Topic: Muslim Youths

[Iftikhar]

Muslim Youths

Muslim youths are angry, frustrated and extremist because they have been mis-educated and de-educated by the British schooling. Muslim children are confused because they are being educated in a wrong place at a wrong time in state schools with non-Muslim monolingual teachers.  They face lots of problems of growing up in two distinctive cultural traditions and value systems, which may come into conflict over issues such as the role of women in the society, and adherence to religious and cultural traditions. The conflicting demands made by home and schools on behaviour, loyalties and obligations can be a source of psychological conflict and tension in Muslim youngsters. There are also the issues of racial prejudice and discrimination to deal with, in education and employment. They have been victim of racism and bullying in all walks of life. According to DCSF, 56% of Pakistanis and 54% of Bangladeshi children has been victims of bullies. The first wave of Muslim migrants were happy to send their children to state schools, thinking their children would get a much better education. Than little by little, the overt and covert discrimination in the system turned them off.  There are fifteen areas where Muslim parents find themselves offended by state schools.

The right to education in one’s own comfort zone is a fundamental and inalienable human right that should be available to all people irrespective of their ethnicity or religious background. Schools do not belong to state, they belong to parents. It is the parents’ choice to have faith schools for their children. Bilingual Muslim children need state funded Muslim schools with bilingual Muslim teachers as role models during their developmental periods. There is no place for a non-Muslim teacher or a child in a Muslim school. There are hundreds of state schools where Muslim children are in majority. In my opinion, all such schools may be designated as Muslim community schools. An ICM Poll of British Muslims showed that nearly half wanted their children to attend Muslim schools. There are only 143 Muslim schools. A state funded Muslim school in Birmingham has 220 pupils and more than 1000 applicants chasing just 60.

Majority of anti-Muslim stories are not about terrorism but about Muslim culture--the hijab, Muslim schools, family life and religiosity. Muslims in the west ought to be recognised as a western community, not as an alien culture.
Iftikhar Ahmad
www.londonschoolofislamics.org.uk

[Sami Yusuf Islam]

Muslim Youths

Muslim youths are angry, frustrated and extremist because they have been mis-educated and de-educated by the British schooling.

let us not put all the blame on one side.... our ignorance is responsible too....

did not our parents bring us to this life ?

was not it their mission too to educate us ?

was not it the mission of our small communities to teach us great manners of peace of Islam too ?

[Iftikhar]

Salaam

London School of Islamics is an educational Trust. Its aim is to make British public, institutions and media aware of the needs and demands of the Muslim community in the field of education and possible solutions.

The demand for state funded Muslim schools is in accordance with the law of the land.

I do not blame the parents, Imams and Masajid for the plight of the Muslim youths. All Muslim youths suffer from identity crises because they find themselves cut off from their cultural roots, literature and poetry. All of them lack self-confidence and self-esteem. British education has made them  stupid. They have become economic slaves of the British society. They do not know where they belong. They are unable to enjoy the beauty of their literature and poetry. A man is a product of his culture, language and faith. They go hand in hand.

The solution of all the problems is state funded Muslim schools with bilingual Muslim teachers as role models right from nursery classes. The Charter of Islam teaches true tolerance and equality and indeed is more acceptable to all people of the world than the United Nation Human Rights Charter. Islam does not just mean a beard, a cap and a bunch of self-interpreted fatwas.

 Accoding to a research by Goldsmiths, university of London, bilingual learning can provide substantial benefits for second and third generation children whose families speak a language other than English. Even when children have grown up in the UK with English as their stronger language,using both languages aids cognitive development and strengthens their identity as learners. It is crucial that schools support c hildren's mother tongue through bilingual learning activities connected with the mainstream curriculum. Now Primary National Strategy recognises the value of bilingualism and promotes early language learning. Policy makers need to encourage good practice in schools, otherwise, the potential benefits of bilingual leaning will be lost to future generations.

The research also discovered that many second and third generation children are in danger of losing these skills if they do not  have opportunities to develop their mother tongue through academic work at school. Bilingual children who learn in their family's  language as well as English do better at school. It is very important that parents continue to talk to their children in their first language.

It is absurd to say that Muslim schools threaten the social cohesion of the nation. Diversity is a blessing and we should feel proud of diversity. The real threat to social cohesiondoes nt come from Muslim parents but from government that seeks to force these parents to conform with the state's ideas about how and what their children should be taught. There is no evidence that Muslim schools are undermining social cohesion.
 

[Sami Yusuf Islam]

Iftikhar,

I do agree with you on the crucial role of bilingual schools in social cohesion.... yet I strongly disagree with you on putting the whole responsibility of a good education on the government. the parents do have an important role to play, that they often do not.

Saying that the British school is making the non-english communities students stupid, is an irresponsible way of blaming someone else for a mistake you contributed to. After all, you guys went to the same schools that English students attended. There was no appartheid to force you to go to lesser quality schools....  in other words, you guys received the very same education the British school is offering to its own people....... come on.

[Iftikhar]

Salaam

According to Lord Bertend Russell, western education makes a man stupid. A Muslim suffers more than others because he/she finds himself/herself cut off from his/her cutural roots and unable to enjoy the beauty of their literature and poetry.

[Sami Yusuf Islam]

Salaam

According to Lord Bertend Russell

salam. that is just one opinion.....

[whatislam]

"Muslim youths are angry, frustrated and extremist because they have been mis-educated and de-educated by the British schooling."

or alternatively Muslims youths are angry and frustrated and extremist (if they are??) because they are constantly being wound up by people telling them they have been short-changed and badly-treated! people who wish to exploit their naivety and to turn them away from thoughts of kindness, gentleness and consideration and what they can do FOR others to thoughts of what they should do TO others. 

and as for the rest of your post - if it is all about cultural/educational conflict --- then the same would hold true for Hindus, Sikhs, Jews, Chinese-Buddhist etc. etc. and i don't see them jumping up and down with woe saying "oh, how terrible i have been forced to become a doctor, business man, accountant, dentist - by this terrible British education i have received so contrary to my cultural and religious beliefs". 

and looking at that, one can easily extrapolate the answer that Muslims youths are angry and frustrated and extremist because they are Muslim.  given that all the same criteria apply to the other religious groups/communities you mention - the only difference being that they are not Muslim.

so, one could argue, that providing an environment which then just fosters that Muslim element - is still not going to help them in a country which is MULTI-CULTURAL and tolerant towards all.  it would be logical to suppose that the conflict will still be there for them only exacerbated - when they come out of their Muslim educational environment and into the non-Muslim outside world of work in Britain - which is both secular and multi-cultural. 

and why would a Government provide a situation which would likely foster these problems?

the infantile cries of "it's all THEIR fault" is a reaction of an immature brain and one that is neither adult nor moral.

[whatislam]

and i might just add - on a slightly different note - that the majority of almost all crime is committed by males aged 15 - 30. 

so it is a worldwide situation where male youth, in general, can be frustrated and angry. 

what is problematic with that situation is when other people choose to take advantage of that "statistical spike" in anger and frustration within male youth and rather than counsel them away from it --- choose to exacerbate it by attributing the anger and frustration to specific reasons and therefore giving it "moral" credibility.  it is no longer a negative behaviour and emotion to be fought against, as it should be and as is the more difficult path, but something to be embraced and inflamed --- a justified, righteous anger.

those people are culpable - in my view - far more so than anyone else.

[Sami Yusuf Islam]

thank you whatislam for this nice addition

[whatislam]

thank you sami yusuf islam - it is lovely to have this site to learn a little more about islam from muslims...

rather than having to rely on the news media (which i will admit i don't really read anymore  )

your signature quote is great - i shall try to remember it the next time i feel i need some guidance!