Children in Formal Religious Education

Abstract

Abstract Chapter 5 looks specifically at formal learning about Islam. Most of this material relates to religious organizations; mosques and Islamic Studies schools. However, many children have formal lessons in teachers’ homes, or teachers come to them, so the chapter also includes discussion of home-based formal religious education. Chapters 4 and 5 form a pair of chapters focused on how children are taught explicitly about Islam. The remaining empirical chapters are less explicit about the teaching of religion, but are concerned with how the social context of young Muslim children has an impact on religious nurture. Chapter 5 first introduces the terrain of formal education in Muslim communities. There follows material on religious socialization with other children, approaches to learning in supplementary schools, and parents’ and children’s views of mosque facilities. The chapter concludes with a section on formal teaching and learning in family homes.