“Murat and Aische walk through the forest”
Duisburg: Pupils should translate “Hansel and Gretel” into “Kanakendeutsch”.
“Hänsel and Gretel in Kanakisch” was the name of the text that the students of the Krupp-Gymnasium in Duisburg were supposed to work on (symbol image)
© Julian Stratenschulte / Picture Alliance
9th graders should translate a fairy tale into “Kanak” in class. In a statement, the school speaks out against discrimination – and even misspells the word “racism”.
“Murat and Aische walk through the forest looking for the right kind of firewood” – this is the beginning of a text that was presented to 9th grade students at a Duisburg high school. This is a rewrite of the Grimms’ Fairy Tales“Hansel and Gretel” in incorrect, so-called “Kanakendeutsch”.
In addition to an analysis of the text for “deviations from the standard language”, the students were sometimes asked: “Choose a fairy tale that you like and reformulate it in Kanak.”
Pupils contact a lawyer
Some students are said to have felt marginalized by the text and the task and turned to the Frankfurt lawyer Fatih Zingal. “Again and again we receive schoolwork that serves prejudices and stereotypes,” says Zingal.
The text, which is around 20 years old, comes from a school book and was officially treated as teaching material. That makes use a problem, even if it was originally a parody, says Zingal of the German Press Agency (dpa).
School distances itself from racist allegations
The chairwoman of the Federation of Turkish Parents’ Associations in North Rhine-Westphalia, Aysun Aydemir, calls the text a “no go”. Aydemir calls on textbook publishers to review their textbooks and teachers to scrutinize their materials before using them in class to identify hurtful passages.
The school management has since commented on the incident in a written statement: “We make it clear that the school community of the Krupp-Gymnasium is unequivocally and resolutely opposed to any form of racismyoumus represents”. She didn’t even spell the word “racism” correctly in the message.
School assignment on forced marriage
As early as February, another “clichéd school assignment” at a North Rhine-Westphalian high school caused dismay. The task should have read: “A Turkish father in Germany married his daughter to his brother’s son without her consent in order to secure him a residence permit for Germany and thus a livelihood. Discuss the situation with your table neighbor. What conflicts do you see in it?”
Many parents are stunned by the task, the Federation of Turkish Parents’ Associations wrote in an open letter to School Minister Yvonne Gebauer (FDP). After all, such teaching contributes to the consolidation of clichés.
Swell: t-online/dpa, image