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Introduction

In recent years, debates surrounding the origins of modern humans have increasingly looked towards the Levant as “one of the most important corridors for the dispersal of humans [from Africa] into Eurasia” (Akazawa et al. 2002: 2). Archaeological evidence unearthed in the Levant, most famously in the Jordan Valley, suggests a human occupation dating back approximately one and a half million years (Belmaker et al. 2002). Archaeological surveys and excavations carried out in Jordan during the past century, yielded thousands of archaeological sites, such as early settlements, Biblical sites, Graeco-Roman cities, and Crusader and Muslim castles. In fact, an examination of aerial photographs taken in 1953 revealed approximately 25,000 archaeological sites in the western half of Jordan (Kennedy and Bewley 1998). These sites provide valuable insights into the beliefs, values, and ways of living of past communities residing in the geographical area of Jordan.

This ancient past is largely excluded from Jordanian formal primary education, where historical narratives focus primarily on the advent and spread of Islam in the sixth and seventh centuries AD and the modern history of Jordan in the twentieth century (Table 15.1). Divorced from these narratives, a number of archaeological sites are presented accompanied by brief descriptions emphasizing a deep-rooted past and the economic benefit of archaeology within tourism. The presentation of archaeological sites also highlights links to Arab and Islamic pasts. Accordingly, the value of using of archaeology and its interpretation to teach about the past is poorly recognized.

Table 15.1 Chronology of human settlement and major events in Jordan. The dark shaded areas are the time periods emphasized by the primary citizenship curriculum historical narratives. There are approximately eight pages about Arabs and non-Arabs who settled in and around the Arab Peninsula before Islam. Those have been mostly omitted in the new revised curriculum
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This paper investigates the reasons behind the exclusion of the past and archaeology in the Jordanian citizenship curriculum at the primary level. In addition, suggestions are made as to how this can be improved. This review is part of a larger investigation of the potential for integrating archaeological museums in formal primary education in Jordan, undertaken by the author towards a doctorate. Intensive fieldwork has been carried out mainly in 2005. It involved an examination of curriculum textbooks and undertaking interviews with museum curators, teachers, and decision-makers in the education and heritage sectors. The data from the interviews are used in this paper, while maintaining the anonymity of the interviewees to hide their identity and ensure greater honesty of responses.

It is worth mentioning that this investigation was largely undertaken shortly before the Citizenship Curriculum was revised and rewritten over the period of 3 years, 2005–2007. An examination of the new curriculum by the researcher revealed that changes have occurred in terms of the textbook sizes and design, in the style of writing, and a few additions and omissions. Nonetheless, the content of the textbooks in relation to the teaching of the past remained largely unchanged. As in the old curriculum, the new curriculum focuses on Arab, Islamic, and modern history and highlights the benefits of archaeological heritage within tourism. One interesting omission from the new curriculum over the old, is the few pages that narrated the history of Arabs and non-Arabs who settled in and around the Arab Peninsula before Islam. Furthermore, the number of pages dedicated to archaeology within tourism has increased.

Background

While some early research highlighted the excluded past in formal education (e.g. Clarke 1943; Husayn, 1938 cited in Meital 2006), the mechanisms of such exclusion were only identified in the late 1980s (MacKenzie and Stone 1990: 1). There is now a body of research showing how and why the past has been excluded in formal education, spanning the past three decades (Al-Husban et al. 2006; Antiquity 2000; Henson et al. 2004; Hodder and Doughty 2007; Mazel and Stewart 1987; Smardz and Smith 2000; Stone and MacKenzie 1990; Stone and Molyneaux 1994; Torsti 2007; Wang 2005).

Research into the excluded past was precipitated by a growing awareness amongst archaeologists of the inevitable “subjectivity” of their discipline. An increasing number of archaeologists during the 1980s began to stress that knowledge of the past is a contemporary interpretation influenced by social and political factors, and hence, not “objective” (see e.g. Hodder 1984; Lowenthal 1985; Trigger 1989). These views were part of groundbreaking developments in archaeology, rejecting the positivist outlook on the interpretation of the past of the “New Archaeology” (Johnson 1999: 98–102). Doubts amongst those opposing New Archaeology were strengthened as it became apparent that archaeology as an anthropological science cannot be detached from the present and or aspire to value-free interpretation (Shanks and Hodder 1995). These challenges formed new approaches to the interpretation of material evidence and became known as Postprocessual Archaeology (later Interpretive Archaeology), a founding argument of which was that there is no objective “true” interpretation or one correct method of investigation, rather variations of approaches and perspectives (Renfrew and Bahn 2004: 45).

While recognizing that their views might be subjective, a growing body of archaeologists took on the responsibility to investigate and challenge subjectivity and the political manipulation of the past, and to share with the public the role of archaeology in uncovering and interpreting the past using the available evidence (Ucko 1990). Thus, rather than seeking an “objective” truth about the past, archaeo-logy has become the means to enhance public understanding of the past by engaging with evidence and being open to multiple interpretations. The use of archaeology to enhance teaching of the past in formal education has been equally emphasized, arguing that it can develop children’s understanding and critical skills in relation to interpretation (e.g. Dahiya 1994; Metcalf 2002: 173; Stone 2004: 3). Furthermore, it has been suggested that archaeology can be used to support moral education by teaching pupils about the importance of respecting and preserving their heritage, as well as concepts of cultural diversity, tolerance, and the commonality of humans and their values (e.g. Moe 2000; Pyburn 2000). In fact, archaeological education, through its active and engaging nature, involves experiencing evidence from the past, and is considered vital for serving children’s interests and learning needs (Davis 2005: 4; Dewey 1959 [1899]; Smardz and Smith 2000).

The debates amongst western archaeologists regarding the “subjectivity” of their discipline and their responsibility towards public education seem absent in the contemporary local archaeological community in Jordan, if not the Arab world in general. This is despite some early recognition amongst intellectuals in the Arab world of the excluded past in formal education and the use of archaeology. Meital (2006) examined the construction of national histories in Egypt during the first half of the twentieth century and highlighted the role of Taha Husayn, an influential Egyptian scholar of the time, in criticizing the interpretation of the past in formal education, which supported the legitimacy of the monarchy. By examining several of Husayn’s works, specifically The Future of Culture in Egypt published in 1938, Meital (2006: 258) indicates Husayn’s belief in the importance of recognizing ancient archaeological resources that have shaped Egyptian life and acknowledging their significant potential in the defining of the cultural and national identity of the people of Egypt. Similarly, Iraqi scholars have also resisted the single state interpretation of the past in the education system. They advocated an interpretation of a past in formal education that celebrates the diversity of the population of Iraq, instead of the state nationalistic narratives (Bashkin 2006). Although the use of archaeology was not mentioned, the importance of students’ interpretations in challenging the presentation of the past in formal education was highlighted. Bashkin (2006: 362) provides a valuable analysis of the writing of the Iraqi novelist Ayyub, indicating his advocacy of independent inquiry, which can result in the exposure of students to resources relating to the past outside the classroom, which are often more imaginative and interesting compared to the “state” version of the past.

Recently, investigations into the excluded past in formal education in Jordan have been carried out by few western and local archaeologists (e.g. Al-Husban et al. 2006; Maffi 2002). The majority of research in this area, however, has been dominated by western and local political researchers aiming to expose nationalistic agendas underpinning the manipulation of the past using various state apparatus, including formal education (Anderson 2002; Al-Mahadin 2007; Lynch 1999; Massad 2001; Sayigh 1991). To the best of the author’s knowledge, no research has so far identified the rationale, other than political manipulation, for the past to be excluded in Jordanian formal education or explored the potential within the local heritage sector to introducing archaeology in formal education. This research takes a new and significant step towards investigating the issues discussed above, seeking to contribute to local research and enhancement of the teaching of the past in Jordanian formal education. Furthermore, the case study of Jordan is potentially beneficial to similar research in the Arab region and internationally.

The Excluded Past in the Jordanian Primary Citizenship Curriculum

The Jordanian primary citizenship curriculum (Years 1–5, Ages 6–10) incorporates social, personal, and health education, as well as the subjects of history and geography.Footnote 1 The curriculum is produced under the supervision of the Ministry of Education through its Curriculum Directorate. The curriculum is compulsory in all schools in Jordan. Pupils attend 2–3 citizenship lessons per week, and the Ministry’s textbooks are the main resource used in classroom teaching (Primary Teachers, personal communication 2005).

In this curriculum, the past is presented in two ways: as historical narratives and as presentations of archaeological sites. The historical narratives focus primarily on the beginning and spread of Islam and the establishment of Jordan in the twentieth century. Those two periods represent a small proportion of the region’s past (Table 15.1).

In terms of the archaeological sites, they are largely presented in pictures accompanied by a short descriptive text. The presentation of archaeological heritage is used mainly to highlight three phenomena: the great past civilizations that existed in what is known today as “the Arab World,” the deep-rooted past in the geographical area of Jordan, and the importance of archaeology within tourism. Usually, if any of the archaeological sites have links to an Arab or Islamic pasts, those links are highlighted and expanded upon. These phenomena are illustrated in the following three examples selected from the citizenship curriculum textbooks at the primary level.

Example 1: The Archaeological Heritage Highlighting Great Past Civilizations in the Current Arab Region

In the Citizenship Curriculum textbook at year 3 (Age 8), there is a lesson about the unity of the Arab World in language, religion, and history that has pictures and names of famous archaeological site in the region (‘Ayyad, et al. 2003b: 30). A picture of the Umayyad Palace on the Citadel in Amman, the capital of Jordan, is presented alongside famous religious and non-religious sites in the Arab world such as the Dome of the Rock, Sphinx, and Ishtar Gate. The accompanying text indicates that these remains speak of the greatness of the ancestors’ art and architecture, and tells the story of one history for a united Arab nation. A similar setting of pictures is also included in a lesson about the geography of the Arab world in the Citizenship Curriculum textbook at year 5 (Age 10) (Khleifat et al. 2003a: 110–111). It states that great civilizations existed in this region due to its strategic location and rich environment. It refers to the Arab Nabataeans, the founders of Petra.

In this example, the archaeological heritage in the Arab world is used to emphasize the unity of the Arab countries in terms of their rich history. Certain sites in Jordan that have an Islamic or Arabic past were selected. Petra, for example, was built by the Nabataeans, who were Arab tribes that migrated out of Arabia, so offering the deep-rooted Arab ancestry desired to consolidate an Arabic identity for Jordan. The presentation of Petra, along with archaeological sites in other Arab countries, is an attempt to strengthen Jordan’s position as a member of the Arab world.

Example 2: The Archaeological Heritage Highlighting a Deep-Rooted Past in Jordan

The Citizenship Curriculum textbooks at years 3 and 4 (Ages 8–9) include lessons that introduce Jordan “The Homeland”. They show pictures and names of archaeological sites indicating that these remains are left by humans who settled in Jordan since ancient times (‘Ayyad et al. 2003a: 10–11; Al-Habahbeh et al. 2003: 27). The Citizenship Curriculum textbook at year 5 (Age 10) presents archaeological sites as part of a lesson about the cultural history of Jordan (Khleifat et al. 2003b: 123–138). The first chapter of the textbook presents religious shrines followed by a chapter about the history of Amman and some of its archaeological sites. The history of Amman begins with the Ammonites in the second and first centuries BC who founded the city. It then sheds light on the Islamic Umayyad conquest in the seventh century AD and the prosperity that followed. While these periods are dealt with in length, the next thousand years are summarized in a couple of sentences leading to the twentieth-century arrival of the Hashemite family and the present social and economic prosperity of the city. The third chapter sheds light on the archaeological site of Azraq Castle in the east of Jordan. It refers strictly to three periods of that site: the early Islamic caliphate, followed by the Umayyad period, and finally the great Arab revolt against the Ottomans during the First World War.

This example shows that a number of archaeological sites were presented to highlight the longevity of occupation and culture in Jordan. Some sites, however, were presented alongside a historical narrative that only focused upon certain pasts. The history of Amman is selected to represent the cultural history of Jordan. The narrative begins in the second century BC highlighting the etymology of the capital’s name. It then draws particular attention to two periods; the Umayyad conquest of Amman in the seventh century and the prosperity that followed and the arrival of the Hashemite family in the twentieth century and prosperity of Amman. Similar attention to Umayyad and Hashemite rules is paid in the text about Azraq Castle site. Maffi (2002: 219) argued that the Umayyad heritage has been highly promoted within the management of the archaeological heritage in Jordan. She refers to the attention drawn to the management of the Islamic citadel in Amman, a site that demonstrates the importance of the ancient city as an administrative and political center during the Umayyad period. Maffi (2002: 219) suggests that the reasons for this, from the point of view of national ideology, are twofold. First, it gives Amman (and therefore Jordan?) a historical depth linked to a significant period of time under the Umayyad rule (Amman fell into decline after the Abbasid dynasty moved the center of power to Baghdad). Second, it strengthens “a supposed genealogical and political relationship” between the Hashemite royal family and the Umayyad dynasty, a concept often mentioned in official discourse.

Example 3: The Archaeological Heritage Generating Income Through Tourism

The Citizenship Curriculum at year 4 (Age 9) includes a lesson about the economic resources in Jordan. It presents pictures of archaeological site accompanied by descriptive text that highlights their importance for generating income within tourism (Al-Habahbeh et al. 2003: 79–95). A description of Jerash archaeological site, for example, reads as follows: “What is the importance of tourism and archaeology in Jerash?… Jerash is an ancient Roman city that comprises of many archaeological landmarks like the Southern Theatre, the Colonnaded Street, and Hadrian’s Triumphal Arch. The government holds the annual Jerash Cultural Festival in the summer…” (Al-Habahbeh et al. 2003: 87). Only in two cases, the events which occurred on these sites were narrated. One event was about the Muslim leader Saladin using Ajloun Castle as a military base during the Crusades, while the other was about the famous Battle of Mu’tah that occurred during the early Islamic period near Karak Castle.

The attention given to the benefits of archaeological sites in a tourist context is clear in this example. Furthermore, all the archaeological sites are presented with basic information and a random list of archaeological features that pupils might find difficult to comprehend. It was interesting to find that only events linked to Arabic or Islamic pasts were mentioned in the text about the sites.

The above examples demonstrate which pasts are emphasized and which pasts are omitted in the Jordanian formal primary education. They also show that reference to archaeology in the interpretation of the past is lacking. While it is important that pupils appreciate their Islamic and Arab pasts and values, develop greater belonging to their country, and recognize the importance of the tourism industry, there are also many other lessons that could be learned from the past and its remains. Undoubtedly, the opportunity to increase pupil understanding of the past as a rich resource, of how past communities lived, and most importantly, the basic idea of how the past is interpreted, seems to be lost.

Reasons for the Exclusion of the Past in Formal Education in Jordan

MacKenzie and Stone (1990: 3) identified four factors in the exclusion of the past in formal education, which are: a crowded curriculum, a past that is perceived as having no immediate relevance or bearing on the present day, political manipulation, and the ignorance of teachers. Taking these four factors as a framework, the exclusion of the past in Jordanian formal primary education was investigated, and the opportunity was taken to identify additional factors specific to Jordan. While recognizing the various contributions towards investigating the excluded past, MacKenzie and Stone’s (1990) perspective is useful due to its rich and comprehensive identification of the rationale for the excluded past in formal education, based on various contributions from around the world. Despite improvements suggested by recent research, the excluded past and the rationale behind it persist today (e.g. Antiquity 2000; Doughty and Hodder 2007; Henson 2004; Metcalf 2002; Smardz and Smith 2000; Wang 2005).

A Crowded Curriculum or a Matter of Priorities

The investigation began by examining whether a crowded curriculum is a significant reason for the exclusion of the past in primary citizenship education in Jordan. Although the curriculum appeared crowded, none of the individuals involved in curriculum production, interviewed by the researcher, raised this as an issue behind selecting or ignoring certain pasts. The range of topics and space allocated in the citizenship curriculum textbooks, years 1–5 (Ages 6–10), were also considered to assess whether the curriculum is actually crowded. This examination revealed that the curriculum is overloaded in terms of the repetition of the history of modern Jordan and the arrival of Islam in each school year. Moreover, some 20 pages in a 127 page-textbook at year 4 (Age 9) depict a repeated pattern of pictures of archaeological sites along with brief texts linked to tourism (Table 15.2).Footnote 2 In that respect, the curriculum is crowded with repetition, which is considered as “favorable” because pupils have to be familiar with their country first (DH, personal communication 2005). Therefore, it seems that it is not a crowded curriculum that lies behind the excluded past, but rather the priority of what should be taught about the past due to its relevance to present needs and values (see below).

Table 15.2 An estimated distribution of topics related to the teaching of the past in the primary citizenship curriculum in Jordan
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The (Ir)relevance of the Past to the Present Day

Excluding the past in formal education, on the basis that it has no bearing on the present day or is irrelevant to the present needs (see MacKenzie and Stone 1990: 3), was further investigated within the Jordanian context. An examination of the philosophy of education, which underpins the curriculum, illustrated that despite its reference to the importance of “openness to other cultures,” it is still largely focused on adherence to Arab, Islamic heritage, and Jordanian values and beliefs defined by this heritage. Therefore, the past in Jordanian formal education is in fact very important and very relevant if it relates to an Arab or Islamic past that reinforces Jordanian values and beliefs.

Archaeology is also very important and relevant as an economic resource in relation to tourism. Tourism is the second most significant source of income of foreign currency, being approximately 10–12% of the income of the local economy (Al-Hadidi 2004: 7; ZH, personal communication 2005). According to statistics generated in the 1980s and 1990s, 80% of visitors to Jordan come for the antiquities and heritage first (ZH, personal communication 2005). Tourism as a resource is given great attention, along with services and foreign aid, as it provides a major boost to the limited resources of Jordan (ZH, personal communication 2005).

Hence, while the Arab and Islamic past and the benefits of archaeology for tourism are perceived important and relevant to the present social needs and values, other pasts and the use of archaeology to teach about past life seem to be irrelevant, and therefore excluded. The exclusion of pasts that are deemed irrelevant is more prevalent in relation to prehistory. Considering the expanse of time between prehistory and the present and the anonymity of prehistoric peoples, its use for building historical ties to construct identities and nurture nationalism becomes more difficult. Consequently, prehistory has been generally less recognized in formal education (Hodder and Doughty 2007).

Political Manipulation

The past has been used to serve ideological purposes in formal education by governments worldwide, which seek to construct an identity that unifies the society to support the state nationalistic agendas (Phillips 2000: 11). Research shows that Jordan is no exception. The interpretation of the past in the Jordanian education system has been, since its establishment, underpinned by political ideologies of Arabism and Islam seeking to construct and consolidate a Jordanian identity (Anderson 2002; Al-Husban et al. 2006; Al-Mahadin 2007; Lynch 1999; Massad 2001).

For a young state like Jordan, whose borders were drawn and rulers appointed by British officials during and after World War I, the construction of Jordanian identity was a crucial process for legitimizing and stabilizing the nation state and its regime. Before Jordan was established in 1921, the Levant area was divided into districts under Ottoman rule that lasted for 400 years. In 1916, the Arabs, led by the Sheriff of Mecca Hussein bin Talal of the Hashemite family, revolted and successfully overthrew the Ottomans. Following the Arab revolt, the Arab region was divided into states recognized and protected under the Sykes-Pico agreement signed by the British and the French governments. The British took responsibility for the newly formed state of Transjordan and it was handed over to Emir (later king) Abdullah, the son of Hussein. With the help of the British, Abdullah began establishing Transjordan with ambitions to create a greater Syria, under which the divided Arab states could be united (Sayigh 1991: 169).

During the initial years of establishing the new state and up until the 1970s, Abdullah, and later his son, King Hussein, sought to defend the legitimacy of the Hashemite rule and the Jordanian entity, firstly to the population of Transjordan (later Jordan) and secondly to the neighboring Arab countries (Lynch 1999; Sayigh 1991). Such legitimization depended chiefly on developing a Jordanian identity based on “shared ideology, history, and social culture” (Sayigh 1991: 168). Official history in particular was inculcated through political speeches, in law, the media, museums, and school textbooks, effectively playing an important role in constructing a Jordanian identity under a Hashemite rule (cf. Anderson 2002; Al-Mahadin 2007; Maffi 2002; Massad 2001; Sayigh 1991).

In pursuit of his ambitions to create an Arab unity, Abdullah supported Arab nationalist discourse in the region (Lynch 1999: 24), which emphasized cultural, religious, and linguistic unity in the face of fragmentation and colonization. Arab nationalism was important in gaining recognition for the new state by Arab neighboring states. Such a task proved difficult until the 1950s, a decade after Jordan’s independence, as establishing a new state closely linked with western interests was not popular in an already fragmented Arab region struggling against colonial powers (Sayigh 1991: 169). Parallel to the process of consolidating the entity of Jordan, Abdullah had to legitimize his rule to the population of the new state as well. While Abdullah worked towards setting government structure, a police force, and establishing laws, he also sought to consolidate his rule by forming internal alliances and suppressing a number of internal revolts (Sayigh 1991: 168). Abdullah (and later King Hussein) had also consolidated his legitimacy to rule based on Hashemite descent from The Prophet and their leadership in the Great Arab Revolt during the First World War under the banner of Arab nationalism (Anderson 2002: 9).

The legitimization of the entity of Jordan and the throne continued during the reign of King Hussein, despite being threatened by the changing nature of the Palestinian–Jordanian relationships (Al-Mahadin 2007; Lynch 1999; Massad 2001; Sayigh 1991). The proportion of Palestinians in Jordan increased after the first wave of Palestinian refugees in 1948, followed by an influx due to the unification/annexation of the eastern territories of Palestine (West Bank) with Jordan (East Bank) in 1952 and the second wave of Palestinian refugees in 1967. Along with this flux in the demographic composition of the population in Jordan and the rise of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) in the 1960s, doubts were expressed regarding the Ruler’s claim to be representative of a Jordanian population that was largely Palestinian (Massad 2001: 13). The legitimacy of the throne fell under further pressure after Jordan’s loss of the West Bank to Israel in the 1967 war and the relocation of the Palestinian Resistance Movement (PRM) to Jordan to strike Israeli targets. Conflicts began to arise between the PRM and the Jordanian Government, precipitated by a number of factors, mainly the question of power over internal matters (Massad 2001; Sayigh 1991). Consequently, a war broke out between the two opposing sides in September 1970, after which the PRM left its bases in Jordan. As a result, the entity and throne of Jordan emerged stronger and more confident than ever before.

Although Jordan has obtained national and international recognition since its political formation (Al-Mahadin 2007: 314) and the throne is no longer under threat (Lynch 1999; Sayigh 1991), the past in formal education remains a tool used to nurture Arab nationalism and support the Hashemite rule. Aside from the historical narratives that focus on Islamic pasts and modern history, the examples discussed earlier illustrate the use of the archaeological heritage for nationalistic agendas, such as Petra to emphasize deep-rooted Arab heritage and the Umayyad Islamic past to highlight Hashemite ancestral links.

These concepts are embedded at the roots of curriculum production. Curricula and textbooks are written “in conformity” with the philosophy of education (Jaradat and Abu Sheikha 1992: 15; Olaimat and Olaimat 2004: 70). The philosophy of education emerges from the Jordanian constitution, the principles of the Great Arab Revolt, the national Jordanian experience, and the Arab-Islamic civilization. At its base underlined are the notions of faith in the Arab nation and Islamic values; links between Jordan and the Arab world by the declaration of Jordan as a Hashemite Arab state; its people as an entity inseparable to that of the Arab Nation (see Jaradat and Abu Sheikha 1992: 7–8).

The Ignorance of Teachers

A factor in this investigation was whether teachers played a part in the exclusion of the past in formal primary education in Jordan, through their ignorance about archaeology (see MacKenzie and Stone 1990: 3). The term “ignorance” is used here in its nonpejorative sense – teachers’ lack of grounding in archaeology as a discipline. As well as interviewing decision-makers in the Ministry of Education regarding training and resources, the author interviewed 20 teachers from 16 public and private schools, selected randomly from eight districts covered by the Ministry’s Regional Governorates.Footnote 3 The intention was to investigate the teaching of the past in the classroom, as well as the training and resources available for teachers within the education system.

Results show that teachers adhere strictly to the curriculum textbooks. Only teachers in 3 schools out of 16 explained to their pupils the use of evidence in interpreting the past or showed awareness of pupils’ enhanced understanding of the past when interacting with material evidence. Teachers in over half of the schools expect pupils to learn basic and descriptive information (Table 15.3). For younger pupils aged 6–8, teachers expected them to “… differentiate between pictures [of various sites]… the picture of Petra, Jerash, the Roman Amphitheatre…” (Teacher C, school 3, 2005). For older pupils aged 9–10, teachers expected pupils to learn about the archaeological heritage in more detail, such as “where the sites are located in Jordan, who built them… to know information about it [the site] and to be able to describe it…” (Teacher P, school 12, 2005). In five schools, teachers expected that as pupils learn about archaeological sites, their attachment to these places and belonging to their country develops and strengthened, and will continue to do so as they grow up. In 10 out of 16 schools, teachers expected their pupils to appreciate the importance of archaeological sites for generating income through tourism. The following interview provides closer insight into the expectations of teachers regarding learning outcomes of pupils:

Table 15.3 The teachers’ expectations of their pupils’ learning outcomes when teaching about the archaeological heritage
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  • Researcher:“What do you expect them to understand when you teach them about the archaeological heritage?”

  • Teacher F, school 4:“To understand the location of the archaeological site, who built it, which period of time…”

  • Researcher:“Do you feel that they understand the importance of the archaeological heritage?”

  • Teacher F, school 4:“Of course, [they understand] our duty towards preservation because it [the archaeological heritage] is an important economic resource…”

It appears from the teachers’ responses that the excluded past in the textbooks is reinforced by their classroom teaching. Moreover, although teachers have repeatedly referred to their pupils’ natural interest in archaeology, the use of archaeology to inform the interpretation of the past is lacking in the classroom. One reason for a teacher-based exclusion of the past (and archaeology) could be that they are diligent in teaching the past as presented (and excluded) in the Ministry of Education textbooks. Opportunities to use other resources, if available, to support classroom teaching are limited by the compulsion to use the Ministry’s textbooks in all schools.

None of the teachers are aware of any other resources that they can use in their teaching about the past. The World Heritage in Young Hands produced by UNESCO (2003), for example, is a promising resource that should be accessible to teachers. However, considering that it is distributed to the 95 school members of the Associated School Project (LN, personal communication 2005) out of at least 5,500 schools in Jordan, its availability to teachers across the country is quite limited. Other beneficial resources that teachers can use is Introducing Young People to Heritage Site Management and Protection: A Practical Guide for Secondary School Teachers in the Arab Region produced Jointly by UNESCO and ICCROM (2006). However, this guide targets secondary school teachers, and hence it remains unsuitable for primary school teachers in Jordan.

Some teachers have made personal efforts to step beyond the prescribed curriculum. In fact, one teacher used prehistory to explain to her pupils the origins of food cooking. However, she provided an interpretation of the past that was highly inaccurate:

Our lesson was about cooking and why it makes food better to digest and more delicious. So I started explaining about how the fire started at a time when they [Stone Age human beings] used to eat raw meat and find it difficult to chew. A spark started a fire in the woods and animals were burned… So they ate some of these animals and they found that the taste is different from raw meat. Surely their stomach used to hurt, but they did not know why until they ate the cooked food and their stomach digested it more quickly. (Teacher D, school 3, 2005)

It seems that teaching an inaccurate interpretation of the past is not only related to the lack of guiding resources, but also to a lack of experience in archaeology. By investigating teachers’ qualifications, it appeared that their backgrounds are in history, social studies, Arabic or English literature, geography, sports science, or education. None of the teachers had a degree in archaeology. Furthermore, archaeo-logy as a tool to teach about the past has not been mentioned to them, either as part of their degrees or as part of any training carried out by the Ministry of Education. In that respect, the ignorance of teachers is linked to the lack of skill development opportunities and guiding resources within the education system as a whole.

Curriculum Producers: Archaeology Misunderstood

This research revealed that curriculum producers played a significant role in excluding the past in formal education in Jordan; to the best knowledge of the researcher, this reason has not been clearly identified by Stone and MacKenzie (1990) nor has it been thoroughly investigated within the international context. Those involved in the production of the curriculum recognized that certain pasts, referring to prehistory or ancient civilizations, were excluded. They expressed that as these pasts were difficult for children to understand, they were excluded (DH, personal communication 2005). The same reason was given for not including archaeology, referring specifically to the difficulty children would have in understanding excavation techniques and the periods of time to which the findings are dated (DH and AF, personal communication 2005).

The lack of recognition of prehistory and the non-use of archaeology in education could be predominantly linked to a lack of understanding within the education system of how both can be used to teach children about the past and its interpretation. When curriculum producers referred to the difficulty of archaeology, they mentioned “techniques of excavation”, “pottery dating” and “what archaeology students study at university”. Curriculum producers would seem to have failed to recognize that archaeology can actually be used to teach children about the past in an engaging and simple way, which suits their needs and interests. In fact, teaching about how humans lived in prehistoric times, their tools, clothes and homes, is a suitable subject for pupils at primary level because of its “simplistic” nature, which children can relate to and be interested in, particularly considering their instinct to discover the world around them (Dewey 1959 [1899]). Moreover, prehistory can be used to teach pupils about the common past of all humans (Clarke 1943; Hodder and Doughty 2007).

The lack of recognition of prehistory and the failure to engage with archaeology in primary education could also reflect the strong presence of historians and other social sciences backgrounds and the complete lack of archaeologists amongst the curriculum production team. In fact, it was found during this investigation that there are no archaeologists working within the primary citizenship curriculum production structure, beginning with the Board of Education, the main decision-making group that ratifies the curriculum, to the Curriculum Directorate and its appointed national teams that set the curriculum framework and broad guidelines, and the individual authors involved in the actual writing of the textbooks.Footnote 4

Conclusion: Introducing Archaeology into Formal Education

Significant opportunities for pupils in Jordan to appreciate the full extent of the richness of the past and gain access to its interpretation are missed, while archaeology continues to be effectively excluded from the curriculum. By identifying reasons for the excluded past in Jordanian primary education – the priority of teaching certain pasts due to their relevance to the present social needs and values; the ideological use of the past; the ignorance of teachers (linked to limited access to resources and training); and the curriculum producers lack of recognition for the benefits of archaeological education – it is possible to suggest improvements.

Research indicates that a key factor to the introduction of archaeology in formal education is for archaeologists to work with educators, whose major influence on the course of the educational process cannot be denied (Henson et al. 2004; Jameson 1997; Smardz and Smith 2000; Stone and MacKenzie 1990). Nonetheless, this research has found that the involvment of the public heritage sector in Jordan in enhancing the teaching of the past in formal education has been inadequate. Archaeology in Jordan is run by central government that is the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (MoTA) and its Department of Antiquities (DoA). MoTA works towards managing, developing, monitoring, promoting and marketing tourism (Law of Tourism 1988, amended in 1998: article 3), and DoA takes responsibility for the excavation, discovery, survey, presentation, preservation and administration of antiquities (Law of Antiquities of 1988, amended in 2004: article 3). Archaeological education for the public and in formal education are lacking in their policies, strategies and resource allocation. Moreover, their collaboration with the education sector towards introducing archaeology and enhancing the teaching of the past in the curriculum is limited and ineffective. While there might be some initiatives providing archaeological education by DoA, they are not effective in reaching schoolchildren. For instance, an archaeology magazine, Athar, is published annually by DoA including short reports of interest to the public, information about museums and a section for youngsters. Only 100 copies are received by the Ministry of Education, out of the total of 1,000 published and distributed free of charge to other parties, such as libraries (RR, personal communication 2006). Moreover, DoA established an Archaeological Awareness Division (AAD), which although it worked closely with schools during the 1990s, is now understaffed and to large extent inactive. There is also a lack of educational provision in formal education by the ten archaeological museums administered by DoA. Education policies, education staff, educational resources, educational programs and education facilities in museums are almost absent. There are promising educational activities for schools carried out by one of these museums, the Jerash Archaeological Museum, which has set a very good example of the potential of museums in Jordan to enhance pupils’ understanding of the past in formal education. One of their successful activities was “Making bread the Roman way”, which involved baking bread in a specially designed Roman-style oven that is still used today (EO personal communication 2005) (Fig. 15.1).

Fig. 15.1
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Making bread the Roman way. Jerash museum educational activity (Photo courtesy of Jerash Museum curator Iman Owais, 2005)

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The public heritage sector in Jordan has great potential to enhance the teaching of the past in schools, by working with the education sector towards introducing archaeology in formal education. As a start, archaeological education should be recognized in their visions, strategies, staff training, and financial resource. The public heritage sector should also consider working with the curriculum production team and help in revising textbooks to enhance the presentation of the past and introduce archaeology. Schools and teachers would benefit greatly if archaeological education programs, designed to teach pupils about the interpretation of the past, are provided on archaeological sites and in museums. Additionally, educational resources and training should be provided for teachers to assist them in understanding and using archaeology in their teaching. The public heritage sector should encourage archaeological museums to start providing regular archaeological education for schools, following the model of Jerash museum. In addition, collaboration with private heritage societies that have been working towards introducing archaeology in formal education (e.g. the Jordanian Heritage Development Society, the Friends of Archaeology and Heritage Society) would also be of benefit in the sharing of experiences and resources. If the past is to be appreciated and the archaeological heritage protected, archaeology has to be shared with the public, starting with the youngest schoolchildren.