A sample exam paper for Year 12 students claimed as fact that Israel has persecuted Arabs by demolishing their homes because “they don’t follow the Jewish religion”.
The contents of the paper provided to Victorian schools has angered the Jewish community, which has criticised the “false” and “libellous’’ claim for potentially fuelling anti-Israel sentiments through the community.
The Australian Council for Health, Physical Education and Recreation last night agreed to recall all copies of the practice assessment task meant for Health and Human Development students, following a complaint from a prominent Jewish school in Melbourne.
The paper, part of the council’s 2019 package of school-assessed coursework tasks, known as SACs, that are provided to schools for a fee, contains questions and answers, including one asking students to demonstrate how religious discrimination affects mental health and wellbeing.
According to the sample answer provided: “An example of an individual being persecuted for their religion could be the Arab families living in Israel who practise the Islam religion rather than the Jewish religion. Including unlawful demolition of homes and forced displacement and detainment of these families.” It claims that “when a person is discriminated against … it could push a person to become more dogmatic in following their religion, possibly leading to extremism”.
Read the article by Rebecca Urban in The Australian.