It is irony to note that once thetorch bearers of knowledge and wisdom, The Muslim World nowadays does notcontribution to science or contributed anything substantial to technology. Itremains today in a state of gloom and anarchy where leaders inherit theirthrones for life and ensure the population remains in poverty with little carefor the educational needs of the people.
The report confirmed that the regionhas only invested about 5% of GDP and 20% of government budgets in educationover the past 40 years. Some developments have occurred in countries such asthe Gulf States and Egypt, where many children have benefited from compulsoryschooling, and opportunities to continue their formal education. Learningoutcomes in these countries have improved from what they were previously.
However, the region as a whole has not made the best use of its accumulatedhuman capital. Unemployment is particularly high among graduates, and a largesegment of the educated labour force is employed by governments. Notsurprisingly, the link between human capital accumulation and economic growth,income distribution, and poverty reduction in the region is weak.
What is very clear is that the Muslim rulers are intellectually bankruptwithout any vision for the Muslim world and have in fact implemented policiesthat have contributed to the multitude of problems in the Muslim lands.
The royal family in Saudi Arabiaspends millions every year on shopping malls and family trips abroad. In EgyptHosni Mubarak spends more on building palaces than his people, whilst Jordanspends more on renewable energy than on welfare. Education just isn't apriority for the Muslim rulers. As a result a very small skilled workforcespends more time working abroad than in the Muslim world.
In the West, the Educational curriculums were developed in line with theirsecular values. For the US and Britain specifically, it was necessary for theirdevelopment to have a skilled pool of workers who could contribute to thenations domestic and foreign policy objectives.
The Muslim world historically excelled in education and made huge contributionsto science and technology. It was the Abbasids that first formalised educationin the Muslim world setting in motion what is considered the golden age ofIslam by historians, where substantial development occurred in many scientificspheres.
The Khulufaa' attracted totheir courts men of science, poets, physicians and philosophers whom theysupported. Learning progressed and developed with differences of creed, colour,race and tribe being no barrier to learning.
The Mosque served as the fundamentaleducational institution of the Khilafah. However, as the demand for learninggrew, the Madrassah - modern day college began to appear. Prior to thisperiod education was taught in mosques in an informal manner. At this earlystage, people seeking knowledge tended to gather around certain knowledgeableMuslims - shaykhs; and these shaykhs began to hold regular religious educationsessions - majalis.
With the creation of Madrassah'sthe Jamia (university) emerged. The Guinness Book of World Recordsrecognises the University of Al-Karaouine (Jami'at al-Qarawiyyin)in Fez, Morocco as the oldest university in the world founded in 859.[1]
Al-Azhar University, founded inCairo, Egypt in the 10th century, offered a wide variety of academic degrees,including postgraduate degrees, and was the first fully-fledged university.
The Islamic form of education, was eventually emulated by the Europeans - ofwhich many of the similarities stand till this day - the term Chair in auniversity, reflects the Arabic Kursi, upon which the ‘alim(teacher) would sit and teach his students.
The modern doctorate in Latin is termed "a licence to teach"and had already developed long before it was transmitted to Europe, being adirect translation of the Arabic Ijazat at tadris. A permission toteach was granted by an ‘alim, who had studied with an ‘alimafter he had resolved a problem by issuing a fatwa, then defending it infront of a panel of ‘alims.
Even the modern day graduation ceremony resembles the Islamic ceremony. Therobes worn today, were called Jubba tul faqih, and were given when an ‘alimreceived his ijazah.
The Khilafah also created the first public hospital (which replaced healingtemples and sleep temples) and the psychiatric hospital, the public library andlending library, the academic degree-granting university, and the astronomicalobservatory as a research institute (as opposed to a privateobservation post as was the case in ancient times).
The first universities that issued diplomas were the Bimaristan medicaluniversity-hospitals, where medical diplomas were issued to students ofmedicine who were qualified to be practicing doctors of medicine from the 9thcentury.
Sir John Bagot Glubb wrote "By Mamun's time medical schools wereextremely active in Baghdad. The first free public hospital was opened inBaghdad during the Caliphate of Haroon-ar-Rashid. As the system developed,physicians and surgeons were appointed who gave lectures to medical studentsand issued diplomas to those who were considered qualified to practice. Thefirst hospital in Egypt was opened in 872 AD and thereafter public hospitalssprang up all over the empire from Spain and the Maghrib to Persia."
Madrasahs were also the first law schools, and many have suggested thatthe "law schools known as Inns of Court in England" may have beenderived from the Madrasahs that taught Islamic law and jurisprudence.[2]
The basis of the education system in Islam is to culture people with Islam inorder for them to have conviction in it and then carry it to the world. Islamobliged Muslims not simply to profess the shahadah, but to develop thereading and studying of Islam. The Muslims of the past studied and acquiredIslamic culture deeply with full awareness and a clear vision. This knowledgebroadened their horizons and developed their perception, which enriched theirmentality, making them teachers of others.
In summary, the Muslims excelled in the past by making Islam the centralmotivating factor for their development. This resulted in them becoming thesuperpower of their day, contributing hugely to the field of educational andscientific disciplines. The only way forward for the Muslim world is to learnfrom its history and understand what the early Muslims understood - that theirsuccess in this life and the next is only through Islam.
The report confirmed that the regionhas only invested about 5% of GDP and 20% of government budgets in educationover the past 40 years. Some developments have occurred in countries such asthe Gulf States and Egypt, where many children have benefited from compulsoryschooling, and opportunities to continue their formal education. Learningoutcomes in these countries have improved from what they were previously.
However, the region as a whole has not made the best use of its accumulatedhuman capital. Unemployment is particularly high among graduates, and a largesegment of the educated labour force is employed by governments. Notsurprisingly, the link between human capital accumulation and economic growth,income distribution, and poverty reduction in the region is weak.
What is very clear is that the Muslim rulers are intellectually bankruptwithout any vision for the Muslim world and have in fact implemented policiesthat have contributed to the multitude of problems in the Muslim lands.
The royal family in Saudi Arabiaspends millions every year on shopping malls and family trips abroad. In EgyptHosni Mubarak spends more on building palaces than his people, whilst Jordanspends more on renewable energy than on welfare. Education just isn't apriority for the Muslim rulers. As a result a very small skilled workforcespends more time working abroad than in the Muslim world.
In the West, the Educational curriculums were developed in line with theirsecular values. For the US and Britain specifically, it was necessary for theirdevelopment to have a skilled pool of workers who could contribute to thenations domestic and foreign policy objectives.
The Muslim world historically excelled in education and made huge contributionsto science and technology. It was the Abbasids that first formalised educationin the Muslim world setting in motion what is considered the golden age ofIslam by historians, where substantial development occurred in many scientificspheres.
The Khulufaa' attracted totheir courts men of science, poets, physicians and philosophers whom theysupported. Learning progressed and developed with differences of creed, colour,race and tribe being no barrier to learning.
The Mosque served as the fundamentaleducational institution of the Khilafah. However, as the demand for learninggrew, the Madrassah - modern day college began to appear. Prior to thisperiod education was taught in mosques in an informal manner. At this earlystage, people seeking knowledge tended to gather around certain knowledgeableMuslims - shaykhs; and these shaykhs began to hold regular religious educationsessions - majalis.
With the creation of Madrassah'sthe Jamia (university) emerged. The Guinness Book of World Recordsrecognises the University of Al-Karaouine (Jami'at al-Qarawiyyin)in Fez, Morocco as the oldest university in the world founded in 859.[1]
Al-Azhar University, founded inCairo, Egypt in the 10th century, offered a wide variety of academic degrees,including postgraduate degrees, and was the first fully-fledged university.
The Islamic form of education, was eventually emulated by the Europeans - ofwhich many of the similarities stand till this day - the term Chair in auniversity, reflects the Arabic Kursi, upon which the ‘alim(teacher) would sit and teach his students.
The modern doctorate in Latin is termed "a licence to teach"and had already developed long before it was transmitted to Europe, being adirect translation of the Arabic Ijazat at tadris. A permission toteach was granted by an ‘alim, who had studied with an ‘alimafter he had resolved a problem by issuing a fatwa, then defending it infront of a panel of ‘alims.
Even the modern day graduation ceremony resembles the Islamic ceremony. Therobes worn today, were called Jubba tul faqih, and were given when an ‘alimreceived his ijazah.
The Khilafah also created the first public hospital (which replaced healingtemples and sleep temples) and the psychiatric hospital, the public library andlending library, the academic degree-granting university, and the astronomicalobservatory as a research institute (as opposed to a privateobservation post as was the case in ancient times).
The first universities that issued diplomas were the Bimaristan medicaluniversity-hospitals, where medical diplomas were issued to students ofmedicine who were qualified to be practicing doctors of medicine from the 9thcentury.
Sir John Bagot Glubb wrote "By Mamun's time medical schools wereextremely active in Baghdad. The first free public hospital was opened inBaghdad during the Caliphate of Haroon-ar-Rashid. As the system developed,physicians and surgeons were appointed who gave lectures to medical studentsand issued diplomas to those who were considered qualified to practice. Thefirst hospital in Egypt was opened in 872 AD and thereafter public hospitalssprang up all over the empire from Spain and the Maghrib to Persia."
Madrasahs were also the first law schools, and many have suggested thatthe "law schools known as Inns of Court in England" may have beenderived from the Madrasahs that taught Islamic law and jurisprudence.[2]
The basis of the education system in Islam is to culture people with Islam inorder for them to have conviction in it and then carry it to the world. Islamobliged Muslims not simply to profess the shahadah, but to develop thereading and studying of Islam. The Muslims of the past studied and acquiredIslamic culture deeply with full awareness and a clear vision. This knowledgebroadened their horizons and developed their perception, which enriched theirmentality, making them teachers of others.
In summary, the Muslims excelled in the past by making Islam the centralmotivating factor for their development. This resulted in them becoming thesuperpower of their day, contributing hugely to the field of educational andscientific disciplines. The only way forward for the Muslim world is to learnfrom its history and understand what the early Muslims understood - that theirsuccess in this life and the next is only through Islam.