads some of which are problematic, to be polite.
“This reworking of the presentation of the past unfortunately appears in some cases to be based on politicised approaches and an aspect of what can fairly be termed culture wars.”
A WJEC spokesman said: “As part of the new specification, schools will offer different routes of study, with a minimum of 50 per cent of the new course now being focused on Welsh and British History.
“In line with other specifications we are also offering options in European and World History: these include optional areas such as the Songhai Empire, where the classification of medieval, early modern and modern periods is less appropriate.
“To ensure that learners have clarity of the timeframes regardless of the region(s) they study in the European and World History options, we will provide dates to indicate the timeframes that we are referring to.
“Whilst some commentators object to attempts to decolonise history, other commentators, of course, do not, and these are the debates that provide the fuel for rich historical discussions.”