When social studies teacher Sandra Childs and her colleagues at Franklin high school in Oregon developed a curriculum to teach about Islam last year, it did not make many waves.

In the programme, Ms Childs uses photographs of Muslim women wearing scarves and asks American students to speculate about them. The students are generally surprised to learn that one of the women is a former vice-president of Pakistan, and another a member of the Iranian parliament.

“In some cultures, women cover their hair because they are oppressed,” Ms Childs says. “But in others it is an act of defiance, or a signal for public respect.”

A few other teachers politely applauded the innovative idea, but nothing much else came of it.

Then came September 11 and now the curriculum, called Scarves of Many Colors: Muslim Women and the Veil , has been snapped up by 150 schools.

“There’s been a huge increase in interest, not just in learning about Islam itself but also about the Arab world in general,” said Zeina Seikaly, outreach co-ordinator for the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies at Georgetown University in Washington.

A 12-page background piece called Who are the Arabs? is being requested by schools “by the hundreds”, Ms Seikaly said. “This whole tragedy has exposed some holes in the curriculum, and also the stereotypes.”

A study by the Middle East Outreach Council found US school textbooks full of bias and misinformation. Arabs were portrayed as living a nomadic life in deserts, when less than 2 per cent of the population of the Middle East and North Africa are nomads. In fact, more than half of all Arabs live in cities, villages and towns.

“There’s still evidence of racism,” said Deborah Menkart, executive director of Teaching for Change, the non-profit organisation which distributes Scarves. “But we do have people now seeking to learn more about the Muslim faith and the Arab world. It gives you hope.”