(KUTV) A group of parents in Salem, Utah are angry when they learned their children were handed an assignment this week that required them to draw a "terrorism propaganda poster." 
 
 "We're grateful when parents have a concern, that they will call the school and let the principal know immediately," said Lana Hiskey, a spokeswoman for Salem Junior High School. "There were just over 60 students involved in this assignment and we've had four phone calls or communication with parents that had concerns." 
 
 
 
 The front page of the project lists "eight reasons why young Muslims join ISIS". The back page requires students to then draw a "terrorism propaganda poster." 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 "She was just very enthusiastic and wanted students to understand that propaganda is not good," said Hiskey, who admitted it was a first-year teacher and the assignment had not been approved. 
 
 2News got a phone call from an anonymous parent who was concerned that his 14-year-old son, who received the assignment, would research terrorist propaganda online and end up on a federal terrorist watch list. 
 
 "We don't want students going on the internet and looking up terrorist things," said Hiskey. "This was a classroom project and it's been withdrawn and she's talked to the students and let them know that was not the intent." 
 
 Follow Chris Miller on Twitter @ChrisMillerKUTV for breaking news, updates and more. 
 
 

 SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Utah school apologized Thursday for a classroom assignment in which students were asked to create a propaganda poster for a group such as Islamic State to understand the goals and methods of terror groups. 
 
 The assignment at Salem Junior High School was canceled after several parents called to complain, Nebo School District spokeswoman Lana Hiskey said. 
 
 Hiskey said the assignment was given Wednesday by a first-year teacher to about 60 ninth-grade students in a world civics class. It was not approved by the school and was not a part of any official curriculum. 
 
 "She wanted the students to understand how propaganda can be wrong and lead people incorrectly," Hiskey said of the teacher. 
 
 School officials were first alerted to the assignment when parents complained. 
 
 No disciplinary action was planned against the teacher, who is apologetic and has met with school administrators, said Hiskey, who declined to provide the educator's name. 
 
 The assignment came as students were discussing the Middle East, terrorism and propaganda, including the use of propaganda during World War II, Hiskey said. 
 
 KUTV-TV first reported the poster assignment. 
 
 An image of the assignment worksheet shared with the station by a parent said students should mock up a "neat, colored, professional" poster. 
 
 The worksheet said the purpose of the poster was "to help students understand the goals of terrorist groups and the methods they use to gain support." 
 
 A worksheet said the poster could help students understand the goals of terrorist groups and the methods they use to gain support. 
 
 It also included a disclaimer saying any student uncomfortable with the assignment could ask for an alternative. Hiskey did not know if any students made that request. 
 
 The school is located in Salem, Utah, about 60 miles south of Salt Lake City. 
 
 Another student poster project drew complaints of Utah parents two years ago, when the state oil, gas and mining division held a contest where elementary school students were asked to create posters for Earth Day in the theme "Where would we be without oil, gas and mining?" 
 
 Parents said it was propaganda on the part of the mining industry and missed the point of Earth Day. 
 
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 Follow Michelle L. Price at https://twitter.com/michellelprice .
– If you ask a couple dozen freshmen in a small Utah town to create recruitment posters for ISIS, it tends to stir up controversy. Who knew? The AP reports a first-year teacher at Salem Junior High School did exactly that with her world civics class this week. The assignment listed "eight reasons why young Muslims join ISIS" then asked students to draw a "terrorism propaganda poster," according to KUTV. The AP notes the poster was to be "neat, colored, professional." The assignment was given to 60 or so students Wednesday, and the school promptly received four complaints from parents, KUTV reports. One parent tells the station he was concerned his 14-year-old son was going to end up on some terrorist watch list after researching the assignment online. The stated purpose of the assignment was "to help students understand the goals of terrorist groups and the methods they use to gain support," KUTV reports. And school district spokesperson Lana Hiskey says the unnamed teacher was trying to teach students about the dangers of propaganda. According to the AP, the class had been discussing the use of propaganda during WWII. The assignment was withdrawn after parents complained, and the school apologized Thursday. "We don't want students going on the Internet and looking up terrorist things," Hiskey tells KUTV. No disciplinary action is planned for the teacher, the AP reports. A disclaimer on the assignment said any student who was uncomfortable with it could ask for an alternative.