The Investigation of a Secular State's Approach to 'Religious Education': a Case Study of Islamic Education in Ghana

Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Assistant Professor in al-Mustafa International University; Former Dean of Islamic University of Ghana (2014-2019)

Abstract

The strong return of religion to the social arena in recent years has tied the future of secular states to their "ability to manage facing with the religious people"; some secular states have considered offering the "religious teachings" as the best path to peaceful coexistence of the religious people, and some introduce these teachings as an obstacle for modernity, which causes the emergence of disagreements and disintegration of the society. The general judgment about the condition of religious education in secular countries is wrong, and there is no way other than case study of countries in this regard. The main question in this study is as follows: “How is teaching religious, and especially Islamic teachings, in Ghana in the West Africa as one of the pioneers in providing "religious education" by the secular state? The research method is analytical-descriptive and the necessary information has been gathered mainly through library research and field study. According to research findings, the Ghanaian government has chosen a path between "education about commitment" and "education from commitment" to provide religious education. In addition, the government is trying to free religious schools and religious centers within certain frameworks and structures. Knowing the approaches and educational policies of this country will bring about an active role in the field of religious education to achieve the international goals of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Keywords


  1. عبد الله بن راضی؛"الشیعة أفسدوا واقعنا بنشاطاتهم"؛ (بی‌تا) شبکة نور الإسلام www.islamlight.ccell.mobi.
  2. مسلم محمد جودت الیوسف؛ "غانا تتألم من أنیاب التشیع فهل من مجیب"، (بی تا) صید الفوائد، www.saaid.net.
  3. یوسف عمر جلو؛ "الثورة الإیرانیة فی غانا"؛ 1433؛http://www.salmajed.com.
    1. "A brief history of the Ghanaian educational system"; Dutch charity organization/ www.net4kids.org.
    2. "Public spending on education, total (% of government expenditure)". World Bank. Retrieved 15 January 2014/ www.worldbank.org.
    3. "Religion in Education. A contribution to Dialogue or a factor of Conflict in transforming societies of European countries"; Project noNo.: 028384/ www. cordis.europa.eu.
    4. Ackerman, A. B. (2003), Social Justice in a Liberal State, New Haven, CT: Yale University Press; 1980.
    5. Anti, K.K. and Anum, E.B. Religion and Moral Education. (Module for Centre for Continuing Education) University of Cape Coast.
    6. Al-Rayan International School/ www.aris.edu.gh/Al-Rayan International School.
    7. Awuah-Nyamekye, Samuel (2011), Religious Education in A Democratic State: The Case of Ghana, Department of Religion & Human Values, University of Cape Coast, Ghana.
    8. Bartkowiak, J. (1999). Fear of God: Religious education of children and the social good. In U. Narayan (Ed.), Having and Raising Children (pp. 193-207). Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania University Press.
    9. Daily Graphic, Monday, 17 March 2008/ www.graphic.com.gh.
    10. Education about Religions and Beliefs, United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC)/ www.erb.unaoc.org/ Education About Religions and Beliefs – UNAOC.
    11. Education Act; Act No. 47; Republic of Ghana, 1961/ www.legislation.nsw.gov.au; 1961 Education Act; Act No. 47; Republic of Ghana.
    12. Ghana Education Service (GES), ministry of education ghana, Annual Reports; www.ges.gov.gh.
    13. Ghana Statistical Services; www.statsghana.gov.gh
    14. Hirst, P.H. (1973). Liberal education and the nature of knowledge. R.S. Peters (Ed.); The Philosophy of Education (pp. 87-111). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
    15. Jackson, Robert (2012), Religion, Education, Dialogue and Conflict; Perspectives on Religious Education Research, 1st edition; Routledge.
    16. Jamiatul Mubashireen, Ghana/ www.jamiatulmubashireen.org, Jamiatul Mubashireen, Ghana.
    17.  Kazepides, T. (1982), “Is religious education possible?”, A rejoinder to W. D. Hudson, Journal of Philosophy of Education.
    18. Kazepides, T. (1983). Is religious education possible? A rejoinder to W.D. Hudson. Journal of Philosophy of Education, 17(2), 259-265.
    19. Kudadjie, Narteh & Rev Joshua (1996), “Challenges facing religious education and research in Africa: the Ghana case”, Brill Online Books and Journals, Vol. 3, Issue 2. Pp. 180-193.
    20. LaFollette, H., (1996), Freedom of religion and children; Children's Rights, Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
    21. Long, Fiachra (2012), “Religious Education in a Secular Society”, The Furrow, vol. 63, No. 12, pp. 603-609.
    22. Madeley, John T. S. (2003), “Enyedi, Zsolt; Church and State in Contemporary Europe: The Chimera of Neutrality”, Psychology Press.
    23. Madina Institute of Scince and Technology (MIST)/ www.mist.edu.gh/updates.htm, Madina Institute of Scince and Technology (MIST).
    24. McLaughlin, T. H. (1984), “Parental rights and the religious upbringing of children”, Journal of Philosophy of Education, Vol.18, No.1, July 1984, pp:75-83.
    25. Ministry of Education, Republic of Ghana Religious and Moral Education Curriculum for Junior High Schools; September 2019.
    26. National Accreditation Board (NAB)/ www.nab.gov.gh,National Accreditation Board (NAB).
    27. ODIHR Advisory Council (2007), “Toledo Guiding Principles on Teaching about Religions and Beliefs in Public Schools”, https://www.osce.org.
    28. Owusu-Ansah, David & Abdulai Iddrisu and Mark Sey (2013), Islamic Learning, the State and the Challenges of Education in Ghana, Africa World Press, Inc.; First edition edition.
    29. Pew Research Center (2012), “The Global Religious Landscape”, Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life.
    30. Pew Research Center (2018), “The Age Gap in Religion Around the World”, Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life.
    31. Pew Research Center (2014), “Global Religious Diversity”, Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life.
    32. Quashigah, Kofi (2010), Religion and the Secular State in Ghana, University of Ghana, https://www.iclrs.org.
    33. Religious and Moral Education Curriculum for Primary Schools (Basic1-6); Ministry of Education, Republic of Ghana; September 2019.
    34. Tan, Charlene (2020), “Religious Education And Indoctrination”, https://www.encyclopedia.com; Updated Aug 30 2020.
    35. The Educational System of Ghana; Embassy of the United states/ www.ghana.usembassy.gov; "The Educational System of Ghana “; Embassy of the United states.
    36. The Ghana Islamic Society for Education & Reformation/ www.giser.org.gh/ The Ghana Islamic Society for Education & Reformation.
    37.  The Ministry of Education, Ghana/ www.moe.gov.gh, The Ministry of Education, Ghana.
    38. The National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE)/ www.ncte.edu.gh, the National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE)..
    39. United Nations Alliance of Civilizations/ www.unaoc.org/ United Nations Alliance of Civilizations.
    40. University of Applied Management/ www.ghana.my-university.com, University of Applied Management.
    41. University of Ghana/ www.ug.edu.gh, University of Ghana.
    42. USAID (2008), Islamic Education sector- study Ghana, Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC), United States Agency for International Development.
    43. WASSCE / WAEC (2015), Christian Religious Studies Syllabus (For Candidates in Ghana Only); https://www.larnedu.com; 2015.
    44. WASSCE / WAEC Islamic Studies Syllabus (For Candidates in Ghana Only); https://www.larnedu.com; 2015.
    45. Zucca, Lorenzo, A Secular Europe. Law and Religion in the European Constitutional Landscape; Oxford University Press, 2012.