The face of digital literacy for Muslim teenage girls: a comparative study of Bradford Muslim girl schools

Abstract

This paper is grounded in a qualitative approach, to call forth the views of Muslim teenage girls on their access and use of learning technologies for inclusive educational practice. The 45 Muslim teenage girls, aged 14–19 years old, from three British Muslim girls schools participated in this empirical study. Semi-structured interviews were used for data collection and the data were analysed using template analysis, matrix analysis, and cross-case analysis. The pupils had strong aspirations that learning technologies and computers should support their learning and attainment, but their access and use to supporting technologies was mixed. It was found through a comparative analysis of the data that all the Muslim teenage girls that entered Muslim schools felt secure and performed competently. Furthermore, the educational success of School A was attributable to educational norms and values relative to the provision of digital resources and skilled teaching staff. The educational experiences of School B and School C were more variable due to access to digital technologies, provision of digital contents and skilled teaching staff. Furthermore, this research study seems to highlight a marked difference between the Muslim School environment and the social context of teenage girls outside the educational setting.