Bone, David, 1963- (2009) The teaching of other faiths in a traditionally oriented British Muslim School at Key Stage 3. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

Abstract

This is a study of the teaching of other faiths at a traditionally oriented Muslim independent school in Britain. Traditional Muslim schools have gained a high profile for two reasons: Firstly they are founded upon the most traditional and orthodox of Islamic teachings which some fear may promote extremism and separatism. Secondly they provide the training for the next generation of religious leaders so the understanding and attitudes that are inculcated in their students can be expected to influence many in the Muslim community. The background to the study uncovered medieval scholarship that is rich in examples of the objective study of other faiths but also highlighted a contraction of the traditional syllabuses in the post-colonial period that has left traditional scholarship narrow and devoid of critical enquiry. The case study used semi-structured interviews with the staff and management to reveal the current curriculum and examine the attitudes of the staff and management towards the teaching of other faiths. The findings were that while the school’s ethos is very positive, the school is currently not engaged in any explicit teaching of other faiths. The root cause of this was found to be the failure of the school to establish any policies relating to either curriculum or pedagogy for the teaching of RE. This failing was then compounded by the appointment of an unqualified and inexperienced teacher for RE who did not share the positive vision of the management. The study also highlighted the lack of any established pedagogy for religious education rooted in orthodox Islam.

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