A friend of mine is considering sending her son to Islamic school. The school she is looking at has an excellent curriculum and has excellent ranking. However, she is afraid that he will be very one track minded in his thought process and may not learn to communicate with a variety of people if he does end up going to an Islamic school.
My kids go to public school so I don’t have much experience there, buy could any of you shed some light on this topic please?
My youngest brother goes to an Islamic school. I think its the best decision my parents made for him especially living in U.S & whenever I have kids of my own I am gonna do the same InshaAllah! They get to learn what they will learn in regular school & they also get to learn religion & sometimes even our culture at the same time.
Niksik if the school she mentioned has a good curriculum & high rankings too then I don't think your friend should be worried about the communication part. If the Islamic school is board certified then there shouldn't be any worries at all. Its not a "madrassa" its a proper school. He is gonna be learning "deeni" things and "duniyawi" things. Yeah do make sure that the school has the same thoughts when it comes to religious preferences as I am assuming that is the major reason she is sending her child to an Islamic school.
My brother went to a public school till first grade & then switched to an Islamic school. His vocabulary increased by 70% in the first year & I am pretty sure about that one. I think the education standard is much better than the public schools too. Most of the times private schools have a good teacher to student ratio. In the start I was the one who critized this decision but now when I see other kids his age who go to public schools I see a big difference in his attitude & the way he treats others. I actually find him to be more confident than other kids & on top of it he gets to learn namaz, duas, kalmas & also Islamic stories from back in the days. He is really good in maths & regularly takes part in extra curricular activities too.
The only down part is that his school doesn't have a proper gym. My siblings try to make that up for him by taking him to parks or lake 2,3 times a week. Other than that there are times when he comes home & sometimes mentions things that we think are a bit too extreme. That's when we always talk to him & explain to him every thing we know Islamically. I find his school to be a bit more strict when it comes to religious thoughts. But then as parents our job doesn't end by sending the kid to school. We have to interact with them & teach them things as well.
If she has the opportunity & can afford sending the child to an Islamic school I say she should go for it. Also she can also talk to other children's parents & get an idea on how the school is.
Re: Islamic school education in the US
You know, I was very against sending my kids to an Islamic school -- until I started teaching at a Jewish school.
This Jewish school is pluralistic, meaning they are open to all the different ways of practicing the faith. There are some restrictions (on dress code about skirt length, sleeve length, headcovering, etc), but the administration actually invites discussion and debate on such things.
The curriculum is quite extensive and split in two: Judaics and Secular. There is a separate head of Judaics; because he is very knowledgeable about the religion, but also very welcoming of the students' thoughts and questions, the atmosphere is not oppressive, but inviting.
Eventho there is a split, the faculty is together under the Head of school, so there is coherence.
I see how much more depth of knowledge the students have about their religion and practices. It is a very highly ranked and accomplished school. But there IS a sense of being cloistered at times. Some students are afraid of applying to colleges that do not already have strong Hillel programs (I tell them that I went to a college that did not have a Muslim students organization, and I helped start one -- they could have the opportunity to do the same). But for most of them, having had such a strong Jewish upbringing (often one they complained about while here), makes them nervous about losing it when they step out into the "real world."
In addition, for many of them, I am the only Muslim they know. For many, the only non-Jewish people they know are their teachers (the faculty is about 50-50). Many students students do activities outside of the school community, so they do have some friends that are not Jewish, but they are sometimes shockingly naive and unaware, though they try to open their minds.
Anyway, I guess what I'm saying is that if the school is academically strong, she should go for it, but she will need to make a real sincere effort to expose them to different types of people outside of school, which will mean expanding her own social circle as well.
For me, I still think I wouldn't send my child to an Islamic school, for now. But we'll see. I'm not certain.
My cousins went to an Islamic school for elementary school and then switched over to public school. One of them is now in college, two in high school, and one in junior high. They are very good, religious kids (girls and boys) but they also get along with everyone else. All of their friends are muslims. They are very friendly with kids of other religions but don't "make friends" with them.
When they first switched to public school, they hated it and had a really hard time adjusting to it. But I think most of it was because it was a new school and new people not because of the Islamic/public difference. Now they are all really happy and well-adjusted in school.
I've seen a lot of kids in my community go through Islamic school and then public school. They don't have a one-track mind. They're all very ambitious and seem to know exactly what they want in life. I think Islamic schools tend to impress the idea of a good, respectable career a lot more than public schools do.. where they concentrate more on exploring all the creative sides. (Now it's up to the parents to determine which they think is better for their child, since every kid is different) All of these kids are social and involved in the community so there doesn't seem to be any communication issues.
From my experience, I think it's a good idea to have kids go through Islamic school at the elementary level and then switch to a public school. That way they get a good Islamic base but aren't blind to the fact that there are other kinds of people in the world.
She wants to send her kid to Islamic School, what a noble thought.
Questions:
Which Islamic School? Name, location, etc.?
What is the purpose of sending the child to islamic school? Basic islamic education OR Quran Hafiz?
If Quran hafiz, then MAKE SURE she is READY and the KID is also ready to FINISH it all the way, not leave after two three years.
Will the child STAY there???
If the kid is going to have to stay there, I would not recommend it. Even if they provide education for free, leaving the child there is a bad idea. Possibility of child molestation along with type of crap he/she will learn when staying with other kids 27/7 (older kids mostly) doesn't make such a good case for "islamic" schools. I know of two cases personally with such experiences and few others who do "hookah" nights at night clubs and *imaamats *when free with beards, etc.
So, teach your kids at home as far as Islam is concerned until infestation of looti makhlook in Islamic school goes to hell. Buy some books, CDs, teach your self and the kid so the kid grows up with YOU as an example not some gay molvi and kids who keep beards, read quran and practice sodomy as well.... what kind of example does that set?
If its k-12 education, go in the morning come back in the afternoon, learn everything with Islamic touch, maybe that is okay. I wouldn't be so sure though.