On May 6-7, 2006 FPRI's Marvin Wachman Fund for International Education hosted 44 teachers from 16 states across the country for a weekend of discussion on teaching about Islam. Speakers were drawn from the disciplines of religious studies, anthropology, political science, history, law, and journalism. The institute, held in Bryn Mawr, Pa., was…

In Alex Haley's "Autobiography of Malcolm X" (1965), Haley recounts the life of an historical personage of enduring controversy. Whether one reveres or reviles Malcolm, "X", Little, his is a fascinating story of lifelong learning. Rather than conforming to one theory, Malcolm's learning is well explained by certain theorists at certain times in…

These two mini-units are designed to supplement the areas of study dictated by the Core Knowledge Sequence, a content-rich curriculum used in the educator/curriculum developer's school. The mini-units fall in the middle of a 6-month-long study of the Middle Ages and incorporate the depth of content required to support the larger unit on the Middle…

The Commission on the Status of Women Division of the proceedings contains the following 9 papers: "Perfect Little Feminists: Resistance, Femininity, and Violence in the 'Powerpuff Girls'" (Spring-Serenity O'Neal); "Gender-Differentiated Media Coverage of Political Candidates: A Look at the Georgia 2002 Republican Primary for…

This collection of lessons broadens the scope of students' understanding of historical topics. Traditional historical topics are addressed and new perspectives are offered. Lesser known historical topics also are addressed to help give a more thorough understanding. This teaching unit is based on primary sources taken from documents, artifacts,…

Studying the history of science helps students develop a sense of science (and mathematics) as a dynamic, human enterprise, and also provides a better understanding of the role that science has played in the development of various cultures. It also shows students how difficult it was for scientific innovations to break through the accepted ideas…

English-speaking Pakistani university students responded to the Sahin-Francis Attitude toward Islam Scale, along with other religious measures and a social desirability scale. This scale was multidimensional. Correlations with religious measures confirmed its validity and were not explained by a social desirability response set. These data…

Educating and training Muslim men and women leaders who are capable of effectively navigating the multi-ethnic and multi-religious terrain in America--particularly in the post 9-11 milieu--requires the development of a new critical American Muslim pedagogy. This new pedagogy, centered in Islamic epistemology and ontology, should selectively…

According to contemporary media opinion, the problem with Islam, and by implication, with Islamic education, is that it never underwent a reformation that freed individual religious inquiry from the control of a religious hierarchy. Thus, it has been assumed that Islam and Islamic education remain bound to rigid seventh-century codes of belief.…

Created to promote a mutual understanding and acceptance among various faiths and cultures throughout the world, this book is an annotated bibliography of religious children's books. It has almost 700 critical evaluations of books with distinct religious themes for children from preschool to middle school. Chapters are: (1) "Religion";…

Post-Reformation societies and states that thought they had put religious wars behind them have been caught unawares by the vehemence of religious dissent that has exploded in their midst, sometimes literally, since the 1970s. I maintain that key Enlightenment propositions that established the means for peaceful religious co-existence seriously…

Formal structures of higher education that evolved in Islamic culture are discussed, along with parallels to the rise of universities in Medieval Europe. Both Islamic communities and Western Christianity founded colleges through endowments. The structural form of higher education in Islamic education in Islamic regions developed from the efforts…

Although required to use the National Preschool Curriculum for the five- to six-year-old age group, preschools in Malaysia can add to this curriculum to suit their individual purposes. Thus, preschools with religious emphasis are common in Malaysia. Parents send their children to the religiously affiliated preschools in the hope of inculcating…

The guide describes a series of six films examining the influence of Islamic doctrine and traditional practices on human endeavors throughout the Islamic world. The objective of the series is to fill an informational gap concerning the important contributions that Islamic civilization has made to the achievements of man. The films are entitled:…

Private Islamic universities are increasing in East Africa, where higher education is increasingly privatized and diversified. The progressive scholars behind the trend are seeking opportunities for dynamic encounters between Islam and modern secular disciplines. The model is the 11-year-old Islamic University in Uganda, which is now attempting to…