History of Islamic Education

Revolutionary for the mostly illiterate Arabic Community. Before this, there was only oral communication. The Islamic Word of God had to be written down in words and believers had to read and recite it. As such, Islamic education began.

The Katātīb were the only places for public education in the Islamic Empire before the introduction of western-style education. Religion was a huge part of Islamic children's education, and though there was emphasis on memorisation of the Quran, children were not taught its meaning. Learning conditions were harsh.

This Muslim University is the oldest degree-granting university in the world

Islamic Scholarship is extremely open to the sciences, arts and literature. As a result, the Islamic Empire becomes a leader in the sciences and the arts. This was because many Muslim thinkers regarded science as a tool for gaining religious truth.

Before Madrasas, learning in the Islamic Empire was largely informal. Madrasas became educational institutions of higher-level formal learning .

The West was advancing extraordinarily quickly during this period, while the Islamic Empire, due to its overemphasis on memorisation in its education system, was lagging behind. As such, western education quickly took over Islamic education in the Islamic Empire, leading to the fall of Islam's traditional form of education. The Katātīb became a place solely for religious education, separated from mainstream western education.

Many Islamic countries offer education in the form of the Qur’an and to learn Islam along with arithmetic, language and other sciences in the place of either their home, the mosque or schools.
Lower education for Muslims tend to stress memorizing the Qur’an, religion, Arabic and arithmetic while their higher education is in the form of a running discussion.