Contrasting views of madrassas in multi-ethnic Singapore
1 day ago
SINGAPORE (AFP) — Nurlidyana, Darwisyah and Azeera are late for English class but the girls do not seem to mind as they giggle and chat about school and their hopes for the future.
Their ambitions vary -- Nurlidyana wants to be a doctor, Azeera a teacher and Darwisyah is still undecided.
Yet the 16-year-olds do agree they have gained a good foundation from their school, Madrasah Al-Irsyad Al-Islamiah.
Madrassas are Islamic religious schools that in Pakistan, Indonesia and other Muslim states have sometimes been associated with militancy.
But in multi-ethnic Singapore, madrassas -- funded mainly by the minority Muslim community -- stick strictly to the basics, focusing not only on religion but on academic studies as well.
Nevertheless, many Muslim parents in the economically-developed city-state are reluctant to enrol their children at madrassas, concerned that the combination of religious and academic studies crowds out broader curricula activities......
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