CURRICULUM

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 © Copyright 2017 The World Federation of KSIMC
First Edition 2017 – March 2017

Published By:
The World Federation of Khoja Shia Ithna-Asheri Muslim Communities.
Registered Charity in the UK No. 282303
The World Federation is an NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social
Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations

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2 Tarbiyah Curriculum
Introduction

Islam is founded on the principles of belief to help develop a sound moral and ethical
as well as practice. This connection between compass for our students to operate on in their
belief and practice lies at the very heart of an daily lives.
Islamic lifestyle. However, there appears to be
a disconnect between knowledge and belief Many of our madaris worldwide have identified
on the one hand, and practice on the other. this challenge and are trying in their own ways
This disconnect undermines the very fabric of a to improve the education within their own
sound Islamic lifestyle that we aim to promote in establishments. In trying to find solutions to the
our children. challenges they face, madaris have to a great
extent addressed the question of how to teach.
Although we have a strong and well organised However, the equally important element of what
madrasah network within the community, to teach remains largely un-examined.
recent surveys of key madrasah stakeholders
have shown that there appears to be a lack of When adopting the Tarbiyah curriculum for
strong character and spiritual development your madrasah, it is these questions of what
in our children. The existing system is focused to teach AND how to teach that must be at the
primarily on ‘conveying information’ about forefront, as it is necessary to re-examine the
Islam, placing the students under immense existing traditional paradigms within madrasah
pressure to learn and memorise information syllabi to ensure that the Tarbiyah curriculum
(ta’lim), without addressing the real needs of the helps ‘nurture piety’ in our students and remains
learner or an emphasis on character and spiritual ‘learner-centred’ in its approach.
development (tarbiyah). This training program will provide a deeper
Our aim is to provide an effective learning understanding and appreciation of the Tarbiyah
platform that always keeps the learner’s needs at curriculum’s pedagogy and approach to
the forefront, and inspires our children to adopt madrasah education. It will explore the concepts
and adhere to an Islamic lifestyle. Our madrasah of ta’lim and tarbiyah, and will equip you with
education should capture the hearts and minds the necessary skills to teach learner centred
of our children through a unique and renewed lessons. The madrasah teacher’s role in nurturing
approach. The focus should therefore be on piety in their students will also be explored with
beliefs, values, behaviour, feelings and attitudes a view to finding workable strategies to achieve
this vision.

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 The Madrasah Centre of Excellence
(MCE)
Vision: Nurturing Piety The Teacher Development work stream
facilitates the provision of training and
Mission: Enabling a learning development programs to meet the training
needs of the madrasah teachers.
environment that instils the values
of Qur’an and the Ahl al-Bayt (a) The Learning Resources work stream creates
learning resources to support the curriculum and
The Madrasah Centre of Excellence (MCE) is the provides a comprehensive resource library for
vehicle that delivers the madrasah agenda and teachers, parents and students.
maintains the strategies for the community’s
madrasah program. Its primary focus is to realise The Assessment & Evaluation work stream
the vision by coordinating the work of the aims to create a learning environment for all
four work streams – Curriculum Development, where the students, teachers and institutions
Teacher Development, Learning Resources and are examined and evaluated with a view to
Assessment & Evaluation. continually improve. This allows the madaris
not only to compare and be compared so as
The Curriculum Development work stream to enable learning from each other but also to
creates an evolving global curriculum that can be focus on specific areas of improvement.
tailored to individual madrasah needs. Constant
evolution of the curriculum would make it
relevant for present and future generations.

4 Tarbiyah Curriculum
The Tarbiyah Curriculum -
Journey So Far
Our goal • Responses were submitted by 30 madaris
globally
The development of a robust and evolving global
curriculum that encapsulates regional variation, 74% said we need a global curriculum with regional
modern methodologies, support material for variation.
students, teachers and parents whilst retaining
Only 48% felt that Aqaid was adequately covered
core knowledge and spiritual ethos.
Only 38% agreed that spiritual development was
The journey so far… adequately covered
• A madrasah retreat was hosted in Dubai in
February 2011 by the World Federation to
The following areas were highlighted
discuss the needs of our madaris worldwide. as seriously lacking both in content
• One of the key outcomes of this retreat was for
and substance:
a curriculum development work-stream to look i. Comparative Religion
into updating the madrasah curriculum.
ii. Contemporary issues – Islam and terrorism,
• A Curriculum Assessment Questionnaire was ethics, biomedical issues etc.
designed in 2012 by the work stream members
with feedback from retreat participants to iii. Interfaith understanding
gather preliminary data which would give
direction to curriculum development within iv. Youth related issues - media, internet, social
the MCE. networking, gender interaction etc.
• The questionnaire was sent to all KSI madaris. v. Spirituality

55%
Agreed Existing
47%
Agreed Current teaching
curriculum meets resources meet modern
the needs of 14+ standards

32% 97%
Agreed Existing Agreed Need for new
curriculum meets teaching guides and
the needs of 16+ students manuals

51%
Agreed Current
87%
Agreed education experts
teaching resources and religious scholars should
meet modern be involved in developing
standards new curriculum

Based on these results, the curriculum development team of the MCE started the task of creating a global
madrasah curriculum that should meet the needs and aspirations of the community.

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 The Harben Retreat • The role of madrasah: Ta’lim or Tarbiyah?

Following the in depth review of all major • Dealing with sensitive issues – Crises of
curricula, the results were presented to a panel conscience
of experts at a Curriculum Development retreat
• Approaches to Islamic education in the
in Harben, Milton Keynes.
secular world
Objectives of the Harben Retreat: Papers presented at the Harben Retreat can be
found in the Exhibits manual
1. To chart out a clear methodology and
approach to madrasah education
Key outcomes of the Harben
2. To put processes in place for the Retreat:
development of a global madrasah
framework, curriculum and syllabus It was agreed that an integrated approach to
Islamic education would be best suited for
At this retreat, the education experts and ‘ulema our madaris, although some degree of subject
had in-depth discussions on: specialisation may be necessary for senior
students.
• Models for Islamic education at madrasah
level Secondly, madrasah education must be learner-
centred to ensure it is relevant and meets the
• Guiding principles for the creation of a
emerging needs of the learner.
global madrasah curriculum
The MCE Curriculum Development team was
• Weaving spirituality into the madrasah
now ready to start creating a global curriculum
curriculum
framework for madrasah education.

6 Tarbiyah Curriculum
 The Conceptual Framework of the
Tarbiyah Curriculum

The Tarbiyah Curriculum Framework consists of an overarching conceptual framework based on the
comprehensive verse of Surah Al-Baqarah verse 177, from which eight learning modules have been
developed. The vision of the MCE is to nurture piety in our students. Piety, or taqwa, is based on a Muslim’s
relationship with his Lord. Based on this understanding, it is necessary to fully comprehend the nature of the
relationship with our Creator. The key questions one must ask include: Who am I? Where do I come from?
What is my purpose in life? And Where am I headed?

Verse 2:177 beautifully encapsulates the true meaning of piety (al-Birr), which forms the overarching
statement for this curriculum.

ٰ ِ ‫ِﺑﺳْ ِم ﱠ‬
ِ ‫ﷲ اﻟرﱠﺣْ َﻣ ِن اﻟ ﱠرﺣ‬
‫ِﯾم‬
‫ب‬ َ ‫ْس ا ْﻟ ِﺑرﱠ أَنْ ﺗُ َوﻟﱡوا وُ ﺟ‬
ِ ‫ُوھ ُﻛ ْم ﻗِ َﺑ َل ا ْﻟ َﻣ ْﺷ ِر ِق َوا ْﻟ َﻣ ْﻐ ِر‬ َ ‫َﻟﯾ‬
َ ‫ب َواﻟ ﱠﻧ ِﺑﯾ‬
‫ﱢﯾن‬ ِ ‫َو ٰ َﻟﻛِنﱠ ا ْﻟ ِﺑرﱠ َﻣنْ آ َﻣ َن ِﺑ ﱠ‬
ِ ‫ﺎﮫﻠﻟ َوا ْﻟ َﯾ ْو ِم ْاﻵﺧ ِِر َوا ْﻟ َﻣ َﻼ ِﺋ َﻛ ِﺔ َوا ْﻟ ِﻛ َﺗﺎ‬
ِ ‫ِﯾن َوﻓِﻲ اﻟرﱢ َﻗﺎ‬
‫ب‬ َ ‫ﯾل َواﻟﺳﱠﺎ ِﺋﻠ‬ ِ ‫ِﯾن َواﺑ َْن اﻟﺳ ِﱠﺑ‬ َ ‫َوآ َﺗﻰ ا ْﻟ َﻣﺎ َل َﻋ َﻠ ٰﻰ ُﺣ ﱢﺑ ِﮫ َذ ِوي ا ْﻟﻘُرْ َﺑ ٰﻰ َوا ْﻟ َﯾ َﺗﺎ َﻣ ٰﻰ َوا ْﻟ َﻣ َﺳﺎﻛ‬
َ ‫ون ِﺑ َﻌ ْﮭ ِد ِھ ْم ِإ َذا َﻋ‬
ۖ ‫ﺎھ ُدوا‬ ‫َوأَ َﻗﺎ َم اﻟﺻ َﱠﻼ َة َوآ َﺗﻰ ﱠ‬
َ ُ‫اﻟز َﻛﺎ َة َوا ْﻟﻣُوﻓ‬
َ ‫ﺻدَ ﻗُوا ۖ َوأُو ٰ َﻟﺋ‬
‫ِك ُھمُ ا ْﻟ ُﻣ ﱠﺗﻘُو َن‬ َ ‫ِﯾن‬ َ ‫ِك اﻟﱠذ‬ َ ‫س ۗ أُو ٰ َﻟﺋ‬ ْ َ ‫اء َوﺣ‬
ِ ‫ِﯾن ا ْﻟ َﺑﺄ‬ ِ ‫ﺎء َواﻟﺿﱠرﱠ‬ ِ ‫ﯾن ﻓِﻲ ا ْﻟ َﺑﺄْ َﺳ‬
َ ‫ﱠﺎﺑ ِر‬
ِ ‫َواﻟﺻ‬
Piety is not to turn your faces to the east or the west;
rather, piety is [personified
Pietyby] those
is not whoyour
to turn havefaces
faithtointhe
Allah and
east or the Last Day, the angels, the Book,
the west;
and the prophets, and who give their wealth, for the love of Him, to relatives, orphans,
rather, piety is [personified by] those who have faith in Allah and the Last Day, the the needy,
angels, the
the traveller and the
Book,
beggar, and for [the freeing of] slaves, and maintain the prayer and give the
and the prophets, and who give their wealth, for the love of Him, to relatives, orphans, the needy, the zakāt,
traveller and theand thoseand
beggar, who forfulfil
[thetheir covenants,
freeing of] slaves,when they pledge
and maintain themselves,
the prayer and give the zakat,
and those
and thosewho
whoare patient
fulfil their in stress and
covenants, distress,
when they and
pledgein times of conflict.
themselves,
They are the ones
and who
thoseare true
who are[to theirin
patient covenant],
stress andand it is they
distress, and who are of
in times the God-conscious. (2:177)
conflict.
They are the ones who are true [to their covenant], and it is they who are the God-conscious.
(2:177)

This verse encapsulates the fundamental In defining righteousness, the next sentence
vision of what it means to be a true Muslim. It presents the foundation of a sound belief
starts with the rejection of the notion that just system: the beginning and the end: “…but
outward expression of worship is the criterion righteousness is [reflected in] one who believes
of a good Muslim. “It is not righteousness to in Allah, the Last Day…” The origin of everything
turn your faces towards the east or the west…” is Allah as the Creator of the universe, in
A good Muslim bases his life on a sound belief particular the human beings as exemplified in
system, submits to the Divine guidance, and lives the form of Adam and Eve. It also talks about
an ethical life. This is summarized in one word the return of the humans to their Creator for
“al-birr, righteousness”. judgement and its consequences.

7
 However, judgement and its consequences are “And one who maintains the prayer and gives the
meaningless without a roadmap or a system of zakat…” Interestingly, the verse only mentions
guidance that humans will have to follow. And two pillars (arkan) of the faith: salat and zakat.
so, indeed, the Almighty Allah did provide a Both emphasize the dual level of commitment
system of guidance in this world: “…the Angels, necessary for salvation in the Hereafter: Islam
the Book and the Messengers; …” The angels does not only emphasize the human-God
were created by Allah not only to manage the relationship (on the vertical plane), it also gives
universe but also to help in conveying the Divine importance to human-human relationships
guidance to Allah’s vicegerents (khulafa) in the (on the horizontal plane). Salat symbolizes the
form of prophets, messengers, and Divinely human-God relationship; and zakat symbolizes
appointed Imams on this earth. The angels the human-to-human relationship.
played an important role in bringing the Divine
Books and revelations to the prophets and the With a sound belief system and practical proof
messengers. of a person’s commitment to the faith, the
verse now reminds us of the moral and ethical
The Divine guidance came in the form of disposition of a Muslim on a personal level:
prophets and messengers, some with and others
without revealed books, starting with Nabi Adam “…And those who fulfil the pledge when they
(a) and ending with Rasulullah (s). Thereafter, promise; and they are patient in [financial]
the Divine guidance continued in the form of stress, [physical] distress and in heat of battle.…”
Imamah, divinely appointed successors of the Akhlaq is the inner disposition and character
Prophet of Islam, starting with Imam ‘Ali (a) and of a person. Two important ethical values have
ending with Imam al-Mahdi (a). The fundamental been highlighted in this verse: wafa’u ’l-‘ahd and
role of the Imams of Ahlul Bayt (a) is to convey sabr. ‘Fulfilment of a pledge’ is a dimension of
the true meaning of the Qur’an and the truthfulness that is the basis of faith.
authentic Sunnah of the Prophet, and to provide Patience is the most important quality in facing
the best role-models for living as true Muslims. the challenges of life and maintaining the faith
The Qur’an has indeed presented the Ahlul Bayt under pressure.
(a) as the example of par excellence of al-abrar,
the righteous ones. (See 76:5) The verse ends with an important conclusion:
“These are those who have been true, and
Commitment to such a sound belief should these are the God-conscious.” Truthfulness
manifest itself in actions. An important proof cannot exist without chastity, courage, wisdom,
of true faith is the willingness to give away a justice and other related virtues; truthfulness
portion of our wealth for the sake of pleasing is the basis for faith and action. Combination
Almighty Allah: “…and one who gives the wealth, of a sound belief system, a true commitment
for His love, to the relatives, the orphans, the in practice and a noble character together are
needy, the [stranded] traveller, the beggars, and hallmarks of the true Muslims and the true
to those who are in bondage…” This refers to muttaqin.
the voluntary charity, hence the phrase “for His
love.” Wal-‘aqibatu lil muttaqin – the final success will
be for the pious ones! (7:128)
Then comes the issue of commitment to the
rituals that have been introduced by Islam:

8 Tarbiyah Curriculum
The Eight Modules of the Curriculum

Verse 2:177 can be divided into three main sections: The origin, The path, and The return.

(a) The Origin

Module 1. The Creator and His Creation

(b) The Path

Module 2. Divine Guidance

Module 3. Rasulullah (s) – Communicating the Message

Module 4. The A’immah (a) – Safeguarding the Message

Module 5. Upholding the Message during Ghaybah

Module 6. Roadmap to Self-Purification

Module 7. Societal Wellbeing

(c) The Return

Module 8. The Hereafter - Return to the Creator

Each module consists of a set of main themes and these, along with the inter-relationships among
them, are described briefly below. The main themes are further divided into sub-themes, which form
the actual lessons. The sub-themes are grouped into six two-year age bands. Some sub-themes run
through several age bands as they develop in complexity, whereas others are only covered at the
appropriate age band.

2 3
RASULULLAH (S) –
DIVINE GUIDANCE COMMUNICATING
THE MESSAGE

1 4
THE AIMMAH (A)
THE CREATOR AND – SAFEGUARDING
HIS CREATION THE MESSAGE

MODULES OF THE
CURRICULUM

8 5
THE HEREAFTER – UPHOLDING THE
RETURN TO MESSAGE DURING
THE CREATOR GHAYBAH

SOCIETAL ROADMAP TO
WELLBEING SELF-PURIFICATION

7 6
9
 An Overview of the 8 Modules

MODULE 1: THE CREATOR AND HIS CREATION

This module is dedicated to Allah and to man’s relationship with his Creator. It covers Tawheed
(monotheism) in great depth, discussing the existence of Allah, His unity and His various attributes. It also
covers the creation of the universe and His Signs in it as well the creation of the angels, the jinn, and man.
It explores the purpose of creation and the need for religious guides, and looks at the history of the first
prophet, Nabi Adam and his children. As the basis of our relationship and communication with Allah, key
concepts of tawba and istighfar, du’a and munajat are introduced and the daily prayer as the most sublime
form of submission (tasleem) to Allah is covered in detail.

MODULE 2: DIVINE GUIDANCE

Having created us, Allah continues to nurture and guide us. This module covers the lutf and adalah of Allah,
and explores the understanding of the various schools of Islamic theology, especially in relation to the adalah
of Allah. It also discusses Divine guidance in the form of nubuwwah. Starting with creation of human beings
on this earth, it focuses on the ancient nations and the early prophets, especially the ulul ‘azm prophets,
and the challenges that they faced, lessons that we can learn from their history, and universal values that we
derive from their teachings. The Divine Books that were revealed to chosen prophets are also covered, most
especially, the final revelation, the Qur’an.

MODULE 3: RASULULLAH (S) – COMMUNICATING THE MESSAGE

This module is a continuation of the concept of Divine Guidance but focuses on the process that the Prophet
of Islam used to communicate his Message and to live it. It includes a discussion of his life, his seerah and
Sunnah, his family, including the immaculate ladies Khadija (a) and Fatimah (a), and his companions. It covers
how the Prophet successfully met the enormous challenges that he faced and how he laid the foundation
for the spread of Islam within and beyond Arabia. The module also discusses a series of steps that he took to
designate his successor so as to ensure the continuation of his Message and assesses his remarkable legacy
for all of mankind.

MODULE 4: THE AIMMAH (A) – SAFEGUARDING THE MESSAGE

This module is a further continuation of the concept of Divine Guidance but focuses on the divinely
appointed successors of Rasulullah (s) whose primary responsibility was to safeguard the Message from
distortions and misinterpretations. This module covers the issues related to Imamah and Khilafah, the
concept of divine appointment, the qualities of such Imams, the emergence of sects within the Shias and
azadari as the cornerstone of Shia belief.

It also covers the lives of the Aimmah of Ahlul Bayt (a) from the first to the eleventh Imam, and explores key
concepts relating to Imamah and wilayah.

10 Tarbiyah Curriculum
MODULE 5: UPHOLDING THE MESSAGE DURING GHAYBAH

This module is dedicated to the Imam of our time, Imam al-Mahdi (a). It covers the concept of ghaybah, its
minor and major phases, the long life of the Imam, the responsibilities of believers in upholding the Message
during the ghaybah, and the circumstances under which the Imam will reappear and restore justice and
equity. It discusses the necessity of ijtihad and taqlid and disbursement of Islamic taxes during the ghaybah,
and explores the lives of some prominent ulema. The module also traces the rise of certain movements
within Islam that have had wide-ranging implications.

MODULE 6: ROADMAP TO SELF-PURIFICATION

This module examines the distinction between the body and the soul and discusses the roadmap (shari‘ah)
sent down by Allah for self-purification in order to attain the company of al-abrar, the righteous ones, in the
hereafter. The centrality of niyyah is stressed in all the religious observances. These acts engender taqwa
(piety) which involves avoidance of major and minor sins that corrupt the body and the soul, development of
moral and ethical traits that identify us as Muslims, and observance of two most important obligations that
bring us closer to Allah, namely, sawm and hajj.

MODULE 7: SOCIETAL WELLBEING

This module is a continuation of the roadmap to self-purification but at the societal instead of the individual
level. Islam is not just a religion of individuals but also of a community and a global ummah. The social
interactions and the attendant responsibilities and rights that Islam mandates can be visualized as a series
of concentric circles. The circles begin with the self, and the immediate and extended families, widens to
include neighbours and friends and the local community, and embraces the wider community along with
the physical environment. al-amr bil ma‘ruf and an-nahi ‘anil munkar symbolize the social aspect of the
community; believers have to promote goodness in society and prevent social evils.

MODULE 8: THE HEREAFTER – RETURN TO THE CREATOR

This module completes the cycle that began with the creation of Allah and ends with the return to Him.
It covers the process of death, the purgatory of barzakh, resurrection at the end of time, accountability on
the day of judgement and the outcome of man’s actions with the reward of heaven or the punishment of
hell.

11
 How does the Tarbiyah Curriculum
compare to most existing
conventional approaches to
Madrasah Education?

Conventional Approach MCE’s Integrated Approach

Vague and incoherent structure, or A Qur’anic worldview that can inspire and
Structure structured by separate academic transform; modules based on the building
disciplines with no unifying structure blocks of character & personality; cross-
curricular and Trans-disciplinary

Traditional subjects; information-

Character-based and
driven; not always relevant to
Content Transformation-driven education.
student’s life; the textbook/manual is
‘Real-life’ connections are made
the curriculum

Didactic (words & lecture); Discovery learning: Student-centred,

Process teacher as ‘sage on the stage’; differentiated instruction; multiple learning
factory model: one size fits all; styles; teacher as ‘guide on the side’;
Uninteresting and uninspiring modelling & mentoring;
integrated model

12 Tarbiyah Curriculum
Key Features of the Student
Textbooks

The Tarbiyah curriculum draws much of its content from major existing curricula and syllabi. It is
designed around eight carefully selected modules based on a Qur’anic worldview on birr and taqwa.

The Tarbiyah Curriculum Framework aims to promote a madrasah education that focuses primarily on
the students’ personal growth and development. Therefore, when creating content for the lessons,
great emphasis has been placed on Islamic values, identity, self-esteem, a sense of belonging and
developing a strong bond with the Qur’an and the Ahl al-Bayt (a). The lesson content is centred around
developing a strong Muslim personality capable of fulfilling one’s responsibility of stewardship, or
khilafah, in society. It is structured to meet the overall goal of our life on earth - service to Allah,
ubudiyyah, - and responsible and effective citizenship in society.

The lessons include the following key components:

1. Beliefs: Key concepts are defined and explained in simple language. The focus is mainly practical
rather than philosophical: ‘What are the implications of these beliefs on my life?’

2. Rights, duties and responsibilities: The rights that others have over us, and our obligations to
Allah, ourselves as well as others. Our civic and social responsibilities are also highlighted where
relevant.

3. Virtues: Stories, ahadith and verses from the Qur’an have been used to highlight virtuous conduct
and character development.

4. Islamic etiquette: This is an essential component of lessons as it promotes an Islamic lifestyle and
bridges the gap between knowledge and practice. The Faith in Action feature in lessons is one
strategy that helps achieve this objective

5. Feelings: It is necessary that students get a chance to talk openly about their feelings and attitudes
towards the topic at hand. This ensures continued engagement from the students. Genuine and
wholesome moral development only occurs in an atmosphere of support and acceptance of the
values being promoted. Thought provoking questions during lesson delivery will allow students to
express their feelings, and in the process learn how to deal constructively with their many feelings
and emotions in a way that best serves them individually and collectively as Muslims living in
secular societies.

6. Skills and practice: Where relevant, highlight the skills and practices that students must learn to
ensure that they are equipped to face and solve the moral and ethical challenges they will face in
society.

13
 The Integrated Approach

What are some advantages of teaching Islam using an

integrated approach?

The MCE Curriculum uses an integrated learning model based on the Qur’anic worldview of Birr

What are the benefits of using an integrated Approach?

• Allah’s Din is the same – The MESSAGE does not change even though the MESSENGERS and MEDIA
may change according to time and place.

• The purpose of madrasah remains unchanged but the method of teaching changes depending on
time and place

• The Tarbiyah curriculum seeks to nurture wholesome Muslim personality among the students by
using the integrated method of education

• The integrated method seeks to weave the values of various subjects in order to promote a more
holistic character among the students and connect relevant values to one another

• We don’t think in boxes and we don’t learn in boxes either!

• Integrated learning leads to integrated thinking and integrated action

Although this framework takes an integrated approach, provisions will be made for subject specialisation
in areas where discipline-based study adds greater value to a student’s understanding of the subject
matter.

14 Tarbiyah Curriculum
 Teaching Guides (TGs) and Learning
Resources
The Tarbiyah curriculum is a complete package for Islamic education for madrasah students. Each lesson
comes with an accompanying Teaching Guide (TG), learning resources and guidance for parents.

Islam has laid great emphasis on the importance of attaining knowledge and teaching it. Its rewards
become manifold when it is retained and acted upon as we can see from the following hadith:

Rasulullah (s) once said:

A person shall arrive on the Day of Judgment and shall be in possession of good deeds in the measure of
vastly accumulated clouds or towering mountains. (Witnessing them) he shall ask: O’ My Lord! How can
these be for me when I have not performed them? God shall reply: This is your knowledge that you had
taught and conveyed to the people, and which was acted upon after you had died.

(Basair al-Darajat, vol. 5, pg. 16; Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 2, pg. 18)

Secular education has changed drastically over the last couple of decades and a teacher centred class is
not only obsolete but something this new generation of learners find tedious to attend and boring.

A’bd al-Salam Ibn Saleh al-Hirawi states:

I heard Imam ar-Rida (a) say, ‘May God have mercy on one who revives our mission!’

I said to him, ‘How can one revive your mission?’

He said, ‘He should learn our teachings and impart them to the people, for if the people become aware of
the beauty of our words and teachings, they will surely follow us.’

(Ma’ani al-Akhbar, pg. 180; U’yun Akbar al-Reza, vol, 1, pg. 307)

Authentic Teaching and Learning

Educational research suggests that certain standards must be in place for authentic and meaningful
teaching and learning to occur, and that student achievement increases when these standards
are implemented. (Ref: F. Newman et al: A Guide to Authentic Instruction and Assessment: Vision,
Standards and Scoring.)

Higher-Order Thinking: Lessons should help students arrive at conclusions that produce new meaning
and understanding.

Deep Knowledge: Lessons should address the topic with enough thoroughness and explore sufficient
connections to produce a complex understanding.

Substantive Conversations: Lessons should encourage dialogue and discussion with the teacher, the
parents as well as between students in order to build a shared understanding.

Real World Connections: Lessons should make connections between knowledge imparted and the
larger issues facing the students and their communities.

These standards are reflected in the Tarbiyah Teaching Guides (TGs)

15
 Our role as teachers is to make these new age learners feel excited about the
What can I do as a teacher to words and teachings of Allah. Link them to their world and help them relate
ensure I succeed in my mission? and connect to those concepts. The beautiful treasures handed down by our
pure Anbiya and Aimmah need to be handed down with passion and the kind of
methodology that no child gets left behind.

It is inspired by the Early Foundation Stage Framework.

It is a framework developed after studying child development, both the biological
and cultural aspects, and its impact on how learning may best be supported. It
What is EFF?
entails lesson planning criteria which ensures a relevant, motivating, flexible and
interesting environment in a class and truly enables successful learning by all
children.

It encourages children to be creative, imaginative and makes learning more

enjoyable and more effective. Children should be given opportunities to use Islam
as a means to explore the world around them and understand how things work
How is it beneficial for students? by taking part in practical activities relevant to their developmental stage. They
should be challenged through practical activities and develop their thinking with
open-ended questions. Children should be encouraged to explore concepts and
share ideas for solving problems.

The activities in our Teaching Guides (TGs) designed in such a way that children
initiate learning rather than only focusing on what they do when prompted. It
helps support lifelong learning which is a very essential life skill. They are given
How is it relevant to madrasah?
rich opportunities to initiate ideas and activities. This helps increase a child’s
confidence and ownership of the specific knowledge, skill or concept being given
to them.

1. Playing and exploring – engagement

Providing hands-on experiences which help students use play to bring
together their current understanding, combining, refining and exploring their
ideas in imaginative ways.

1. Active learning - motivation

Students are actively involved in their learning through activities which
motivate and inspire them to explore the topics further, and achieve their
own learning goals.
What are the 3 key characteristics
of this type of learning?
1. Creating and thinking critically - thinking
The activities encourage critical thinking and creativity - generating new
ideas and approaches. Being inventive allows children to address new
problems as they seek challenge, and to explore ways of solving these.
Using what they already know about religion, children develop and link
concepts, find meaning in faith and practice. This can be achieved through
goal-directed activity involving making choices and decisions about how
to approach tasks, planning and monitoring what to do and being able to
change strategy when necessary.

16 Tarbiyah Curriculum
 The Teaching Guides

Important Elements of the Teaching Alternative/Extension Activities: Here teachers

will find alternative activities that can be used
Guide in the lesson where teachers have more than 45
Time it Might Take: Each activity has been allotted minutes to teach the lesson.
an approximate time required. This is just a guide
Higher Level: If teachers observe in their class
for teachers, and depending on class dynamics,
particular students that have a higher level of
may take longer.
understanding on the topic being discussed and
The activities that will help me achieve my lesson have achieved the lesson objectives with little
objectives: Here teachers will find all the activities or no difficulty, then the teacher can assign the
and guidance to conduct these activities. Each higher level activity to them. Teachers will find
activity helps to achieve the learning objectives. activities and worksheets to be completed by
They have been designed and structured in a way these students here.
that they keep the class interesting and learner
Possible Homework: This section gives
centred, with loads of hands on activities, games
suggestions on homework for students to apply
and demonstrations to motivate and inspire
what has been learnt in class at home and/or
children towards the teachings of Ahl al-Bayt (a).
reinforce the topic been taught. It is up to the
Abbreviations/Elements under this heading: teacher’s discretion to give the homework or not.
T = Teachers, S = students, LC = Learner Centred,
References/Additional Reading: Teachers may
TC= Teacher Centred.
found these resources helpful for their own
Writer’s Notes: Under this section teachers further reading to get a better understanding of
will find assistance with potential points to be the lesson content and concepts being taught.
discussed for a specific activity. Reading this will
Additional Resources: We found many valuable,
help explain the goal of the activity more clearly.
tried and tested resources specific to the topics
Lesson Division: The lesson has been divided covered. We decided to add them to our resource
into 3 different parts i.e. ‘1. Warm up/Starter, 2. bank and list them in the TGs. These resources
Topic Discussion, 3. Prevention/Practical activity are not a part of the activities and instructions
– discussion; and each part deals with achieving provided but are extra resources that were found
either 1 or 2 objectives of the lesson. relevant to the topic. Teachers can use these
resources if required.

17
 Lesson Planning Guidelines

1. The lessons must focus on character 7. The lessons must be integrative,

development and not simply transfer of facts incorporating aspects from the Qur’an,
and rote information to children. tarikh, akhlaq, aqaid, fiqh as well as
contemporary secular studies where
Remember: Knowledge (ta’lim) is simply relevant. However, it is not necessary that
a means or a tool to the real goal of every lesson should incorporate all these
education, which is human development and learning areas.
transformation (tarbiyah).
8. The lessons should aim to engage the whole
2. The lessons must be directly relevant to the child (intellectually, morally, spiritually,
real lives of the students themselves - their socially as well as physically). This approach
needs, concerns, challenges and aspirations. will also ensure that different types of
Students should feel that the content they learners remain engaged throughout the
are studying is worth learning because it lesson.
is meaningful and relevant to their lives.
They must see the usefulness and potential 9. The lessons must be adequately challenging
application of this knowledge in their to allow students to thoughtfully examine
everyday lives. what they are studying and participate
assertively in group discussions. This will
3. The lesson layout must be centred on help foster the skills needed to present
learning rather than teaching. and defend Islamic belief and principles
effectively.
4. The lessons must prepare students with the
real-life skills needed to function successfully 10. To help teachers remain actively and
in today’s society. genuinely engaged in the teaching process,
lessons should include various ideas for
5. The main focus should be ‘about being a activities (both ‘hands-on’ as well as ‘minds-
Muslim’ rather than ‘about Islam’. This is on’), stories and examples from everyday
based on the principle that we want to move life that students can directly relate to. The
away from ‘transferring information about teacher can then plan, make active choices
Islam’ to our students. Instead, we want to as well as adjust the lesson as needed rather
teach them ‘what it really means to be a than mechanically follow the manual.
Muslim’.

6. The lessons must aim to inspire and

transform students.

18 Tarbiyah Curriculum
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