„Drei Schritte vor, einer zurück“ – Islamischer Religionsunter-richt. Ein Unterrichtsfach mit Hindernissen

Abstract

Seemingly imitating the recurrent sequence of steps of the Echternacher dancing procession, the author takes stock of the development and current situation of Islamic Education as a school subject, while placing his emphasis on the chal-lenges the subject has been encountering and is continuing to encounter during its establishment, implementation and its further development. To obtain the right to give and to receive faith-specific Religious Education in terms of Article 7, Paragraph 3 of the German Basic Law, Muslim communities must first qualify as a (unified) “religious body”. On part of the society, sentiments expressing critical attitudes towards Islam and concerns or fears of rising Islamic extremism add to further impeding and obstructing the advancement of Islamic Education. Casting a light on the current state of realisation of Islamic Religious Teaching in the different Länder, Kiefer identifies five different models of practice, which have, in most cases, evolved from former pilot projects or, in one case, continue as such. To ensure the quality of the subject, of those teaching it and its teaching materials as well as in answer to calls to establish and pursue Islamic religious education at institutions of higher education, the courses of study “Islamic Reli-gion” and “Islamic Theology” were successfully established. Tracing its devel-opment to the current situation, Kiefer concludes that the subject has clearly left its infancy behind.