Muslim Perspectives

It’s time that the educational revolution among the Indian Muslims pays attention to the emotional development of the children too.


• Picture a city school where kids are made to practice for hours together to memorise the Quranic verses, Hadith and also the class lessons.

• In many schools, kids are asked to stand in open, under the afternoon sun to welcome a VIP coming to visit the school for some function.

•There are hundreds of instances in schools where teachers through their rude and uncultured behaviour cause emotional trauma to innocent children and the parents are not even aware of these.


Now, imagine a Muslim society where children are brought up through mechanical teaching and upbringing. Before anything else, Islam talks about human emotions and feelings. Even knowledge cannot take precedence when it comes to the child’s emotional development. Unfortunately the so-called educational revolution amongst the Indian Muslim is too mechanical and totally devoid of any emotional development of the children, which is so important for understanding the essence of Islam.


No, this is not an argument against imparting knowledge to children. But without emotional development of the children, all the knowledge imparted including that of the Quran and Hadith is going to be non-productive.


The Muslim managed schools are no different than others. Infact, except memorising verses of the Quran and Hadith or having a period of Islamic teaching, nothing else is unique. In fact, a visit to the Muslim managed schools in Mumbai revealed lack of Islamic orientation. Where is the concern for the child? Where are the teachers who care for the children as their own? Does the love, affection, caring attitude and willingness to help reflect in the personality of those who teach and manage these schools. In fact when we say a Muslim managed school, it is the practical approach which counts. The personality traits which were the integral part of Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh) should reflect in every one who claims to associate themselves with Muslim schools.


Muslim schools are no different than any other school. The focus on mechanical goals pervades more and more realms of the kids’ lives today. If the US points to the direction we all are moving, a study done by University of Michigan’s Survey Research Center is revealing. It shows that since the late 1970s, children have lost 12 hours per week in free time, including a 25% drop in play and a 50% drop in unstructured outdoor activities. At the same time, children’s organised sports have grown.


Unfortunately, many parents totally neglect the emotional aspect of the child’s development. Their focus is academic. Tuitions and certain theoretical knowledge about Islam is all many parents are able to arrange for. Very few parents are aware that they have to play a central role in their children’s emotional and overall development.


Parents have the motivation and the opportunity, through a continuous, intense emotional relationship and through their influence on the child’s environment, to shape the children’s development. They also are often the first to sense that a problem may exist, and they are key figures in addressing such problems whether through changes in their interactions, through professional intervention, or through both.


A recent research by ‘Pediatric’ a Journal of the American Academy of pediatrics, revealed that most parents’ knowledge of child development is limited. This significant information deficit emerged as a fundamental barrier to better parenting for many.


Although parents recognise that they have an important influence on their infants and toddlers’ overall development, they do not understand fully how specific parenting practices shape their children’s social, emotional, and intellectual development.


According to the ‘Pediatric’ study, a majority of parents struggle to fulfill conflicting demands and obligations of work and family and to live up to the high expectations they have set for themselves. Although many parents are basically confident in their abilities and view themselves as generally good parents, they also have many questions and concerns about child development and parenting practices.


‘Pediatric’ study further points out that although parents seem well aware of the importance of the love and time they give their infants and toddlers, they feel that they need to do a better job of understanding and responding to their children. For example, parents felt they needed to improve because they


• Find it hard to understand their children’s feelings and needs (19%).

• Do not know how to handle difficult situations with their child (19%).

• Lack confidence in their overall parenting skills (10%).


Parents also report that they do not understand fully how to tell whether their children’s social, emotional, and intellectual development is on track.

• Only 38% feel totally sure they can tell whether their children’s emotional development is healthy and right for their age.

• Only 37% feel this way about milestones of social development.

• Only 44% feel they can tell whether intellectual development is on track.


The Muslim society must develop a system which coaches parents and changes their knowledge and attitudes, building their self-confidence, and guiding their child-rearing behaviour, which can have a major impact on the children’s emotional and overall developmental outcomes.


We all understand that parenting is an enormously tough job. Today, more than ever, parents from all walks of life need educational and emotional support of varying kinds and degrees to do it well. A start can be made by strengthening the Parents- Teachers Association of the schools. If it is made more effective and interactive, the result will be visible soon.

It all started with a modest play- home, and today the Kamala Gandhi Nehru School (KGN) in Bangalore takes in children from the poorest of the poor sections of all communities and provides them the best education.


Completing her B.Sc in micro-biology, Nusrat Sumera could have joined the best hospitals and spent her time and energy in the laboratories. But this youngster’s concern for the economically downtrodden sections of the society made her direct her goals towards setting up a school for them in the year, 2000. Located in Madduramma Colony in Bangalore, the English medium, KGN school is open for boys and girls from the first to the seventh Standard. Muslim and non-Muslim students form the 100 stud-ents here. “The children who come here will end up spending their time in factories rolling agarbathis or on the streets. So we try to motivate their parents to send them to school. Out of 100, only 10 students pay the school fees of Rs 150, the rest cannot pay this too,.” says Nusrat. While Quran is taught to the Muslim kids, the non-Muslims have a teacher to help them understand their holy books. The school has no brick structure and no electricity. All the children are ferried from their home to the school in the school van and this is not charged to the students. “Almost Rs 5000 is spent on the school van. While kind individuals from the community sponsor the van expenses, but how long can we depend on others too,” says Nusrat.


Despite the hurdles, Nusrat plans to expand the school, take in more students who cannot afford education. For more details, contact: Nusrat Sumera, Kamala Gandhi Nehru School, Madduramma Colony, B.T.M. Layout. Tavarakere Road, Bangalore-81 Ph: 57722457.