Maktab education: a community imperative and the making of Muslim ambassadors

ABSTRACT

Contemporary discourse on Muslims and Islam has included a reassessment of traditional educational institutions; makātib and madāris. Hitherto, understanding insider aspirations and anxieties appear to be rare. To this end, the perspectives of Muslim female teachers in makātib (supplementary schools for Muslims, sometimes known as ‘mosque schools’) in England were surveyed. This original article attends to their views regarding the aims of this educational provision. Bourdieu’s theory of social reproduction is used to rationalise their perspectives. The findings reveal their professional aspirations and suggestions to better the learning processes. They expose a changing phenomenon. Furthermore, through their services, they challenge stereotyped assumptions about makātib and their functions. The data de-mystifies the visions they hold for Muslim children and the wider society.

KEYWORDS:

• Maktab
• Muslim
• education
• British
• women
• madrasah

Acknowledgments

This work was not funded.

Disclosure statement

The participants attended his training session.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Imran Mogra

Imran Mogra has authored Jumpstart RE! (Routledge 2018), Islam: A Guide for Teachers (SAGE 2020) and Religious Education 5-11 A Guide for Teachers (Routledge 2023). He is a senior lecturer in professional studies and religious education, Primary Education, College of Education and Social Work, Faculty of Health, Education and Life Sciences, Birmingham City University, England.