ERIC Number: EJ1232574
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2019-Nov
Pages: 17
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1741-1432
EISSN: N/A
Leading Faith Schools in a Secular Society: Challenges Facing Head Teachers of Muslim Schools in the United Kingdom
Hammad, Waheed; Shah, Saeeda
Educational Management Administration & Leadership, v47 n6 p943-959 Nov 2019
Muslim faith schools have been existent in the UK since the 1980s and their number has been rising ever since. These schools are established specifically to provide Muslim children with a learning environment based on Islamic values. However, fulfilling such a mission would not be an easy task in a globalised context characterised by secularism and materialism. The study reported in this paper sought to explore the leadership experiences and challenges as perceived by the head teachers of Muslim schools in the UK. The study employed a qualitative research design using semi-structured interviews with a sample of head teachers from four Muslim schools in London and Nottingham. The findings revealed that although the participating head teachers were proud of their role as leaders of Muslim schools, they faced significant challenges in their practice of leadership within British secular society. While some of these challenges were general in nature such as parental expectations and lack of support from Muslim community, other challenges were more practical and mission related such as negative perceptions among the wider society, issues in developing Muslim identity among students in a secular society, recruitment of qualified Muslim teachers and financial challenges.
Descriptors: Muslims, Principals, Administrator Attitudes, Leadership Role, Religious Factors, Social Attitudes, Cultural Influences, Foreign Countries, Religious Education, Leadership Styles, Elementary Secondary Education, Islam, Parent Attitudes, Expectation, Community Role, Cultural Maintenance, Religious Cultural Groups
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: United Kingdom (Nottingham); United Kingdom (London)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A