The following is part of a draft translation of the Arabic book entitled 'Foundations of the Education Curriculum in the Khilafah state' published by Dar al-Ummah (Beirut, Lebanon), 1st Edition, 1425 Hijra—2004 CE. I will be posting sections from the book:
2. EDUCATION POLICY AND ITS ORGANISATION IN THE KHILAFAH STATE
The education system in the Khilafah State is composed of the totality of Shari’ah rules and administrative canons related to the education curriculum. The Shari’ah rules related to education emanate from the Islamic ‘aqeedah and they have Shari’ah evidences, such as the subjects of study and separating between male and female students. As for the administrative canons related to education, they are the permitted means and styles which the ruler in authority considers beneficial in implementing the system and achieving its goals. They are worldly matters susceptible to evolution and change according to what appears most suitable to implement the Shari’ah rules related to education and the Ummah’s basic needs. Likewise they can be adopted from the experiments, expertise and permitted research of other nations.
This system of Shari’ah rules and adminstrative canons requires an alternative apparatus with the competence to achieve the basic objectives of education in the Khilafah State namely building the Islamic personality. Such that this apparatus oversees the supervision, organisation and accounting of all aspects of educaiton with respect to setting systems, selecting suitable teachers, tracking the advancement and progress of students’ learning, and supplying schools, institutes and universities for the required laboratories and necessary educational tools.
We now present mostof the articles of “Education Policy” from “The Introducation ot the Constitution” (Muqaddimat Ad-Dustoor) which is the draft constitution of the Islamic State.
Article 165
The Islamic creed constitutes the basis upon which the education policy is built. The curriculum and methods of teaching are designed to prevent a departure from this basis.
Article 166
The purpose of education is to form the Islamic personality in thought and behaviour. Therefore allsubjects in the curriculum must be chosen on this basis.
Article 167
The goal of education is to produce the Islamic personality and to provide people with the knowledge related to life’s affairs. Teaching methods are established to achieve this goal; any method that leads to other than this goal is prevented.
Article 168
A distinction must be drawn between the empirical sciences such as mathematics on the one hand, and cultural sciences on the other. The empirical sciences, and all that is related to them, are taught according to need and are not restricted to any stage of education. As for the cultural sciences, they are taught at the primary and secondary levels according to a specific policy that does not contradict Islamic thoughts and rules. In higher education, these cultural sciences are studied like other sciences provided they do not lead to a departure from the stated policy and goal of education.
Article 169
The Islamic culture must be taught at all levels of education. In higher education, departments should be assigned to the various Islamic disciplines as will be done with medicine, engineering, physics etc.
Article 170
Arts and crafts may be related to science, such as commerce, navigation and agriculture. In such cases, they are studied without restriction or conditions. Sometimes, however, arts and crafts are connected to culture and influenced by a particular viewpoint of life, such as painting and sculpting. If this viewpoint of life contradicts the Islamic viewpoint of life, such arts and crafts are not adopted.
Article 172
The State’s curriculum is uniquely one, and no curriculum other than that of the State is allowed to be taught. Private schools, provided they are not foreign, are allowed as long as they adopt the State’s curriculum and establish themselves on the State’s educational policy and accomplish the goal of education set by the State. Teaching in such schools should not be mixed between males and females, whether for students or teachers; and they should not be specific for certain deen, madhab, race or colour.
Article 173
It is an obligation upon the State to teach every individual, male or female, those things that are
necessary for the mainstream of life. This should be obligatory and provided freely in the primary and secondary levels of education. The State should, to the best of its ability, provide the opportunity for everyone to continue higher education free of charge.
Article 174
The State ought to provide the means of developing knowledge, such as libraries and laboratories, in addition to schools and universities, to enable those who want to continue their research in the various fields of knowledge, like fiqh, Hadith and tafseer of Qur’an, thought, medicine, engineering and chemistry, inventions and discoveries etc. This is done to create an abundance of mujtahideen, outstanding scientists and inventors.
Article 175
The exploitation of writing for educational purposes, such as copyrighting, at whatever level is strictly forbidden. Once a book has been printed and published, nobody including the author has the right to reserve the publishing and printing rights. However, if the book has not been printed and published, and thus is still an idea, the owner has the right to take payment for transferring these ideas to the public in the same way he can take payment for teaching them.
2. EDUCATION POLICY AND ITS ORGANISATION IN THE KHILAFAH STATE
The education system in the Khilafah State is composed of the totality of Shari’ah rules and administrative canons related to the education curriculum. The Shari’ah rules related to education emanate from the Islamic ‘aqeedah and they have Shari’ah evidences, such as the subjects of study and separating between male and female students. As for the administrative canons related to education, they are the permitted means and styles which the ruler in authority considers beneficial in implementing the system and achieving its goals. They are worldly matters susceptible to evolution and change according to what appears most suitable to implement the Shari’ah rules related to education and the Ummah’s basic needs. Likewise they can be adopted from the experiments, expertise and permitted research of other nations.
This system of Shari’ah rules and adminstrative canons requires an alternative apparatus with the competence to achieve the basic objectives of education in the Khilafah State namely building the Islamic personality. Such that this apparatus oversees the supervision, organisation and accounting of all aspects of educaiton with respect to setting systems, selecting suitable teachers, tracking the advancement and progress of students’ learning, and supplying schools, institutes and universities for the required laboratories and necessary educational tools.
We now present mostof the articles of “Education Policy” from “The Introducation ot the Constitution” (Muqaddimat Ad-Dustoor) which is the draft constitution of the Islamic State.
Article 165
The Islamic creed constitutes the basis upon which the education policy is built. The curriculum and methods of teaching are designed to prevent a departure from this basis.
Article 166
The purpose of education is to form the Islamic personality in thought and behaviour. Therefore allsubjects in the curriculum must be chosen on this basis.
Article 167
The goal of education is to produce the Islamic personality and to provide people with the knowledge related to life’s affairs. Teaching methods are established to achieve this goal; any method that leads to other than this goal is prevented.
Article 168
A distinction must be drawn between the empirical sciences such as mathematics on the one hand, and cultural sciences on the other. The empirical sciences, and all that is related to them, are taught according to need and are not restricted to any stage of education. As for the cultural sciences, they are taught at the primary and secondary levels according to a specific policy that does not contradict Islamic thoughts and rules. In higher education, these cultural sciences are studied like other sciences provided they do not lead to a departure from the stated policy and goal of education.
Article 169
The Islamic culture must be taught at all levels of education. In higher education, departments should be assigned to the various Islamic disciplines as will be done with medicine, engineering, physics etc.
Article 170
Arts and crafts may be related to science, such as commerce, navigation and agriculture. In such cases, they are studied without restriction or conditions. Sometimes, however, arts and crafts are connected to culture and influenced by a particular viewpoint of life, such as painting and sculpting. If this viewpoint of life contradicts the Islamic viewpoint of life, such arts and crafts are not adopted.
Article 172
The State’s curriculum is uniquely one, and no curriculum other than that of the State is allowed to be taught. Private schools, provided they are not foreign, are allowed as long as they adopt the State’s curriculum and establish themselves on the State’s educational policy and accomplish the goal of education set by the State. Teaching in such schools should not be mixed between males and females, whether for students or teachers; and they should not be specific for certain deen, madhab, race or colour.
Article 173
It is an obligation upon the State to teach every individual, male or female, those things that are
necessary for the mainstream of life. This should be obligatory and provided freely in the primary and secondary levels of education. The State should, to the best of its ability, provide the opportunity for everyone to continue higher education free of charge.
Article 174
The State ought to provide the means of developing knowledge, such as libraries and laboratories, in addition to schools and universities, to enable those who want to continue their research in the various fields of knowledge, like fiqh, Hadith and tafseer of Qur’an, thought, medicine, engineering and chemistry, inventions and discoveries etc. This is done to create an abundance of mujtahideen, outstanding scientists and inventors.
Article 175
The exploitation of writing for educational purposes, such as copyrighting, at whatever level is strictly forbidden. Once a book has been printed and published, nobody including the author has the right to reserve the publishing and printing rights. However, if the book has not been printed and published, and thus is still an idea, the owner has the right to take payment for transferring these ideas to the public in the same way he can take payment for teaching them.
Comments
The goal of the Islamic educational policy is to build the Islamic personality. How does this apply for the children of Ahl ul Dhimma?
ms