Transcript Islamic Education in America

Islamic Education in
America
New England Council of Islamic Schools
November 9, 2014
Dr. Seema Imam, National Louis
University
ISLAMIC SCHOOL BOARDS’
CHALLENGES AND
PURPOSEFUL
ENGAGEMENT:
Responsibilities, Evaluation, Goal
Setting, & Support for Principal &
Teachers
Challenges and Purposeful
Engagement
Presenter: Dr. Seema Imam
•
Served in Chgo Public School 16 years
(special and regular education).
•
Founding Principal for one of Chicago’s
largest PK-12 grade schools 90-95.
•
30 years of service in week end schools.
•
Teacher Educator, tenured professor last
19 years.
Challenges and Purposeful
Engagement
Presenter: Dr. Seema Imam
Holds Elem, Middle level, Special Education
and Reading Specialist certifications
Holds Principal / Administrative Certificate
Holds Superintendent Certificate
Doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction and
currently working on Doctorate in Islamic
Education and Alima Certificate.
Please keep me in your duas, Learning is my life
Challenges & Purposeful Engagement
Presenter: Dr. Seema Imam
Consulting and Presenting throughout the year
at Mainstream conferences, this year will
present on Muslim children in public school at
the American Education Research Association,
inshallah. ISNA Ed Forum, both West and
Midwest.
Board Member of ISLA (Islamic School League of
America) since 1995. Will present at Leadership Retreat
inshallah. TEXAS---Dec. 12th for school leaders
Teacher of 2nd course in the ITEP Online, Islamic
Teacher Education Program last 3 years. Teaching
the Currirulum Integration Course.
Spare time, you say??
I love engaging my 9
grandchildren in Islamic things,
I am taking Arabic with my 13
year old grandson.
When my 21 year old son was 12
he was noticing I get stared at
(just after 9-11 we co-authored, I
am Listening).
It was an attempt to make
the strange familiar.
School Boards Play an
Awesome Role !
Often a thankless ROLE.
No Matter what, there are
numerous challenges that
School Boards contend with
as they serve their schools.
Thank you for all you do !!
May Allah (S) reward your tireless efforts and
guide you to do the best always, ameen.
Introductions
Introduce yourself and what
School-city you are from, what
Is the school size # of students?
.
Background Information
Quick survey of schools and their
boards, what are some challenges?
WHO ARE YOU ?
(next)
Introductory Interviews: Who Are YOU?
•
Professional Background?
•
Why education? Leadership?
•
Other interests, hobbies?
•
Favorite book, movie, etc?
•
Something we might not have
guessed?
ISLAMIC SCHOOL BOARDS’
CHALLENGES AND
PURPOSEFUL
ENGAGEMENT:
Responsibilities, Evaluation, Goal
Setting, & Support for Principal &
Teachers
Today’s Agenda
1. Introductions, background
2. Dua --We Allah (S) to guide us
through a day of productivity ,
providing something meaningful for
everyone --that can be useful.
3. Principles of Good Board
Leadership
Principles of Good Board
Leadership
National Association of Independent Schools publish
their materials around 12 Principles.
Also like to think about the Principles of Islamic
Pedagogy of which there are 7. These are about the
school and teaching and not about membership on a
BD.
Principles of Good Board
Leadership
Responsibilities, Evaluation, Goal
Setting, & Support for Principal
& Teachers
Role of the Board
The board is the guardian of the school's
mission. It is the board's responsibility to
ensure that the mission is relevant and
vital to the community it serves and to
monitor the success of the school in
fulfilling its mission.
»
http://www.nais.org/Series/Pages/Board-of-Trustees.aspx
Islamic School Boards in
America
Today there are between 250 and 270
Islamic Schools governed for the
most part by independent school
boards. People who volunteer and
very often have little or no
preparation for their roles.
Vision or Mission of
your School?
School Stakeholders work toward
living the mission and vision of the
school.
Principles of Good Practice
1. The board adopts a clear statement of the school's
mission, vision, and strategic goals and establishes
policies and plans consistent with this statement.
2. The board reviews and maintains appropriate bylaws that
conform to legal requirements, including duties of loyalty,
obedience, and care.
3. The board assures that the school and the board operate
in compliance with applicable laws and regulations,
minimizing exposure to legal action. The board creates a
conflict of interest policy that is reviewed with, and signed
by, individual trustees annually.
Principles of Good Practice
1. The board adopts a clear statement of the school's
mission, vision, and strategic goals and establishes
policies and plans consistent with this statement.
2. The board reviews and maintains appropriate bylaws that
conform to legal requirements, including duties of loyalty,
obedience, and care.
3. The board assures that the school and the board operate
in compliance with applicable laws and regulations,
minimizing exposure to legal action. The board creates a
conflict of interest policy that is reviewed with, and signed
by, individual trustees annually.
Principles of Good Practice
4. The board accepts accountability for both the financial
stability and the financial future of the institution, engaging
in strategic financial planning, assuming primary
responsibility for the preservation of capital assets and
endowments, overseeing operating budgets, and
participating actively in fund raising.
5. The board selects, supports, nurtures, evaluates, and
sets appropriate compensation for the head of school.
6. The board recognizes that its primary work and focus are
long-range and strategic.
Principles of Good Practice
4. The board accepts accountability for both the financial
stability and the financial future of the institution, engaging
in strategic financial planning, assuming primary
responsibility for the preservation of capital assets and
endowments, overseeing operating budgets, and
participating actively in fund raising.
5. The board selects, supports, nurtures, evaluates, and
sets appropriate compensation for the head of school.
6. The board recognizes that its primary work and focus are
long-range and strategic.
Principles of Good Practice
7. The board undertakes formal strategic planning on a
periodic basis, sets annual goals related to the plan, and
conducts annual written evaluations for the school, the
head of school, and the board itself.
8. The board keeps full and accurate records of its
meetings, committees, and policies and communicates its
decisions widely, while keeping its deliberations
confidential.
9. Board composition reflects the strategic expertise,
resources, and perspectives (past, present, future)
needed to achieve the mission and strategic objectives of
the school.
Principles of Good Practice
7. The board undertakes formal strategic planning on a
periodic basis, sets annual goals related to the plan, and
conducts annual written evaluations for the school, the
head of school, and the board itself.
8. The board keeps full and accurate records of its
meetings, committees, and policies and communicates its
decisions widely, while keeping its deliberations
confidential.
9. Board composition reflects the strategic expertise,
resources, and perspectives (past, present, future)
needed to achieve the mission and strategic objectives of
the school.
Principles of Good Practice
10. The board works to ensure all its members are actively
involved in the work of the board and its committees.
11. As leader of the school community, the board engages
proactively with the head of school in cultivating and
maintaining good relations with school constituents as
well as the broader community and exhibits best practices
relevant to equity and justice.
12. The board is committed to a program of professional
development that includes annual new trustee orientation,
ongoing trustee education and evaluation, and board
leadership succession planning.
Principles of Good Practice
10. The board works to ensure all its members are actively
involved in the work of the board and its committees.
11. As leader of the school community, the board engages
proactively with the head of school in cultivating and
maintaining good relations with school constituents as
well as the broader community and exhibits best practices
relevant to equity and justice.
12. The board is committed to a program of professional
development that includes annual new trustee orientation,
ongoing trustee education and evaluation, and board
leadership succession planning.
For Further Reading:
Trustee Handbook: A Guide
to Effective Governance
for Independent School
Boards
By Mary Hundley DeKuyper
© 2007 National Association of Independent Schools
Tree with its roots set firm and
it’s
branches in HEAVEN
Overview of
Curriculum Models in Islamic Schools
Informal
Curriculum
Appended
Curriculum
Integrated
Curriculum
• Islam taught but with limited structure
• Fair to say here that the curriculum
changes as new books come on the
market and new teachers join school
• IQRA
• I Love Islam
• IBERR
• SOME CALL THIS ADD AND STIR.
• Holistic – Sakinah Circle
• Madaar- Open Islamic Curriculum
• Tarbiyyah Project
Discipline
Specific
Curriculum
• Madrassa
• Seminary
• Islamic schools
Character
Education
Curriculum
• Tarbiyyah Project
• Sakinah Circle
Two Curriculum models in
Muslim schools
• The Tarbiyah Project is a vision, a framework,
a set of programs and a strategic plan for the
Tarbiyah
Project
Sakinah
Circle
restoration and revitalization of contemporary
Islamic education—for making Islamic education
focus on the whole child.
• The approach to learning is based on the
Qur’anic worldview, upon a belief in the Oneness
of God and the finality of the Prophethood of
Muhammad In Sakinah Circle, the Alberta
Program of Study is taught with a Qur’anic
worldview, meaning that the approach is toward
learning with a Qur’anic lens.
Overview:
7 Principles Of Islamic Pedagogy (PIP)
1. Conviction of the primal purpose
and universal trust assigned to
mankind.
INTEND
7. Formal instruction is
occasional, nurtures reflection,
and evokes a sense of awe and INTRIGUE
wonder.
6. Instruction is in
accordance with students’
aptitude, pace and learning
style.
CONNECT
CHAMPIO
N
PRINCPLES
OF
ISLAMIC
PEDAGOGY
ASSESS
5. The religious responsibility for
self-assessment and
accountability.
CARE
2. The primacy of knowledge
and of seeking it.
3. The learning
environment is sacred,
disciplined, caring, and
functional.
EMBODY
4. The responsibility to act upon
what one learns and teaches.
What is a Strategic Plan?
How can we Live our Strategic Plan?
IT IS THE ROAD MAP TO ACHIEVING YOUR GOALS
Educators share something with business ----Success is extremely important
but success is not measured in dollars and some think it is a lot harder to
measure.
Educators’ vision
Educational Road map
1. Presents strategy to improve results
2. Establishes objectives and Outcomes to
realize the goals
3. Establishes the key indicators to measure
performance
ROAD MAP is the STRATEGY
Challenges are real
Many Challenges exist in creating the strategy
Stakeholder involvement is key
Creating the plan and agreeing on an
amount that we can reasonably accomplish
Living and owning it another challenge.
How will we measure it? How will we plan it?
STRATEGIC PLANNING FOR
SUCCESS
Four Interconnected Factors
FOUR INTERCONNECTED FACTORS
1. New Structures & Procedures
2. Improved Communications
3. Enhance Teacher & Leader
Learning
4. Collective Ownership &
Intelligence
Improved Communications
• End of teaching in isolation
• Beginning of collaboration frequent
conversations build common
understanding—within and across
TEAM WORK
Collective Ownership & Intelligence
• TEACHERS and LEADERS
take ownership of their
realm of the school and
help collectively to see that
everyone succeeds in all realms of school.
• Teams create warehouses of best practice that all
can draw from to develop a better understanding
of student needs.
STRATEGIC PLAN
Embark on a few months of creating a strategic
plan.
NOW
Set a number of goals & begin now to build in
that direction by Implementing Principles of
Islamic Pedagogy for one thing.
Implement the new administrative team’s plan.
2014-15
Set a number of goals & begin now to build in
that direction by Implementing Principles of
Islamic Pedagogy for one thing.
Implement the new administrative team’s plan.
USING SMART GOALS
• We are often afraid to be held accountable
• Forces us to focus to some extent on other
team members and what they do and don’t
do.
• This is really important ---can turn it in to a
opportunity to support each other’s work.
Example smart goal for VP
LIVE THE POSITIVE APPROACH
WE CAN DO THIS !!! LOVE DOING
THIS…..
• POSTIVE APPROACH
Questions and Comments !
Thank you for the opportunity to discuss the
matter of Islamic Schools in America.
O Allah , put light in my heart and light in my hearing and light in my sight :
light to my right and light to my left : light above me and light beneath me
: and light before me and light behind me. And grant me light the day of
meeting You !
Oh Allah, suffice me with what You have made lawful
against what You made unlawful. And enrich me with Your favor so that I
need none but You !
Oh Allah, as You guided me to Islam, never take it
from me, so that You take my soul as a Muslim.
Oh Allah, benefit me in
what you have taught me and teach me what benefits me. Increase me in
knowledge.
Oh Allah, for you is all praise! You are the light of the
heavens and the earth. For you is all praise! You are the sustainer of the
heavens and the earth. For You is all praise! You are the Lord of the
heavens and earth and all therein. YOU ARE THE TRUTH. Your promise is
the truth. Your word is true. The Garden is true. The fire is true. The Hour
is true. OH ALLAH, to You I submit. In You I believe, On YOU I RELY ! To
You I repent. For You I oppose. To You I refer in Judgment. So, forgive me
whatever I may have done and whatever I may do, whatever I have
concealed and whatever I have revealed. You are my GOD. There is no God
but you. Oh Allah, please answer all my future duas ! f f f f f f f f f
f f f f f f
So help me ALLAH TO be the very best of Muslims and teach me Quran.
Ameen.