Cultivating an American Worldview: A Comparative Analysis of Perspectives of the Middle East, Arabs, and Muslims in US Public High School “World History” Curricula

The institution of public education in democratic societies has been used as an effective tool for regulating national identity. In the last four decades, “World History” courses have become a fundamental part of mainstream American social studies. These courses offer a standardized narrative regarding the histories of non-Western regions. This study explores high school social studies curricula in Texas, New York, California,Virginia, and North Dakota focusing on how the frameworks address Islamic, Middle Eastern, and North African history. The analysis addresses the state frameworks’ ability to effectively present Islamic and Arab history within proper context and critiques various problematic paradigms rooted in modernization theory and orientalism. In critiquing the content of these frameworks and contextualizing policy in American public education, this paper intends to scrutinize the challenges of teaching the Middle East in the United States public high schools.M.A