Educational Philosophy Imam Al-Ghazali’s Perspective

Islam is a divine religion. It is based on divine revelation (Holy Quran) and sunnah of the Holy Prophet ﷺ. As a religion it is a complete code of life. It does not deal with worships only but addresses all fields of life. Like Beliefs and worship, Islam focuses on education also. As a last and chosen religion, it motivates human beings to seek knowledge. The first word of the first revelation (Chapter Al-alaq) starts with Iqra means Read. In first five ayat of chapter Al-alaq, the basic requirement for enhance of education (Read, knowledge and pen) have been mentioned six times. Similarly, the Holy Prophet r took many steps for imparting education. In this connection, the example of first residential university (Suffa’h) is sufficient. Imam Ghazali one of the most famous Muslim thinkers discusses the education in his books in detail. He was born in 448 AH (1057 CE) at Tabaran a town in the district of Tus, which lies within the Khorasan Province of Iran and died on 18 December (1111 CE). In this article knowledge, its classification, stages, curriculum, art of teaching, responsibility of both teachers as well as students have been discussed in the light of Imam Ghazali educational philosophy.

Exploring Perceptions and Practices of Teachers in Supporting Educational Needs of Differently Abled Children Dac in a Mainstream School of Karachi, Pakistan

This small-scale case study explores perceptions and practices of middle school teachers regarding inclusion of Differently Abled Children (DAC) in a private urban mainstream school in Karachi. The purpose of the study was to understand how perceptions of teachers influence their teaching learning practices in their classrooms. Within the qualitative research design, the data was mainly collected through semi-structured interviews and classroom observations. Furthermore, a thematic analysis approach was used to make sense of the data and draw conclusions. The study revealed that teachers’ perceive that inclusion of DAC particularly those who have learning and behavioral difficulties should be included in the main stream classrooms. It was witnessed that DAC of those teachers were engaged in various curricular and co-curricular activities such as group and peer work, sports and participation in parents’ day activities. It was found that DAC in their classes learn far better than working in isolation. The teachers deliberately engaged all students to develop sense of responsibility such as sharing and caring attitude with peers and DAC and uphold such attitudes in their home environment. However, it was found that these teachers were concerned to accommodate children with severe disabilities in their regular classes due to lack of infrastructure, rehabilitations facilities at school, availability of resources and their own capacity to deal with such students which was currently detrimental for DAC. Nevertheless, it was learnt due to personal commitment of teachers, DAC have flourished and have met expectations of teachers and parents in terms of improved writing, reading and mathematical skills and have also developed social skills. The study concluded that parental involvement particularly parents of DAC in school events and teachers’ professional development with regard to their educational needs is essential for fulfilling the commitment of education for all.