Zakat on Non-Agricultural Land Plots: Public Awareness and Fiscal Reforms

Zakat is although a compulsory obligation in Islam but is not paid compulsorily by the people. There are two main reasons; one is the ignorance about many things on which zakat is due, for example non-agricultural land and commercial plots etc. andsecond, ignorance about the mechanism through which it is paid. Thefirst aspect is related to public awareness and second aspect is related to the fiscal policy being enforced by the government collecting property and wealth taxes thus putting heavyfinancial pressure on the owners of real estate so as to compel them to avoid zakat andpay taxes. The paper explores the level of awareness among the general public about the payment ofzakat on non-agricultural land. Itfurther addresses the question that how the existing revenue structure need to be changed. For thefirst aspect, primary data with n=33 has been collected from the capital city of the province Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. For the second aspect the revenue structure of the government is reviewed tofind out the number of taxes on the possession, sale and purchase of commercial or nonagricultural land plots. Since taxes are in no way a substitute of zakat so it is further explored that if the existing taxes are replaced and zakat system would be properly enforced then how much is the net return. In order to estimate this net return, an interview has been conducted from the property dealers and also the figures are taken from government accounts to calculate a sample for the study area that is then generalized for the government returns at large. The results of the study show a high level ofignorance about zakat obligation on plots in the study area. The verdicts of the Islamic scholars also create difference of opinion, however, majority have approved the case in favor of payment. Since there is ignorance and people have to pay taxes so they avoid zakat and just pay taxes. A mechanism is needed for fiscal reforms to ensure the payment of zakat and to stop its substitution against taxes on land plots.

Teaching Social Studies As an Integrated Subject

In this study, I have explored how Maria, an experienced teacher of Social Studies, taught Social Studies as an integrated subject. Though there are some limitations such as school policy, time, and textbook which do not allow teachers to incorporate new approaches in teaching and learning of Social Studies; some new ways of teaching Social Studies as an integrated subject were employed. This study employed collaborative action research to integrate the teaching of Social Studies as an integrated subject. It was found that during the planning phase careful selection of topics and thoughtful planning of instructional activities through a unit plan needs to be provided to the teacher. In addition, the study examined the implementation process of a unit plan in a Social Studies classroom and developed a better understanding of how to teach in an integrative way by reflecting on classroom practices. This reflective component allowed Maria and me to see the development of teaching and learning processes in Social Studies. The findings from the data shows the importance of understanding the connection of different disciplines with different perspectives by looking at different strategies, which teachers can apply in the Social Studies classroom. The study gives recommendations to teachers of Social Studies and school management to promote the teaching Social Studies as an integrated subject.