"The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: All of you are shepherds, and
each one is responsible for his flock. A leader of people is a shepherd
and responsible for them. A man is like a shepherd over his family,
and he is responsible for his flock. A woman is like a shepherd
over her husband’s house and children, and she is responsible for
them. And a slave is a guardian of his master’s property and is
responsible for it. So all of you are guardians and are responsible
for your charges."
(Al-Bukhari and Muslim)
The Importance of Education and
the Right of Our Children Over Us
"Education is the birth right
of every Muslim and Muslimah. Islam puts considerable emphasis on
its followers to acquire knowledge. Investment in education is the
best investment one can make, because it eventually leads to intellectual
property. Intellectual property is an intangible property, which
no one can steal or destroy. This is the property on which no Government
can levy a tax. It was as a result of application of knowledge that
Muslims were the superpower of the world for twelve centuries'.
"Education should aim at the
balanced growth of the total personality of man through training
of the human spirit, intellect, rational self, feelings and senses.
The training imparted to a Muslim must be such that faith is infused
into the whole of his/her personality and creates in him/her an
emotional attachment to Islam and enables him to follow the Qur'an
and Sunnah and be governed by the Islamic system of values willingly
and joyfully so that he/she may proceed to the realisation of his/her
status as Khalifatullah to whom God has promised the authority
of the universe."
Every Muslim parent is advised to
raise his or her children well and properly. A happy home, comfort,
care and love, providing the necessities of life and a good education
are some of the responsibilities that parents are required to fulfil.
Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) said, “Whoever is not kind
to young people is not one of us and the best teaching that a parent
can give a child is the teaching of good manners and character”.
The Muslim child absorbs the Islamic values from his/her parents,
teachers, peers, friends and the environment, including the caregivers.
"Nip it in the bud" is the best advice. Otherwise once
the Muslim child develops undesirable habits and unethical values,
it becomes extremely difficult to mould the child into a good Muslim/Muslimah. (Dr.
Ibrahim B. Syed, Ph.D)
The best and safest place for a Muslim
child to be educated is with his/her parents at home, where they
can give them the skills and the tools to help them in this life.
Insha’Allah
What is Home Schooling?
The Education Acts in each state
of Australia provide parents with an alternative to school education
by making provisions for parents to educate their children at home.
This is called "home schooling or "home education".
In practice, home schooling is very
flexible and can offer parents a different method of education than
is available within the current public and private school system.
Sadly, many Muslim parents don't
know about the education alternative that exists and others have
many questions regarding home schooling. We hope this pamphlet will
provide parents with some answers to those questions in order for
them to make informed choices for their children's education.
Who Does It and Why?
Parents choose to home school their
children for many different reasons; some of those include the following:
- A
desire to set an education schedule friendlier to the demands
of an Islamic life. When home schooling, a parent need not worry
about conflict arising from a desire to have the children attend
Jumah prayer, or going to Hajj, or even travelling to other parts
of the world. A home schooling family sets its own schedule. Lessons
can be held on Saturday and Sunday (leaving Friday free as
a special Islamic day) and over Christian holidays, while being
light during Ramadan and stopping altogether to celebrate Eid.
One of the reasons many of our children, are finding it difficult
to cope with Australian society is their lack of confidence in their
identity as Muslims. Home schooling allows parents to reinforce
their children’s identity as Muslims, through teaching them positive
skills in order to help them cope in the community and society as
a whole.
- A
belief that they can provide a better quality of education than
the alternatives. Public and/or private school are not as thorough
as a parent wishes. The schools may have turned children away
from being interested, self-motivated learners into the exact
opposite. Taking the joy of learning away from them.
- Many
parents do not have Muslim full time schools close to their homes,
and sometimes if they are close, they may be too expensive.
- Their
children may have experienced bullying/and or harassment. Many
Muslim children suffer this in the school system.
- They
wish to remove children from an environment of drugs, violence,
alcohol, sexual experimentation, gangs and peer pressure. To give
them back an education in a healthy, safe, secure, Allah centred
environment. Thus adding the benefit of directing them to good
Muslim friendships.
- Their
children may have learning difficulties or disabilities, which
are not addressed adequately within the school system.
- When
a family moves, often disruption between differing systems and
teachers can cause serious problems with resulting gaps in education,
with home schooling continuity in education is always maintained.
- Some
parents may withdraw their children from school temporarily in
order to enable them to "catch up" on basic skills.
Parents who home school can find
a great amount of curriculum resources available for their use.
A parent can also choose to use curriculum from another country
and supplement it with Australian standards for mathematics and
other subjects.
Muslim parents who wish to home school
are often concerned about the issue of the “language barrier”. When
English is not spoken in the home, or spoken very little, parents
appropriately question whether their children will receive enough
"language exposure". They wonder if their children will
be able to function well in Australian society if education is primarily
in another language.
Learning English is necessary for
Muslim children to function in Australia, and several alternatives
are available. "English as a Second Language" programs
have been developed and are available from your local library and
it is also possible to hire an English tutor. As home schooling
numbers increase within the Muslim community, support networks are
growing and as such language groups are being set up to facilitate
our children in the area of bilingual language studies. Other possibilities
include English classes at the masjid for many home schooling families.
Another issue the home schoolers
struggle with is that of "socialisation". Society tends
to believe as a whole that the only socialisation a child receives
is at school. One must ask, "To what are children being socialised
to in the public school system? Drug use, gang mentality, inappropriate
language and unIslamic behaviour, disrespect, crime?"
In Islam, because of the rights and
responsibility of a Muslim in our community, the Muslim child needs
to be able to interact with a wide range of people of many age groups.
Schools are often very “sterile” environments where generally unrealistic
examples of “socialisation” take place. Children are encouraged
to mix with children of like age, discouraged from mixing with siblings,
and are rarely exposed to different age groups. They are taught
that in order to be accepted by their peers they must be like the
majority; in behaviour and attitude, and most instances this goes
directly against the teachings of Islam. In other words, they are
taught that when you are with pious Muslims, you act like them,
and when you are with people who are not Muslim you act like them.
This behaviour, if it becomes habitual may lead to hypocrisy, which
is an attribute which none of us, as loving parents would like our
Muslim children to possess. Insha’Allah. A Muslim should always
be true to himself and his Lord and should never compromise his/her
belief in order to be accepted by the masses.
Home schooling gives parents an opportunity
to re-enforce family values based on Islamic principals, and also
allows for selective and positive influences for our children’s
development as Muslims in Australia, where unfortunately the very
essence of the family is falling apart.
Parents considering home schooling
also wonder about their children being accepted to university/college.
More and more universities and colleges are accepting and even searching
out home schoolers. Home schooler's are typically very self-motivated,
have extremely good study habits, and are disciplined in what ever
they choose to undertake.
What About the Parents?
Parents are not required to have
any teaching qualifications to home educate their children. In fact
home educating parents come from varied socio-economic and educational
backgrounds and share equal success in educating their own children.
Allah has said:
"O
you who have believed, save yourselves and your families from a
fire whose fuel is men and stones, over which are [appointed] angels,
stern [and] severe, who do not disobey Allah in what He orders them
and [who] do [precisely] what they are commanded."(Qur'an77:6)
By ensuring the quality of our children’s
education we may be able to help save our children and ourselves
from the hellfire insha'Allah.
We as parents cannot take lightly
the Amanah (trust) that Allah has given to us. Nor, can we delegate
this responsibility to others, especially if what is on offer does
not meet up to Islamic Standards.
For surely we will all stand before
Allah one day and answer to him as to the children He placed in
our care, and how we motivated them in their pursuing the Akhirah
(hereafter) our real home, and not this world a place of examination.
It is not our intention to compete
with the school system or to condemn it in its entirety, the facts
are there for everyone to evaluate and make their own decision on.
We, as Muslim parents simply want to provide information on a legal
and viable option available to all parents, so insha’Allah they
are able to make informed choices as to what is best for their precious
children.
May
Allah guide us all to make the decision that will earn the Pleasure
of Allah, and
may it be of benefit to us all in this life and the next. Ameen.
The Muslim Home Education Network
would be happy to answer any questions on home education and discuss
any other concerns that you may have. Insha’Allah. We can
also provide you with information and support on how to get started
with home schooling.
For further information please write,
phone or email us:
The
Muslim Home Education Network of Australia
Phone: (02) 97071810 or 9644 6474
Mobile 0412 003 665
Email: info@muslimhomeschool.net
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