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Q.1 Q.1 "Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) Was The Greatest Teacher of Mankind". Elaborate Answer: Definition
Q.1 Q.1 "Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) Was The Greatest Teacher of Mankind". Elaborate Answer: Definition
Q.1 Q.1 "Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) Was The Greatest Teacher of Mankind". Elaborate Answer: Definition
1
Q.1 "Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was the greatest
teacher of mankind". Elaborate
ANSWER:
Introduction:
Definition:
The term society has been derived from the Latin word ‘Socius’ which means a
companion, association or fellowship. It is because man always lives in the
company of his fellow beings. The term society is understood in different sense.
Society is used to refer to the members of specific in group. At some other time
society refers to an association like consumer’s society, co-operative society or
cultural society. Society is also used in the sense of a group such as rural society
or urban society.
But in Sociology, Society refers not to a group of people but to the complex
pattern of the norms or interaction or relationships that arise among them.
People exist only as an agent of social relationships. Mere congregation of
individuals does not constitute society. Rather society refers to the complicated
network of social relationships by which every individual is interrelated with his
fellowmen. Hence Society is abstract, not concrete, in nature. We can’t touch it
but fill it. Because society resides in the minds of individual.
Education as a Sub-System:
Education is a sub-system of the society. It is related to other sub-systems.
Various institutions or sub-systems are a social system because they are
interrelated. Education as a sub-system performs certain functions for the society
as whole. There are also functional relations between education and other sub-
systems. For example, Education trains the individuals in skills that are required
by economy. Similarly education is conditioned by the economic institutions.
The effectiveness of organized activities of a society depends on the interaction
and inter relationships of these institutions which constitute the whole. Now we
will examine the role of education for the society and the relationship between
education and other sub-system of society in terms of functionalist perspective.
The functionalist view of education tends to focus on the positive contributions
made by education to the maintenance of social system.
Functions:
Emile Durkheim says that the major function of education is the transmission of
society’s norms and values. He maintains that, “society can survive only if there
exists among its members a sufficient degree of homogeneity; education
perpetuates and reinforces this homogeneity by fixing in the child from the
beginning the essential similarities which collective life demands”. Without these
essential similarities, cooperation, social solidarity and therefore social life would
be impossible. The vital task of all society is the creation of solidarity.
This involves a commitment to society, a sense of belonging and feeling that the
social unit is more important than the individual. Durkheim argues that to
become attached to society the child must feel in it something that is real, alive
and powerful, which dominates the person and to which he also owes the best
part of himself.
Education in particular the teaching of history, provides this link between the
individual and society. If the history of his society is brought alive to the child, he
will come to see that he is a part of something larger than himself, he will develop
a sense of commitment to the social group.
Durkheim argues that in complex industrial societies, the school serves a function
which cannot be provided either by family or peer groups. Membership of the
family is based on kinship relationship, membership of the poor group on the
personal choice.
Conclusion:
Membership of society as a whole is based neither of these principles. Individuals
must learn to cooperate with those who are neither their kin nor their friends.
The school provides a context where these skills can be learned. As such, it is
society in miniature, a model of the social system. In school, the child must
interact with other members of the school in terms of fixed set of rules.
Drawing on Durkheim’s ideas, Talcott Parsons argues that after primary
socialization within the family, the school takes over as the ‘focal socializing
agency’. School acts a bridge between the family and society as a whole,
preparing the child for his adult role. Within the family, the child is judged and
treated largely in terms of ‘particularistic’ standards.
In the wider society the individual is treated and judged in terms of ‘Universalistic’
standards. Within the family the child’s status is ascribed, it is fixed by birth.
However, in advanced industrial society, status in adult life is largely achieved.
Thus, the child must move from particularistic standards and ascribed status of
the family to universalistic standards and achieved status of adult society.
The school prepares young people for this transition. Schools operates on
meritocratic principle, status is achieved on the basis of merit. Like Durkheim,
Parsons also argue that the school represents society in miniature. By reflecting
the operation of society as a whole, the school prepares young people for their
adult roles.
As part of this process, schools socialize young people into the basic values of
society. These values have important functions in society as a whole.
Finally, Parsons sees the educational system as an important mechanism for the
selection of individuals for their future role in society. In his words, it “functions to
allocate these human resources within the role structure of adult society”. Thus,
schools, by testing and evaluating students, match their talents, skills and
capacities to the jobs for which they are best suited. The school is therefore seen
as the major mechanism for role allocation.
Like Parsons, Davis and Moore see education as means of role allocation. But they
link the educational system more directly with the system of social stratification.
According Davis and Moore social stratification is a mechanism for ensuring that
most talented and able members of society are allocated to those positions which
are functionally most important for the society. High rewards which act as
incentives are attached to these positions which means that all will win through.
The education system is one important part of this process.
Q.2
Q.2 Discuss the philosophy of moral educationof
Shah Wali Allah.
ANSWER:
BACKGROUND:
Shah Wali Allah: was a great visionary, statesman and Muslim/Social
reformer, educator, jurist, politician, author and many others to count. He
flourished in the second half of the 19th century. His talent, deep-insight, love for
Islam and hard work played a major role in the revival of Muslims in India.
Sir Syed was born in an aristocratic family of Delhi, the capital of Mughal Empire,
at a time when rebellious governors, regional insurrections and the British
colonialism had diminished the extent and power of the Mughal state, reducing
its monarch to figurehead. With his elder brother Syed Muhammad Khan, Sir Syed
was raised in a large house in a wealthy area of the city. They were raised in strict
accordance with Mughal noble traditions and exposed to politics. Their mother
Azis-un-Nisa played a formative role in Sir Syed's life, raising him with rigid
discipline with a strong emphasis on education. Sir Syed was taught to read and
understand the Qur'an by a female tutor, which was unusual at the time. He
received an education traditional to Muslim nobility in Delhi. Under the charge of
Hamiduddin, Sir Syed was trained in Persian, Arabic, Urdu and religious subjects.
He read the works of Muslim scholars and writers such as Sahbai, Rumi and
Ghalib. Other tutors instructed him in astronomy and Islamic jurisprudence.
However Sir Syed Ahmed Khan attempted to make the community and country
progressive and take them forward on modern lines. His contributions for the
betterment and empowerment of the Muslims are great. His position in
the judicial department left him time to be active in many fields. His career as an
author in Urdu started at the age of 23. In 1847 he brought out an important book
"Monuments of the Great" on the antiquities of Delhi. Even more important was
his pamphlet "The Causes of the Indian Revolt". His interest in religion was also
active and lifelong. He wrote on the Life of Prophet Muhammad (Sal-am) and
devoted himself to write several volumes of a modernist commentary on the Holy
Quran. In these works he explained how the Islamic faith could go
with progressive scientific and political ideas of his time.
During the war of Independence he saved the lives of many English men. The
Government centered the title of Sir on him. Thus, he won the confidence of the
British Government. After the war of Independence the Muslims were passing
through a critical phase. By refusing to acquire western education they were not
keeping pace with modern times. The Muslims hated English language and
culture. They kept their children away from the schools and colleges. But in this
manner they were unconsciously damaging the interests of the Muslim
Community. Their ignorance of the English language and lack of modem
education kept them away from respectable government posts. On the other
hand the Hindus acquired modem knowledge and dominated the government
jobs. Syed Ahmed Khan was the first Muslim leader to realize the gravity of the
situation. He was greatly pained to seethe miserable condition of the Muslims
everywhere. He decided to devote his full efforts for the welfare of the Muslims.
The first need was the removal of mis trust about the Muslims from the minds of
British rulers.
For this purpose he wrote –Essay on the causes of Indian Revolt in which he
proved that there were many factors which led to the uprising of 1857 and that
only the Muslims were not to be held responsible for it. In addition he wrote
“Loyal Muhammadans of India” in which too he defended the Muslims against the
charges of disloyalty. These works restored confidence of the British in the
Muslims to a large extent. Sir Syed Ahmed Khan turned his attention towards the
educational uplift of his co-religionists. He told the Muslims that without acquiring
modern education they could not compete with the Hindus. He pleaded that
there was no harm in adopting western sciences and in learning English language.
He issued a magazine named “Tahzib-ul-Ikhlaq” which projected
adoptable European manners. Shortly afterwards Syed Ahmed Khan wrote a
commentary on the Holy Quran. In this work Syed Ahmed Khan interpreted Islam
on logical and scientific basis. Syed Ahmed Khan was one of the pioneers of the
Two Nation Theory. All his life, Syed Ahmad Khan protested against the practices
of
purdah, polygamy, easy divorce and many other superstitions. Promotion of mod
ernwestern education, however, was his priority. He believed that progress
was possible only if the Muslims adopted western scientific knowledge and
culture. In 1864, he founded the Translation Society at Aligarh. It was later
renamed the Scientific Society. Also it was the historical beginning of Muslim
education in India. This society published Urdu translations of books on science
and literature at its early times. Later it became as a World Wide familiar such
Aligarh Muslim University. He also established many schools in different parts of
the country.
Q.3
Discuss who is a practical Muslim? Examine the
criteria of evaluation as a practical Muslim in Islam.
ANSWER:
Ibn-e- Khaldun was one of the most talented and versatile person and thinker the
world ever saw. Besides being the top Muslim philosopher, he was also a
practicing politician and expert historian. In a nut shell he was a person gifted
with a great intelligence. His philosophical approach towards the understanding
of history gave him a place among the pioneers of philosophy of history.(Ahmad,
1984).
Let us reflect on the life of Ibn-e- Khaldun and his contributions in the field of
education.
Early Life:
It was the mid of the fourteenth century when Muslims in Spain were facing
persecution. Muslims were either expelled from the country, or were forced to
relinquish the religion of their ancestors by sword. Owing to the persecution in
the hands of the new rulers, Muslim families left Spain and headed towards
Africa. Ibn-e- Khaldun belonged to one of those noble Andalusian families who
had migrated from Seville to Tunis (Khalid, 2012 & Shahid, 2000). He was born
on 1st Ramadan, 732 A.H. (27 th May’ 1332 A.C.) in Tunis, Africa (Enan, 1986).
Ibn-e- Khaldun was an intelligent man. He was brought up to be a man of great
knowledge and wisdom; an expert at the subjects of history and politics. He is the
very first scientist who has left a permanent mark on the sciences of
historiography and sociology (Shahid, 2000).
Ibn-e- Khaldun attributes his origin to the Yemenite Arabs of Hadramaut, and
describes him as a scion of one of the oldest Arab Yemenite tribes (Enan, 1986).
Khaldun belonged to a prominent and learned Arab family, and he inherited both
material and spiritual heritage of his forefathers.
Ibn-e-Khaldun's first teacher was his own father. From him he learnt the Holy
Quran by heart, studied different modes of recitation and interpretation, as well
as Hadith and jurisprudence. He also learned Arabic grammar, language and
rhetoric from the most famous and well–known teachers of Tunis. Tunis at the
time was a center of learning in Africa, and Ibn-e- Khaldun took full advantage of
the scholastic opportunities available there (Enan, 1986 & Khalid, 2012). Khaldun
himself was an eminent orator (Khalid, 2012). His writings proved his brilliance to
a certain extent in Hadith and Maliki Jurisprudence, philosophy and poetry (Enan,
1986).
Ibn-e-Khaldun was a promising young man and an assiduous learner. It was due to
his great qualities that the ruler of Tunis Abu Ishaq II offered him qa position in his
court when he was only twenty years old.
Ibn-e-Khaldun had an adventurous soul! He migrated to various places, and
served different masters. When North Africa split into different principalities, he
moved to the principality of Morocco named Fez. There he was appointed the
Secretary of the state by Sultan Abu Inan of Fez. He then moved to the Straits of
Gibraltar and became the Fief – holder of the Sultan of Granada and later headed
a political mission to Pedro, the cruel King of Castile. Granada did not seem to be
exciting of Khaldun because of his conflict with one of the wazirs. He moved on to
the court of Prince of Jejaya, near Constantine and left Spain. He went back to
Granada in 1374 but again got expelled back to Africa where he got retired and
compiled his famous Prolegomena – Muqaddmah in a fort of Qilah-Ibne-Salamah.
The Prolegomena is said to be his fined thesis and study in the subject of
history. It presents his contributions to political and social philosophy. He went to
Cairo and spent rest of his there. During his stay at Cairo he also went to perform
Hajj at Makkah. In Cairo he held the post of Chief Justice and also lectured huge
audiences with ease and success. He compiled his history of the Universe mainly
of Arabs and Berbers in 1382. Khaldun left the world in 1406 and died in peace
(Khalid, 2012 & Shahid, 2000).
View of Education:
Ibn-e-Khaldun conveys that the education consists of the moral as well as the
intellectual training and teaching of humans which brings out the potential within
a man that helps develop the character and builds up the personality (Khalid,
2012). According to Khaldun, the knowledge can be divided into two parts of
streams, one of the subjects pertaining to philosophy depending upon one’s
mental potentialities and thinking faculties, the other dealing with the religious
subject. In the view of Ibn-e-Khaldun both types of knowledge are crucial for
mankind as both play a role in the development and progress of any nation
(Shahid, 2000).
According to Khaldun, the educational system of any society should be
formulated in accordance with the ideology of the society. E.g. it is important for
every Muslim man and woman to gain the knowledge the Holy Quran and Sunnah
and follow the guidance of Allah taught by the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him).
He provides the following advantages of education to man:
· Education should develop social and economic efficiency in man to be
usefully absorbed in the society.
· Education should be a means to bring happiness in life of people.
· Important aim of education is to develop the power of thinking and
reasoning.
To him travelling is also a mean to gain knowledge and in receiving education
(Khalid, 2012).
Methods of Teaching:
Ibn-e-Khaldun discouraged the method of teaching which did not provide any
opportunity to the students to interpret lessons and solve problems on their own.
Also consequently reducing their inventiveness, originality and power to create,
invent and develop. He said that the traditional method of teaching was just
emphasizing on the memorization of notes and interpretations which were made
by others. This lead to less opportunity to struggle and did not develop the habit
of putting effort to think and interpret which was highly required for the learning
and teaching of Islam (Khalid, 2012). In his opinion the students had become just
the passive listeners and that the methods of teaching did not motivate their
learning and discouraged their participation in discussions. As a result of it is that
the students stayed silent in the class and focused on rote learning killing their
power and ability of thinking and reasoning (Shahid, 2000). Ibn-e-Khaldun was
very sad about the teachers who ignored the methods of teaching and did not
focus on the actual method of teaching the students. They started the lesson
from complex to simple and mixed up the advance knowledge with elementary.
Khaldun complained that the students were being targeted to hate the subject
they were taught as it was made so difficult for them to understand. He also said
“Let the teachers proceed from simple to complex, from known to the unknown
and from concrete to abstract.” (Khalid, 2012 & Shahid, 2000).
Ibn-e-Khaldun opined that the best and easiest way of gaining the ability to
effective learning is to participate in discussions over problems and also finding
their solution. He degraded the lecture methods of teaching and favoured the
discussions and debating methods which will provide an opportunity for the
students to bring out their views and interpretations (Khalid, 2012 & Shahid,
2000). He also said that the subject should be taught according to the level of
students’ ability and capacity. This way they will learn rapidly and understands
properly and easily. Ibn-e-Khaldun criticized the teaching methods of his time and
brought his own suggestions in this regard. In his opinion the process of teaching
should comprise of the following three stages:
· Stage 1 (Introduction)
A brief introduction of the topic should be given to the students followed by
explanations and concrete examples to support the teaching topic.
· Stage 2 (Development)
The topic should now be explained in great detail for the better understanding of
the students. The points briefly discussed in the first stage should now be
discussed thoroughly and critically.
· Stage 3 (Recap)
In the end of the lesson the topic must be revised again in order to know if the
students have really understood the topic and has their learning enhanced
(Khalid, 2012 & Shahid, 2000).
Discipline:
Ibne-Khaldun says that the relationship of a teacher and student should be based
upon love and understanding. The teacher should act as a parent towards the
student and avoid harsh and cruel punishments (Khalid, 2012). In his opinion,
torture, whether by parents or teachers injure the mental faculties of the child
which leads to the destruction of child’s personality development (Shahid,
2000).
Curriculum:
Ibn-e-Khaldun criticized the books of that time which were referred to as the text-
books and reference-books. The students had to study these books and their
explanations and commentaries in order to attain the graduation diploma. In the
view of Khaldun, too much explanation is very harmful and difficult for the
students as every scholar has their own view and perception of presenting. Ibn-e-
Khaldun says that there is nothing new expect for the repetition of contents with
some variations of words and phrases, then why should students be compelled to
memorize and learn books (Shahid, 2000).
Regarding the content of education Ibn-e-Khaldun says that religion instruction
should be the corner stone of the curriculum as it helps in formation of the good
character and habits. According to him logic is very important for students as it
enables one to think and also analyze critically. Khaldun emphasizes on the
learning of language as it helps to study different subjects and also mathematics
as it sharpens the mental power and increases the power of reasoning. He felt a
need of professional and vocational subjects along with academic subjects
(Khalid, 2012).
Contribution in Education:
Ibn-e-Khaldun was a famous historian, a great philosopher, and also an incredible
educationist. His views on education and the deep psychological insight in the
educational process and development of human mind and body tagged him as a
great educator too. His contribution in education is considered to be worthwhile
and valuable across the world in the field of education because he emphasized on
the social efficiency as an aim of education and also promoted professional and
vocational subjects along with academic subjects in education. The modern
education literally advocates the methods provided by Khaldun in teaching
(Khalid, 2012).
The mastermind of Ibn-e-Khaldun was assorted and adaptable: he was an
accomplished philosopher, a seasoned politician, a reputed historian, and a
learned geographer. He was th founder of philosophy of History, a originator of
the “Philosophy of Sociology” and a pioneer of Demography. Khaldun had great
command over imaginative and creative teaching potentials. He was not only a
teacher but an educator who could lay hands on any subject and lecture over it
with reference to his academic skills. He is the original thinker and philosopher
whose range and depth of wisdom in the field of education is just exclusive
(Shahid,2000).
AL-FARABI
Al-Farabi was born in Wasij, in the province of Farab in Turkestan, in 872 AD (259
AH) of a noble family. His father, of Persian origin, was an army commander at the
Turkish court. Al-Farabi moved to Baghdad, where he studied grammar, logic,
philosophy, music, mathematics and sciences; he was a pupil of the great
translator and interpreter of Greek philosophy, Abu Bishr Matta b. Yunus (d.
942/329) in Baghdad; he then studied under Yuhanna b. Haylan, the Nestorian (d.
941/328), in Harran. Thereby he is affiliated to the Alexandrian school of
philosophy which had been located at Harran, Antakya and Merv, before
definitively settling in Baghdad. As a result of these years of study, he
accumulated such knowledge of philosophy that he earned the name of the
‘Second Teacher’, by reference to Aristotle, the ‘First Teacher’.
He moved to Aleppo in the year 943 (330) and became part of the literary circle in
the court of Sayf al-Dawla Hamdani (d. 968/356). Al-Farabi was given to
wandering on his own in the countryside to reflect and to write, and it was
probably his despair at reforming his society that inclined him towards Sufism. His
travels brought him to Egypt and it was in Damascus in 950 (339) that he died at
the age of 80.
Al-Farabi had a great desire to understand the universe and humankind, and to
know the latter’s place within the former, so as to reach a comprehensive
intellectual picture of the world and of society. He undertook the meticulous
study of ancient philosophy, particularly of Plato and Aristotle, absorbing the
components of Platonic and neo-Platonic philosophy, which he integrated into his
own Islamic-Arabic civilization, whose chief source is, as we all know, the Qur’an
and the various sciences derived from it.
Al-Farabi represents a turning-point in the history of Islamic philosophical
thought, since he was the true first founder of epistemology which relies upon
‘universal reason’ and the demonstrations he gave. The intellectual, political and
social circumstances prevailing in his day no doubt explain his approach since, in
fact, he lived in a historical period of great turmoil, during which the central
Islamic caliphate was torn apart into independent states and principalities in both
the east and west.
Q.4
On what bases it is needed to Islamize education for
an Islamic society?
ANSWER:
Integrated Islamic Curriculum:
Islamic curriculum is an instrument or plan that aims at giving the students a
clear, thorough understanding of Islamic teachings, moral behavior and Islamic
etiquette. It focuses on the development of an integrated personality that will fit
into every aspect of life. This means that Islamic education is universal and
relevant to all aspect of human life. That is, there is no separation between
religious and secular knowledge. Therefore, Integrated Islamic Curriculum is a
curriculum that covers all forms of knowledge derived from divine revelation and
acquired knowledge. It bridges the gap between revealed knowledge and
humanly acquired knowledge. It affords the students with the ability to question
and analyze the source of any information and application from Islamic point of
view.
Syllabus: The content of the curriculum itself is not adequate and sufficient
enough to achieve the goals of Islamic education. The elementary nature of the
curriculum makes students feel other courses are complex and difficult than
Islamic studies even though it is not. Some of the topics treated at the tertiary
levels are already being introduced at the secondary school level. At the tertiary
stage, it is expected that the curriculum should be the continuation of what has
been introduced in the secondary stage and not repetition which will make the
student feel he/she has been taught. In such cases of repetition, students decide
not to attend lectures or read on time which later leads to mass failure of such
students.
Q.5
Discuss formative, Summative, internal and external
evaluation within Islamic system of education.
ANSWER:
Formative, Summative, internal and external
Evaluation:
The student-teacher relationship is very important for children and adolescents
for improving their mental health. Children spend approximately 5 to 7 hours a
day with a teacher for almost 10 months a year. All of us have gone through
schooling and we have had a many number of favourite teachers. A positive
relationship between the student and the teacher is difficult to establish.
Improving students’ relationship with teachers has essential, positive and long
lasting implications for student’s academic and social development stated that
teachers who experience close relationships with students reported that their
students were less likely to avoid school, appeared more self-directed, more
supportive, and more engaged in learning. The communication between the
student and the teacher serves a connection between the two and which provides
a better atmosphere fora classroom environment. A teacher then needs to
understand the value of the students' senses of belonging which can be of greater
value to overall development of the students in all aspects irrespective of the
racial confrontations.(Keywords: Teacher, student, mental health, relationship,
school)
Combined responsibility:
Both a student and a teacher should be aware that a school is a place to learn
when they enter the school building every day. Apart from this, it is the job of the
students as well as the teachers to make sure that the relationship the two have is
a good one. If a student is constantly giving a teacher a rough time about
everything, the student cannot have a good relationship with the teacher .The
student-teacher relationship is like a bridge that connects knowledge, experience
and efficiency of a teacher to bring out the potentiality of a student with his/her
aspirations. The distance between the two should be the distance we cross the
bridge. Apart from the syllabus allotted to the students, the teachers should give
information about the critical society in which they are living. For this, they should
not be confined themselves to the work of completing their allotted portions but
they are supposed to introduce the students to a wider knowledge of the world in
which they are living.
Adaptability of changes:
We should understand that the world in which the teachers lived is different from
the world in which their students are living. There is a vast and tremendous
change in which our present students are going to face as the world has shrunk in
many aspects. A student should not be constrained with imposition of the past.
They should be given freedom to think whether the past or the present is
desirable. The world is going so fast and there is a necessity that we have to adopt
the changes that are inevitable and reasonable. A good teacher by imparting all
these changes with mixing of classroom situations can create the best students.
The present students are going to meet a more complicated world which is
entirely different from the world which the teachers of fifty to sixty years old have
met. For instance, a teacher who is running fifty years now has not heard about
“ATM” and “cell phones” while they were young, whereas the present students
are quite acquainted with these. In the very future one may ask, “Where are you
going?” The other may reply that he/she is going to moon. The present teacher-
student relationship is related to these changes. In this world of computers and
internet, the system of education and curriculum should be framed to meet these
needs and problems. The student-teacher relationship is likely to be different now
from the past. We have travelled a long way from the Gurukula system in India.
India is a country consisting of many states, religions, cultures and climates and
even fashions. System of education is different from state to state. This may make
the relationship between a student and a teacher different. Precisingly saying, the
student-teacher relationship will be fruitful by taking into account the
environment, social problems, necessities of the people of the society and the
comparison of the social problems with others.