\k- lllNUHlHWll‘tlHlmllHlNIHWillml ) lNlllHHlWl 100 206 THESIS 2% Ex Zfifiagu o a ( 5:44. (/ f, 3 l ’ «’3, 3 ’fizz‘éversazy r... r —v—_ 7‘ - V‘ ‘FT- j—vxx. v '7 This is to certify that the thesis entitled ‘ _ [Lit/ALA, f/co a / /: (~Lu ( @171," X) ’ C [C ”'2‘ gnu-11] urn/e. CL) ILL/l (f/M presented by {1 \/\ C \l ILL} L f i A, fl’lJ’ (/i has been accepted towards fulfillment of the requirements for t[ a :1 degree in E vii/i C aLt/‘m Major professor Date 1/ / 7/ 2.34" 0-7639 MSUis an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Institution -J.‘.o. 'l Illlllllllllllllll W“ Hill llllllllll 3 1293 106 )V1ESI.} RETURNING MATERIAL§z Place in book drop to LIBRARJES remove this checkout from 4—,— your record. FINES will be charged if book 15 returned after the date stamped below. “- THE PRINCIPLES OF EDUCATION AS MENTIONED IN THE OURAN BY Nihal M. Ahmed A THESIS Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS College of Education I 984 33729777 Table of Contents Subject Acknowledgements Introduction Section I: Objectives and Characteristics of the Curriculum for Instructing in Islam Section II: (0) Methods of Teaching the Curriculum for Instructing in Islam (b) Contents of the Curriculum for Instructing in Islam Section III: (a) Summary and Commentary (b) Recommendations Bibliography Page ii ll 14 18 19 Acknowledgements First of all I would like to offer my deep sincere thanks to God Al Mighty who helped me perform this study in the best way I could. I also would like to express my sincere feeling of gratitude to Professor Charles Blackman and Professor Ben Bohnhorst who, through their wide experiences and valuable knowledge, taught me how to do a study based upon scientific objective bases. Finally, I would like to offer, from the bottom of my heart, my thanks to my family, my husband, Dr. Mohamed EI-Masry, my son, Tamer, and my daughter, Amira who through their persistence and patience, created for me the appropriate atmosphere to carry out this study. Introduction Believing in a certain principle is an essential beginning point, but the attempt to apply the implications of this principle in real life may be even more essential. Theoretically, the principle may seem clear to the people who claim to adopt it; but, practically, it may be quite complicated. If application in real life is not in accordance with the essence of the principle this may ruin the whole undertaking - leading even to such conditions as hypocrisy on the one hand or fanaticism on the other. Egyptian educators believe in the importance of offering the Egyptian students a valid sort of religious education. In this study, the writer's main objective is to review for the Egyptian educators and other concerned people the Islamic viewpoint about how religious education should be offered and what sides of man and the society it should serve. The writer does not intend to evaluate or criticize the way 'religious' education in Egypt is now offered; she is just trying to present the Islamic perspective to the reader. However, the concerned people who are Egyptian may make use of this analysis themselves in evaluating the religious side of Egyptian curricula. Some suggestions and implications will be included in this study at the end. In the first section of this study the writer illustrates the objectives of the curriculum for instructing in Islam and the characteristics of this curriculum. Illustra- tions are based on what some Arab and non-Arab Muslim thinkers have said. In the second section, teaching methods they use are described. Many of the points and concepts dealt with in this study are analyzed and explained in terms of what the Quran and Prophet Mohammad said about them. Quotations are selected from the Ouran itself and from the Prophet Mohammad's Traditions. The final section of this study will be a summary and a commentary that leads to the final conclusions and implications of this research for current practices in religious education in Egypt. ii One of the central issues in religious education - whether Islamic, Jewish, Christian, or whatever - is the issue of the relationships between (0) principles to be learned, and (1)) applications of the principles in practice. How may religious education be proceed, not only to teach basic principles but also foster among learners the practicing of those principles? This issue is central to the present thesis. iii Section I Objectives and Characteristics of the Curriculum for Instructing in Islam A- General Objective of Islamic Education: In order to prove that Islam is basically a religion of education, or, in other words, a religion which aims at educating people and spreading education everywhere in the world, Husain and Ashraf start their analysis about Islamic education in their book, Crisis In Muslim Education, (I979) with the first verse Prophet Mohammad received from God Al Mighty; this verse is: Read in the name of thy Lord and Cherisher who created man, out of a (mere) clot of congealed blood. In his book, History of Muslim Education, (I954) Shalaby supports the idea Husain and Ashraf have tried to convey to the reader, the idea of Islam as a religion of education; he begins his analysis with other verses from the Ouran that imply the same point: God will exalt those of you who believe and those who have knowledge, to high degrees.2 Are those who know equal With those who know not? Kotb is another Muslim thinker who has tried in his book, Manhaj Al-Tar biayh Al- Islamiayh (Curriculum of Islamic Education, I976) to emphasize the idea that Islam is a religion of education. He starts his analysis with an attempt to interpret the Prophet's saying: God has educated me, and He has educated me well.‘t Kotb says that education in all nations aims at preparing a good citizen; but the main goal of the Islamic curriculum is to prepare a good human being. This is based upon the idea that Islam should be the curriculum of every human being on the earth. Accordingly, if a person is educated in an Islamic way in Egypt or in the U.S.A., for instance, he/she will not be a God Egyptian or a good American only; but he/she will also be a good human being. This is, in fact, as Kotb states it, a more general large concept of a person; that is due to the fact that if a person is prepared to be a good Egyptian only, for example, he/she may be that good in the U.S.A., for instance, and vice versa; but, if he/she is a good human being he/she will be so everywhere in the world. What are the qualities of a good human being? Kotb answers this question from the Islamic viewpoint. He says that a good human being is the righteous human being: The most honoured of you in the sight of God is he who is the most righteous of you. To be righteous, a good Muslim should be raised upon thinking of God AI Mighty, trying to satisfy Him, and getting away from the evil acts that make Him unhappy. A good Muslim can also be defined as the person who follows God's guidance: And if, as is sure, there comes to you guidance from Me whosoever follows My 6guidance, on them shall be no fear, nor, shall they grieve. He/She is the person that can act as God‘s vicegerent on the earth: Behold, the Lord said 90 the angels: I will create a vicegerent on earth. To be God's vicegerent, a person should follow God's guidance, and should not give up the preference God has given him/her: We have honoured the sons of Adam; provided them with transport on land and sea; given them for sustenance things good and pure; and conferred on them special favours above a great part of Our creation. 8- The Way Islam Sees Man: In, Aims and Objectives of Islamic Education, (I979) Al-Attas seems to agree with Kotb on what the latter has written about the general objective of Islamic education. But in order to make the point clearer AI-Attas illustrates in his book the way Islam deals with humm nature. He says that according to Islam, man has a dual nature; he/she is both soul and body; he/she is at once physical being and spirit. Islam looks at a human being as a whole consisting of body, mind, and spirit, and it deals with him/her in a way that satisfies all his/her needs. According to the Islamic thought, man has a materialistic side: Behold, thy Lord said to the angels, 'I am about to create man from clay. This materialistic side has its own needs, like food, clothes, housing and sex. Man should be granted the chance to satisfy these needs. A good Muslim should do his/her best to have a healthy strong body. The Prophet advised Muslims in different occasions not to eat too much because: Stomach is the house of disease.IO In another occasion he said: We are the people who do not eat so little that we get hungry so quickly, and if we eat we do not eat too much. I The other side of man that should also be satisfied, according to the Islamic viewpoint is the side that consists of mind and spirit, Man's spirit is a part of God's spirit: When I have fashioned him (in due proportion) and breathed into him of My spirit. I 2 Like the physical side, Al-Attas says, the spiritual side has its own demands which Islam helps man to satisfy. Man can satisfy this side through praying five times a day, fasting in the month of Ramadan, paying the poor dues, and visiting the holy places in Mecca in Saudi Arabia. Islam also helps man, as Al-Attas and Kotb say, to satisfy the intellectual side of his/her personality. Man is curious by nature; that is why God AI Mighty encourages him/her to look at the things surrounding him/her, contemplate, think, and come to fruitful conclusions: In the creation of heavens and earth, and in the difference between night and day, there are signs of God's tremendous creativity for those who have brains.I C- In his book, Some Aspects of Muslim Education, (I970) Ouraishi explains the way a humcn being should be educated according to the Islamic principles. He says that a good Islamic education is the one that deals with man as a whole: as a body, mind, and spirit. It should be taken into consideration that these various sides of a human being are not separated from each other. Kotb also emphasizes this point in his book, Curriculum of Islamic Education (I970). Man‘s sides, according to Islam, form one harmonious unit; therefore, educators should handle each of them equally. No one can separate one side of man from the other. Sometimes one side occupies, as Kotb says, a larger place; but this does not necessarily mean that it is separated from the other side, or that the other side is of less importance. For example, if a person is eating, his/her body occupies a more important position in this specific situation than his/her mind and spirit; but this does not mean that man is not thinking of God AI Mighty while eating (spiritual side). AI-Attas, Kotb, and Ouraishi agree upon the idea that Islam aims at teaching man the following: I- spiritual education; 2— intellectual education; and 3- physical education. Islam considers the spiritual power in man a limitless power while the physical power and the intellectual power have limits: They ask you about spirit; say, spirit belongs to God only, and you have gained very limited knowledge. The physical power, for instance, appears only in man's ability to touch or hold something; the intellectual ability is controlled by the factor of time and place but the spiritual power can go through all these things on the earth and in heaven to communicate man with God; it has no limits. Islam, therefore, sees spiritual education as the way to a continuous relationship between the human being and God. About educating the mind God says: It is He who created you, and made you grow, and made for you the faculties of hearing, seeing, feeling, and understanding; little thinks it is ye give. In another verse, God shows His appreciation to the well educated people: Say, are those who know equal with those who know not?l6 Kotb says that although God gave people the ability to think and understand they are tempted by their minds; they think that they can do almost anything, especially in this era, by using their minds. For educating the mind Islam adopts two ways: (I) Designing the right curricula for understanding. Islam has achieved this task through guidance and training: (A) a person has to give up all the beliefs that were not proved; he/she should not act like those disbelievers who said: We found our fathers following a certain religion and we will certainly follow their footsteps.| They took for granted what their parents said in spite of the fact that there was no proof to assert what their parents said: But they have now knowledge therein. They follow nothing but conjecture; and avails nothing against truth.l8 (B) a person has to know and find out that his/her matter is the truth before he/she believes in it: And pursue not that of which thou hast no knowledge; for every act of hearing or of seeing or of (feeling in) the heart will be enquired into (on the Day of Recokoning). (2) A person has to think and be punctual. A human being has to look at the universe, study through contemplating the tour of the earth, the sun, and the stars; it not calculated by hours or minutes, or even seconds; but, by rays which speed about I86.000 mile per second; that is why Islam wants man to be punctual. Kotb says that educating man's body does not mean, from the Islamic viewpoint, man's muscles, senses . . . etc.; but, it means the power and activities that come out of that body, the power to live. Although every side of man's entity is dealt with separately in this analysis, this does not mean that Islam deals with these sides this way; the objective behind this separation is to make this analysis clearer. About educating the body, the Prophet said: Your body has the right to be taken care of.2 In this saying the Prophet advises Muslims to clean their bodies, feed them, warm them up, satisfy their biological needs, and do everything that keeps them in good health. God says: Nor forget thy portion in this world.2| In this verse, God advises the believers to enjoy their life on the earth, to give their bodies what they need in order to be healthy and strong, and not to torture them. One of the distinguished leaders of Islam whose name is Omar Ibn AI-Khattab said: Teach your children how to swim, to shoot, and to ride horses. The three things Ibn Al-Khattab mentioned in his saying were the three main physical activities known at that time to strengthen the body and to keep it in a good shape. In another saying, the Prophet advised Muslims to look after their bodies and to make them strong: The strong believer is closer to God than the weak one; however, both believers are good. Those who interpreted the Prophet's saying say that in this saying the prophet concentra- ted on all types of strength, especially the physical type. God, in the Holy Ouran, says: Eat of the sustenance (provided) by your Lord, and be grateful.“ This is another call from God to the believers to take care of their bodies and to enjoy their life. The previous analysis of the views of some Muslim thinkers about the general objective of Islamic eduation and the way Islam sees man, indicates that those thinkers believe that Islam is a religion of education which considers educating people one of the obligatory duties its followers should do. They also think that the main objective of Islamic education is to prepare a good human being who is distinguished by certain qualities like being righteous. They say that Islam sees a human being as a combination of body and spirit; in order to lead a better life a human being should take care of both sides of his/her entity. They (the Muslim thinkers) also say that three types of education should be offered to a Muslim: spiritual, intellectual, and physical. Section II Methods of Teaching the Curriculum for Instructing in Islam Both Mohamed Kotb in his book, Manhaj Al-Tarbiayh AI-IslamicM'I (Curriculum of Islamic Education, I970), and A.A. Salem in his book, Al-Tarbiuayh Al-Islamiayh Wa Turuq 2%.“? 'ICC_ Iv '1 v I Tadrisiha (Islamic Education and Its Teaching Methods, I975), agree on the idea that there are five distinguished teaching methods in Islam: (I) education through good example; (2) education through good preaching; (3) education through punishment; (4) education through telling stories; and, (5) education through teaching good habits. (l) Education Through Good Example: Kotb, in I970, says that education through good example is one of the most effective methods that leads to the success of the educational process. Any curriculum cannot be effective and successful unless there are some people able to change it into a reality; in order for people to be convinced of a certain curriculum there should be a sort of application, a good application, that illustrates to those people how constructive this curriculum is; that is why as Kotb says, God AI Mighty sent the Prophet as a good example to all the people on the earth: Ye have indeed in the Apostle of God a beautiful pattern (of conduct) for any one whose hope is in God and the Final Day.25 Aisha, the Prophet's wife, was once asked about the Prophet's conduct, and her answers was "His conduct was Al-Ouran."26 Kotb comments on this answer by saying that Aisha's answer means, in brief, that the Prophet was the concrete reflection of Al-Ouran which is the curriculum designed by God for all people on the earth. A Muslim parent should be a good example for his/her children. A child whose father, for instance, is a liar, cannot learn to tell the truth; a child whose mother is a cheater, for example, cannot learn to be honest. This is why Islam considers educating children through good example the most effective method. (2) Education Through Good Preaching: Salem in I975, Kotb in I970, and Ouraishi in I970 in his book, Some Aspects of Muslim Education, referred to the preaching method as one of the most infleuntial teaching methods in Islam. Good explanatory words have usually their great effect on man' emotions and his/her ability to understand and to be convinced of what is said about a certain topic. But, words alone cannot, as Kotb explains, be effective; good words should come from a good example in order to be infleuntial. This means that a good educator should be a good example first, and then he/she should be a good speaker; being a good speaker only is not enough. The Holy Quran gives people many examples of good preachers and the good pieces of advice they addressed to their relatives and friends: Behold, Luqman said, to his son by way of instruction: "0 my son! join not in worship (others) with God: for false worship is indeed the highest wrong-doing." And We have enjoyed on man (to be good) to his parents: in travail upon travail did his mother bear him, and in years twain was his weaning: (hear the command), "show gratitude to Me and to thy parents: to Me is (thy final) Goal." "But if they strive to make thee join in worship with Me things of which thou hast no knowledge, obey them not; yet bear them company in this life with justice (and consideration), and follow the way of those who turn to Me (in Love).27 (3) Education Through Punishment: Kotb, in I970, said that although the word ’punishment' is not accepted now in many modern philosophies of education, it is regarded as an essential term that deserves much consideration according to the Islamic philosophy of education. Good example, and good preaching are not always successful; not all people can learn through these two methods; people are different and so are the teaching methods. Punishment, therefore, can be an effective teaching method when it is used in dealing with some people whose nature responds to this kind of method only. Islam advises people to start with the first two teaching methods, and if these two methods fail, they have to apply the punishment method. According to what Kotb says, there are different levels of punishment in Islam; these levels start with threat and end with the execution of the threat: I0 Those who involve not with God, any other god, nor slay such life, as God has made sacred, except for, just cause, nor commit fornication; and any that does this (not only) meets punishment (but) the Penalt8y on the Day of Judgment will be doubled to - 2 1m. he woman and the man guilty of adultery or fornication, flog each of them with a hundred stripes. Some people may stop doing bad deeds if they are just threatened; but, some other people should be punished in order to stop doing that. (4) Education Through Telling Stories: Salem, in I975, emphasizes the importance of the story as a means of educating people in Islam. He says that a good story has the effect of magic on the listener, and therefore educators should make use of this fact in teaching children. There are different kinds of stories: historical, sentimental . . . etc. The Holy Ouran tells people many stories that may show them how to be on the right track in this life that is full of temptation: Has the story of the Disputants reached thee? Behold, they climbed over the wall of the private chamber; when they entered the presence of David and he was terrified of them, they said: "Fear not we are two disputants, one of whom has wronged the other: decide now between us with truth, and treat us not with unjustice, but guide us to the even Path." This man is my brother: he has nine and ninety ewes, and I have (but) one: yet he says, 'Commit her to my care' and is (moreover) harsh to me in speech." (David) said: "He has undoubtedly wronged thee in demanding thy (single) ewe to be added to his (flock of) ewes: truly many are the Partners (in business) who wrong each other: not so do those who believe and work deeds of righteousness, and how few are they?"... David gathered that we had tried him: he asked forgiveness of his Lord, fell down, bowing (in prostration), and turned (to God in repentance). So We forgave him. This (lapse): he enjoyed he enjoyed indeed, a Near Approach to Us, and a beautiful Place of (final) Return.30 This story and many more were mentioned in the Ouran to remind the Muslim educators of the effectiveness of a good story as a means of educating people. (5) Education Through Teaching Good Habits: Ouaraishi, in I970, says that helping the learner to acquire good habits is considered one of the effective teaching methods in Islam. This is why Islam started with destorying gradually the social bad habits that existed in the Arab society before the coming of Islam. But, because God knows the effect of bad habits on people and how hard it is to order people directly to desert these habits, He gives His orders gradually in order to prepare those people emotionally to give up these habits. There is an example in the Ouran that shows the wise method God has followed to convince people to stop practicing bad habits: . They ask you about drinking wine and gambling. Say, there is a great sin in both of them and there are also some benefits; but, their sin is ronuch greater than their benefits. you who believe Do not pray when you are drunk,32 , Drinking wine and gambling are one of the Devil's evil deeds. Stop doing that in order to lead a successful happy life.33 God's message to Muslim educators is that they have to destory (wisely) the bad habits in children, and they have to replace them with good habits. This is an effective method of teaching. The previous description of the Islamic teaching methods shows that there are five main teaching methods in Islam: through good example, through good preaching, through punishment, through telling stories, and finally through teaching good habits. The main question that will be answered in the next part of this section is: What are the contents of the curriculum for instructing in Islam? Contents of the Curriculum for Instructing in Islam In his book, Al-Tarbiayh Al-Islamiayh Wa Turuq Tadriysiyha (Islamic Education and Its Teaching Methods, I975) Salem agrees with Khan in his book, History of Muslim Education, I967), and with Ouraishi in his book, Some Aspects of Muslim Education, on I2 what they say about the main contents of the Islamic curriculum. The three writers say that there are three major topics that represent the essence of the Islamic curriculum: (I) the Ouran; (2) Ways of Worship; and (3) the Prophet's biography and traditions. The memorization and recitation of the Ouran are the core, as Salem says, of the Islamic Curriculum. Muslim thinkers and educators believe that the Ouran is the 'charter' of mankind which every Muslim should keep by heart. The recitation of the Ouran is as important as the memorization of the Ouran. Reciting the Ouran is a part of the Muslim's workship of God Al Mighty: And recite the Ouran in slow, measured rhythmic tones“? and therefore, a Muslim should be able to do this recitation several times a day. Ways of worship represent the second major part of the Islamic curriculum. The first of these ways is the five prayers a Muslim should practice daily: Enjoin pggyer on thy people, and be constant therein. Praying to God Al Mighty helps man, as Khan says, avoid doing evil deeds, and that is why Muslims should be taught how to pray: Recite what is sent of the Book by inspiration to thee, and establish regular Prayer: for Pra er restrains from shameful and unjust deeds.3 The second way of worshipping God AI Mighty in Islam is the payment of the poor dues: And they have been commanded no more than this: to worship God, offering Him sincere devotion, being true (in faith); to establish regular Prayer; and to practice regular Charit7y; and that is the . . Religion Right and.Straight.3 . It IS consndered a great mistake In Islam not to pay the poor dues, and that IS why every Muslim should be taught how he/she can pay the poor dues: Seest thou one who denies the judgment (to come)? Then such is the (man) who repulses the orphan (with harshness) and encourages not the feeding of the indigent}8 l3 The third way of worshiping Allah (God Al Mighty), according to the Islamic viewpoint, is to fast: Listen, Believers, you are ordered to fast as our ancestors were ordered before you to do 50.3 The final way of worshipping God in Islam is to visit the holy places in Mecca in Saudi Arabia if it is possible: "And proclaim the Pilgrimage among men: they will come to thee of camel, lean on account of journeys through deep and distant mountain highways; that they may witness the benefits (provided) for them and celebrate the name of God through the Days, appointed, over the cattle which He has provided for them (for sacrifice): them eazdre thereof and feed the distressed ones in want. The Prophet's biography and traditions are regarded as the third major part of the Islamic curriculum. In his book, Manhaj Al-Tarbiogh AI-Islamiayh (Curriculum of Islamic Education, I970), Kotb refers to the idea that since the Prophet is considered the best example of a true muslim, his way of life should be explained to Muslim children to be guided by his wise vast experience in the different situations he faced during his lifetime. The Prophet's traditions are, as Salem mentions in his book, the second essential source of religious knowledge in Islam: 50 take what the Apostle assigns to you, and deny yourselves that which he withholds from you.‘ll The previous analysis of the main contents of the Islamic curriculum has dealt only with the religious contents of this curriculum. Because the secular side of this curriculum is not one of the issues this paper deals with it will not be analyzed. The religious side of the Islamic curriculum has been the major issue of this paper. Section III Summary and Commentary The first two sections of this paper have illustrated that Islam is a religion which aims at spreading education everywhere on the earth. The main general objective of the Islamic curriculum is to prepare a good humm being who is righteous, thinking of God Al Mighty, trying to satisfy Him, and getting away from the evil deeds that make Him unhappy; he/she follows God's guidance, and acts as God's vicegerent on the earth. Islam conceptualizes man as one coherent whole consisting of spirit, mind and body; each of these three major elements should be taken care of ecpally; that is why there are three types of education that should be offered to every human being: (I) spiritual education; (2) intellectual education; and (3) physical education. There are five essential teaching methods in Islam: (I) education through good example; (2) education through good preaching; (3) education through punishment; (4) education through telling stories; and (5) education through teaching good habits. The major religious contents of the Islamic curriculum are : (I) the Ouran; (2) Ways of Worship; and (3) the Prophet's biography and traditions. I In their book, Crisis in Muslim Education, I979, Husain and Ashraf throw some light on the nature of the educational problems existing now in many Muslim countries. The first major problem they refer to is that religious education is now offered in the same way that history, for instance, is offered to Muslim children: all that matters is that children have to know that some events took place in the past during the Prophet's life time. In some other cases, religious education is offered in the same way poetry is offered to children: children have to memorize some verses from the Holy Ouran as they memorize any other poem they study at school. The problem, in brief, is that religious education is taught as something theoretical that need have no effect on man's practical life. The solution for this problem is to try to connect the theory with the reality in which children live; there should be some application of this theory in the children's lives; they should not study religion as something they should just memorize; it should not only be something they know, but also something they practice. llI I5 How can this happen? How can children be helped to practice religion? How can they be taught that religion should not only be a part of their life, but it should be their whole life? Salem, in I975, answered this question when he suggested that a teacher who has a beautiful voice may encourage children to memorize and recite the Holy Quran. This may mean that the teacher who teaches the Quran should have some specific cpalifications. A beautiful voice is not the only qualification the Ouran teacher should have because if it is the only qualification the children will memorize the Ouranic verses in the same way they memorize a song sung by a famous singer. Memorization alone does not count; what counts is why children should memorize and recite the Ouran. The Quran teacher should be able to convince the children of the importance of what they memorize. Memorizing Ouranic verses is not like memorizing songs; it is higher in importance and benefit than memorizing songs; it satisfies God Al Mighty and makes people closer to Him. This may mean that children should know that they memorize and recite the Quran, not because they will have a test in what they memorize and recite, but because this will make them closer to God Al Mighty; this may be enough to motivate those children to make the recitation of the Qurm a part of their everyday activities. Salem, in I975, says that the different ways of worship in Islam (regular Prayer, payment of the poor dues, fasting, and Pilgrimage) are taught theoretically in many Muslim countries. All that children in these countries should learn, according to what the educators in these countries believe in, is that Islam is built on these four ways of worship in addition to the statement every Muslim should start his/her Islamic life with: there is no other god, but Allah, and Mohammad is His messenger. Both Salem in I975 and Kotb in I970 agree on the idea that schools in Muslim countries should play cn essential role in showing children how to practice these ways of worship in their daily life. Salem suggests that there should be a room in every school for children to pray in. The teacher should accompany his/her children to this room in order to explain to them how to wash and prepare themselves for praying. He/she should lead l6 his/her students for praying. No classes should be taught when time for praying comes. This may show children how important praying to God AI Mighty is, and therefore they will practice it whenever it is time for establishing it. Kotb says that children are sentimental by nature, and therefore Muslim educators should make use of this fact in convincing children of the great effect of paying the poor due on poor people; children have to know that the money that goes to the poor people makes them able to buy food and clothes. In order to prove this practically Kotb suggests that in every classroom there should be a committee of some children responsible for collecting money from the children who are able to pay, buying clothes and food, and giving this food and clothes to the poor children. All these procedures should be carried out under the teacher's supervision. When the financially able children observe the effect of this humanistic process on the needy children this may encourage them to practice this way of worship as long as they are capable of doing it. It is hard, as Salem says, to order a child to fast in the same way an adult fasts. That is because fasting from dawn till sunset will be quite destructive for a child. Salem suggests that educators should utilize the child's desire to help the needy people in convincing them of the importance of fasting. The teacher should explain to his/her students why God ordered Muslims to fast in the holy Islamic month of Ramadan. He/She should tell them that God did that to make the rich people feel the pains of hunger from which the poor people suffer daily. This may make the rich more sympathetic with the poor; it may motivate them (the rich) to give more money, food and clothes to the poor. The teacher can ask the children to practice fasting for a few hours; he/she may ask them to have their lunch two or three hours later than the regular lunch time; he/she should also advise them to increase the number of fasting hours gradually as they grow up gradually as they grow up. Schools, as Kotb says, should not only be a place for teaching religion, but also for practicing it. l7 Salem says that Pilgrimage is one of the most difficult ways of worship children can practice; that is simply because the holy places exist in Mecca in Saudi Arabia; the only Muslim children who may be able to visit these places are those children in Saudi Arabia itself. However, films and pictures about these places should be presented to children, and the spiritual importance of visiting these places should be explained to them. The Prophet's biography and traditions can be effectively presented to children in the form of a story or a play to be acted on the stage. Kotb says that the dramatization of the different situations the Prophet faced during his lifetime proved to be the best way for teaching the Prophet's biography and traditions. The previous analysis may illustrate that Husain, Ashraf , Salem and Kotb focus on advocating one principal idea, that religion should not be taught in schools as a theory only, but also as something children have to practice. In his book, Hal Nahnu Muslimun (Are We Muslims), Kotb, I972 refers to another serious issue concerning religious education in Muslim countries at the present time. He says that Muslim countries are concerned now with preparing a good citizen belonging to a certain country. This is not in accordance with the general objective of the Islam curriculum. Islam wants Muslim schools to prepare a good human being who is more proud of being Muslim than of being the citizen of a certain country. The other serious matter Kotb refers to in his book, is that Muslim schools concentrate now on teaching religion as something spiritual only; something to satisfy man's spiritual needs only. Again, this is not in accordance with the way Islam conceptualizes man. Islam sees man as one whole, consisting of body, mind, and spirit. Children should be taught in a way that shows them that religion is not for satisfying their souls only, but also for satisfying their bodies and minds, for all types of human needs. l8 Recommendations In terms of the previous critical commentary, the following recommendations are addressed to the responsible people in Egypt and in other concerned countries: I- Attention should be paid to the importance of connecting religion as a theory with religion as something to be practiced at school, at home, and everywhere. Children should be encouraged to memorize and recite the Quran daily in school and at home. There should be a room in every school for children to pray. The formation of a committee of students whose main responsibility is to collect money for poor children, is highly recommended. Giving children the chance to practice fasting for a few hours may be an effective way to make them understand the philosophy behind fasting. Films and pictures about the holy places in Mecca should be presented in schools. Stories and plays should be introduced on the stage to teach children about the Prophet's biography and traditions. 2- Creating a sort of balance between the preparation of a good citizen and the preparation for a good humm being is recommended. A humm being should feel proud of adopting certain principles, and at the some time he/she should also feel proud of belonging to a certain country. Neither one of these two feelings should outweigh the existence of the other. 3- Children should be taught in a way that makes them feel they are first of all human beings, not angels. Religion deals with man as a body, mind, and spirit, and therefore a child should feel that his/her entity consists of all these elements which work together harmoniously. Religious education is not for helping children to grow spiritually only, but also physically and intellectually. I9 Bibliography AI-Attas, Sayed Muhammed AI-Naquib. 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