Review of the Jordanian Curriculum 2025-2026
IMPACT-se’s latest review of Jordanian textbooks for the 2025-2026 school year, covering 125 textbooks, including 32 newly introduced textbooks, finds that although key themes include tolerance and religious moderation, problematic material persists and new concerning content has also been introduced. Although the curriculum promotes coexistence, peacemaking and presents women in more diverse roles, both old and new materials continue to glorify violent interpretations of jihad and martyrdom, and contain highly antisemitic stereotypes and tropes, as well as deeply homophobic content.
Read the full report here.
Falling Short: Review of Jordanian Textbooks for 2024-2025
IMPACT-se’s latest review of Jordan’s 2024–2025 national curriculum finds a troubling regression in content related to peace, tolerance, and coexistence. While Jordan’s textbooks cite the Amman Message and emphasize religious harmony between Christians and Muslims, the curriculum continues to reinforce extreme antisemitic tropes, justify violence against Israel, and portray the peace treaty with Israel in a negative light. Notably, a newly introduced textbook downplays and legitimizes Hamas’s October 7 attack, falsely presenting it as a response to Israeli actions while omitting the murder of over 1,100 Israeli civilians. Israel’s existence continues to be erased from maps, while Zionism is framed as a racist colonial conspiracy. The Holocaust is entirely absent from history lessons.
Additionally, the curriculum contains new content promoting intolerance towards women and LGBTQ+ individuals, labeling homosexuality as a threat to humanity and reinforcing rigid, discriminatory gender roles. Despite Jordan’s long-standing diplomatic relations with Israel, its educational materials fail to align with UNESCO standards of peace and tolerance, instead promoting division, hostility, and extremist narratives.
Review of Jordan’s School Curriculum 2014-22
This IMPACT-se research revisits Jordan’s national school curriculum following our 2019 report. It offers a comprehensive insight into 165 textbooks, dated 2014-2022, across grades 1-12. The study focuses on humanities subjects, particularly Islamic education, history, Arabic language, civics and social studies. Our findings revealed that, in contrast with our initial report, the Jordanian curriculum shows marked deterioration in its commitment to tolerance and anti-radicalism.
The research explores attitudes towards national identity and good citizenship, balancing Jordan’s Arab and Islamic heritage with an emphasis on religious and ethnic pluralism. The study underlines the importance of peacemaking and combating Islamism, while simultaneously presenting contradictory views on jihad war and non-believers. Contemporary relations with global powers are addressed, alongside the legacy of Ottoman history. The portrayal of Jews occupies a central focus, with old and new Islamic education textbooks teaching problematic examples which draw upon antisemitic tropes. Israel is a source of considerable hostility in the textbooks, and there is no vision of peace shared between the two neighbors. Report
Jordan’s New Curriculum: The Challenge of Radicalism
An IMPACT-se Report — August 2019
Jordan’s new curriculum derives from the principles formulated in the Amman Message of 2004. In this report IMPACT-se evaluates a range of topics: moderating the education of Islam for students (with emphasis on diversity and openness); layers of national identity; the idea of good citizenship, which includes gender, economic and environmental responsibility; Jordan’s approach toward the West Bank and the Palestinians; unresolved internal conflict toward its peace with Israel and compassion toward the disadvantaged. Report Executive Summary
Falling Short: Review of Jordanian Textbooks for 2024-2025
IMPACT-se’s latest review of Jordan’s 2024–2025 national curriculum finds a troubling regression in content related to peace, tolerance, and coexistence. While Jordan’s textbooks cite the Amman Message and emphasize religious harmony between Christians and Muslims, the curriculum continues to reinforce extreme antisemitic tropes, justify violence against Israel, and portray the peace treaty with Israel in a negative light. Notably, a newly introduced textbook downplays and legitimizes Hamas’s October 7 attack, falsely presenting it as a response to Israeli actions while omitting the murder of over 1,100 Israeli civilians. Israel’s existence continues to be erased from maps, while Zionism is framed as a racist colonial conspiracy. The Holocaust is entirely absent from history lessons.
Additionally, the curriculum contains new content promoting intolerance towards women and LGBTQ+ individuals, labeling homosexuality as a threat to humanity and reinforcing rigid, discriminatory gender roles. Despite Jordan’s long-standing diplomatic relations with Israel, its educational materials fail to align with UNESCO standards of peace and tolerance, instead promoting division, hostility, and extremist narratives.
Review of Jordan’s School Curriculum 2014-22
This IMPACT-se research revisits Jordan’s national school curriculum following our 2019 report. It offers a comprehensive insight into 165 textbooks, dated 2014-2022, across grades 1-12. The study focuses on humanities subjects, particularly Islamic education, history, Arabic language, civics and social studies. Our findings revealed that, in contrast with our initial report, the Jordanian curriculum shows marked deterioration in its commitment to tolerance and anti-radicalism.
The research explores attitudes towards national identity and good citizenship, balancing Jordan’s Arab and Islamic heritage with an emphasis on religious and ethnic pluralism. The study underlines the importance of peacemaking and combating Islamism, while simultaneously presenting contradictory views on jihad war and non-believers. Contemporary relations with global powers are addressed, alongside the legacy of Ottoman history. The portrayal of Jews occupies a central focus, with old and new Islamic education textbooks teaching problematic examples which draw upon antisemitic tropes. Israel is a source of considerable hostility in the textbooks, and there is no vision of peace shared between the two neighbors. Report
Jordan’s New Curriculum: The Challenge of Radicalism
An IMPACT-se Report — August 2019
Jordan’s new curriculum derives from the principles formulated in the Amman Message of 2004. In this report IMPACT-se evaluates a range of topics: moderating the education of Islam for students (with emphasis on diversity and openness); layers of national identity; the idea of good citizenship, which includes gender, economic and environmental responsibility; Jordan’s approach toward the West Bank and the Palestinians; unresolved internal conflict toward its peace with Israel and compassion toward the disadvantaged. Report Executive Summary
Falling Short: Review of Jordanian Textbooks for 2024-2025
IMPACT-se’s latest review of Jordan’s 2024–2025 national curriculum finds a troubling regression in content related to peace, tolerance, and coexistence. While Jordan’s textbooks cite the Amman Message and emphasize religious harmony between Christians and Muslims, the curriculum continues to reinforce extreme antisemitic tropes, justify violence against Israel, and portray the peace treaty with Israel in a negative light. Notably, a newly introduced textbook downplays and legitimizes Hamas’s October 7 attack, falsely presenting it as a response to Israeli actions while omitting the murder of over 1,100 Israeli civilians. Israel’s existence continues to be erased from maps, while Zionism is framed as a racist colonial conspiracy. The Holocaust is entirely absent from history lessons.
Additionally, the curriculum contains new content promoting intolerance towards women and LGBTQ+ individuals, labeling homosexuality as a threat to humanity and reinforcing rigid, discriminatory gender roles. Despite Jordan’s long-standing diplomatic relations with Israel, its educational materials fail to align with UNESCO standards of peace and tolerance, instead promoting division, hostility, and extremist narratives.
Review of Jordan’s School Curriculum 2014-22
This IMPACT-se research revisits Jordan’s national school curriculum following our 2019 report. It offers a comprehensive insight into 165 textbooks, dated 2014-2022, across grades 1-12. The study focuses on humanities subjects, particularly Islamic education, history, Arabic language, civics and social studies. Our findings revealed that, in contrast with our initial report, the Jordanian curriculum shows marked deterioration in its commitment to tolerance and anti-radicalism.
The research explores attitudes towards national identity and good citizenship, balancing Jordan’s Arab and Islamic heritage with an emphasis on religious and ethnic pluralism. The study underlines the importance of peacemaking and combating Islamism, while simultaneously presenting contradictory views on jihad war and non-believers. Contemporary relations with global powers are addressed, alongside the legacy of Ottoman history. The portrayal of Jews occupies a central focus, with old and new Islamic education textbooks teaching problematic examples which draw upon antisemitic tropes. Israel is a source of considerable hostility in the textbooks, and there is no vision of peace shared between the two neighbors. Report
Jordan’s New Curriculum: The Challenge of Radicalism
An IMPACT-se Report — August 2019
Jordan’s new curriculum derives from the principles formulated in the Amman Message of 2004. In this report IMPACT-se evaluates a range of topics: moderating the education of Islam for students (with emphasis on diversity and openness); layers of national identity; the idea of good citizenship, which includes gender, economic and environmental responsibility; Jordan’s approach toward the West Bank and the Palestinians; unresolved internal conflict toward its peace with Israel and compassion toward the disadvantaged. Report Executive Summary