WILLEMSTAD – Some of the educational materials used to teach Curaçao's history date back more than four decades, according to a research report that raises concerns about the availability of updated textbooks covering slavery, colonialism, and the island's struggle for freedom.
The report, Forgotten Stories, Silenced Past, identifies the continued use of Nos Pasado, a history textbook published by the Island Territory of Curaçao in 1982.
Researchers also found that schools use De Trans-Atlantische Slavenhandel, developed by Ronald Donk and last revised in 2010.
Both materials remain relevant because they provide historical information specifically related to Curaçao and the wider Caribbean.
However, the researchers point out that Curaçao's secondary-school history examination requirements were revised in 2019, creating a need for educational materials that reflect updated learning objectives and historical research.
The report indicates that schools continue using the older local materials, often alongside Dutch textbooks such as MeMo.
This combination reflects a wider problem across the Dutch Caribbean: the limited availability of modern educational resources developed specifically for the islands.
According to the researchers, the Caribbean educational market is relatively small and fragmented, making it less commercially attractive for major Dutch publishers to invest in textbooks designed around local educational requirements.
Consequently, schools often depend on a mixture of imported textbooks, locally developed publications, photocopied materials, and resources prepared by individual teachers.
The report acknowledges that Curaçao's older textbooks contain valuable historical information that is frequently missing from Dutch publications.
For example, Donk's textbook discusses the 1716 uprising at Plantation Santa Maria and the 1750 uprising at Plantation Hato, alongside broader Caribbean resistance movements.
These historical events receive relatively little attention in the imported teaching materials examined by the researchers.
However, relying on publications that have not been regularly updated creates challenges when educational objectives change or new historical research becomes available.
The report also identifies shortcomings in the coverage of how slavery and colonialism continue to influence contemporary Caribbean societies.
Some educational materials provide detailed descriptions of historical events without sufficiently connecting them to their longer-term social and cultural consequences.
Researchers recommend that Caribbean governments and educational institutions cooperate to develop, evaluate, and regularly update teaching materials suited to the region.
They also propose stronger collaboration among universities, historians, teachers, and curriculum specialists.
The findings place renewed attention on the importance of ensuring that Curaçao's students have access to modern textbooks that accurately reflect both the island's historical experiences and its current educational requirements.
The report does not establish how many Curaçao schools currently use each textbook, but it identifies the continued reliance on older materials as part of a broader regional challenge.