“Madame est au niveau 2, et moi…?” Dynamiques de genre dans les pratiques d’apprentissage de la lecture coranique dans les milieux de classe moyenne francophone à Dakar

Abstract

This article focuses on the gendered dynamics of an adult religious education programme offered in Dakar since 2015. The programme is increasingly successful, especially among women, who constitute the majority of participants. It specifically targets a social group identified as “intellectuals,” and located within francophone educated middle-class milieus. Responding to the needs of this target group, the Qur’an reading courses not only reinforce the social status of the participants but also fulfil their desire for autonomy in the religious domain. Moreover, the secular environment of the courses allows for gendered interactions adhering to egalitarian norms that correspond to the habitus of the target group.