Female secondary and high school students will be permitted to wear headscarves in elective religion classes that will be introduced as part of a controversial new education reform bill, Education Minister Ömer Dinçer has said.

“Female students in imam-hatip schools can attend this course with headscarves, provided that [they wear it] only during [this] class and in accordance with its requirements,” Dinçer said.

Students in other schools can also attend the elective religion courses in headscarves on the condition that they wear it only during these courses, he said.

A wide range of other elective courses will also be introduced in addition to the two new elective religion courses, the “Quran” and the “Life of Our Prophet, His Majesty,” Dinçer said, adding that a council of teachers at each school would then select which of those elective courses to offer, Hürriyet Daily News reported.