While the Arabic term madrasah generally refers to any secular or religious educational institution, the madrasahs in Singapore claim to place rigorous emphasis on both secular and religious learning while maintaining a distinct religious identity. There are six full-time madrasahs in Singapore with around 4,000 students, but two of these institutions admit only young women. The madrasah education system is widely debated in Singapore as it raises questions about national integration and assimilation into the new economy.
History
The first madrasah in Singapore, Madrasah As-Syiban, was established in 1905 by an Indonesian religious teacher. In 1908, educational reformists set up Madrasah Al-Iqbal to implement their belief that madrasahs should impart not only religion but also secular knowledge. Prior to its formation, madrasah education in Singapore had focused on rote learning of the holy text. But within 18 months, Madrasah Al-Iqbal had to relocate to Riau, Indonesia due to financial problems and the disapproval from religious traditionalists over its reformist agenda.
Numerous madrasahs were established in Singapore over the next few years. In 1927, Madrasah Aljunied was set up with 56 students from Singapore and other parts of Southeast Asia, and it eventually gained eminence for its high standard of Arabic in the region. In 1936, the first madrasah that admitted girls, Madrasah Al-Maarif, was established. By 1941, the madrasahs in Singapore were educating around 2,000 students, but this success was short-lived as students from the region did not return after World War II. In the early 1950s, only six madrasahs remained with a total enrolment of 700 students. By 1959, however, enrolment had increased as more madrasahs offering full-time and part-time education had been set up. The madrasahs were also being partially aided by the government and their curriculums were receiving greater scrutiny.
With the passing of the Administration of Muslim Law Act in 1966, madrasahs came under the purview of the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (better known as MUIS) and many changes were made. Madrasah Aljunied began to provide secular education and in 1971, Madrasah Al-Maarif became the first to prepare its students for the GCE ‘O’ and ‘A’ level examinations as private candidates. Despite these developments, madrasahs declined in popularity and many were closed. By 1982, only four madrasahs providing secondary education and five providing primary education remained. The gender disparity was also apparent. In the mid-1980s, almost 95% of madrasah students were female, and the most outstanding pursued further studies at the prestigious Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt. This gender disparity was a cause of concern for MUIS, which was worried that there would be a lack of male religious officials.
On 1 March 1990, MUIS gained control of the registration and management of madrasahs, allowing for some semblance of a centralized curriculum. With the launching of the Madrasah Fund in 1994, madrasahs could tackle existing funding problems with contributions from the public, MUIS and Mendaki. In the late 1990s, the madrasah curriculum was revamped to include initiatives from the Ministry of Education such as information technology education and national education. At present, six full-time madrasahs exist in Singapore: Madrasah Alsagoff Al-Arabiah, Madrasah Aljunied Al-Islamiah, Madrasah Al-Maarif Al-Islamiah, Madrasah Wak Tanjong, Madrasah Al-Irsyad and Madrasah Al-Arabiah.
In November 2007, MUIS and the National Institute of Education jointly launched a specialist diploma course aimed at equipping madrasah teachers with critical pedagogical skills. It is estimated that 90% of the teachers at madrasahs would have sat for the diploma by the end of 2010. In January 2009, the Joint-Madrasah System (JMS) was implemented to further improve the quality of madrasah education in Singapore. The JMS includes three of the six full-time madrasahs. Under the new system, Madrasah Al-Irsyad will provide only primary education while Madrasah Aljunied and Madrasah Al-Arabiah will focus on secondary education and provide a comprehensive education that includes career guidance services and electives on bioethics, life sciences, counselling and Islamic finance. A S$2 million fund has been allocated to the JMS for the recruitment of new teaching and administrative staff. The JMS is expected to be fully implemented by 2015.
Compulsory education
Realizing that the madrasah system had to be improved to enhance its compatibility with national education, Muslim leaders proposed in 1977 that madrasahs should teach both secular and religious subjects, thus paving the way for the madrasah education system as we know it today. In 1999, however, then prime minister Goh Chok Tong highlighted the high dropout rates in madrasahs and called for a detailed study.
A year later, the Compulsory Education Act was introduced to ensure that all children in Singapore would receive formal education up to primary six. This sparked heated debates, and eventually madrasah students were given exemption to pursue their primary education at the madrasahs but were required to sit for the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE). To continue to enrol primary one pupils, madrasahs had to ensure that their students performed as well as Malay pupils in the six lowest-performing national schools at the PSLE at least twice within a three-year period. The first batch of madrasah students to sit for the PSLE under the Compulsory Education Act took the exam in 2008. Of these 321 students, 98% qualified to progress to secondary school, higher than the national average of 97%. In 2009, 93% of the 363 madrasah pupils who sat for the PSLE qualified for secondary school.
National integration
The government has often expressed its concern that madrasah graduates would struggle to integrate into the larger society. In 2003, madrasahs promulgated their commitment to national integration through the national madrasah education blueprint. The blueprint consists of a curriculum that MUIS had spent a year and S$8 million to develop. National education has been included in the curriculum to remind students of the importance of national integration. More curriculum time will also be spent on PSLE subjects such as English, mathematics, science and the mother tongue, with English as the medium of instruction.
Making international news
On 23 April 2009, a New York Times article described Madrasah Al-Irsyad to be one of the most revolutionary and progressive madrasahs for its ability to combine lessons on globalization and the Prophet’s ethos, thus functioning as a model for other madrasahs. According to the article, Madrasah Al-Irsyad’s excellent curriculum and administration had influenced other madrasahs in the region, especially those in Indonesia.
Author
Nurhaizatul Jamila Jamil
References
Curriculum drawn up, but will madrasahs take to it? (2002, December 14). The Straits Times. Retrieved February 28, 2010, from Factiva database.
In Singapore, a more progressive Islamic education. (2009, April 23). New York Times. Retrieved February 26, 2010, from http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/23/world/asia/23singapore.html
Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS). (2007). MUIS: Madrasah administration. Retrieved February 26, 2010, from http://www.muis.gov.sg/cms/services/Madrasahs.aspx?id=2740
Kor, K. B. (2010, January 14). 24 madrasah teachers complete madrasah course. The Straits Times. Retrieved February 28, 2010, from Factiva database.
Lai, A. E., & Abdul Rahman, N. A. (Eds.). (2006). Secularism and spirituality: Seeking integrated knowledge and success in madrasah education in Singapore. Singapore: Institute of Policy Studies; Marshall Cavendish Academic.
(Call no.: SING 371.077095957 SEC)
Lessons in English part of Madrasah revamp. (2008, April 7). The Straits Times. Retrieved February 28, 2010, from Factiva database.
Madrasah kids did just as well in PSLE. (2008, November 20). The Straits Times. Retrieved February 28, 2010, from Factiva database.
Madrasah Wak Tanjong Al-Islamiah. (2008). 50 golden jubilee anniversary, 1958-2008: Madrasah Wak Tanjong Al-Islamiah. Singapore: Madrasah Wak Tanjong Al-Islamiah.
(Call no.: RSING 371.077095957 MAD)
Ministry of Education Singapore. (2010). Singapore: Compulsory education. Retrieved February 26, 2010, from http://www.moe.gov.sg/initiatives/compulsory-education/
Othman, D. (2009, January 5). Madrasah gets new home. The Straits Times. Retrieved February 28, 2010, from Factiva database.
Singapore Statues Online (2003). Compulsory Education Act. Retrieved February 26, 2010, from http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/non_version/cgi-bin/cgi_retrieve.pl?actno=REVED-51&doctitle=COMPULSORY%20EDUCATION%20ACT%0A&date=latest&method=part
2 madrasahs under the Joint-Madrasah System stop primary one intake. (2009, January 2). Channel NewsAsia. Retrieved February 28, 2010, from Factiva database.
Zakir Hussain. (2008, October 11). Boost for Islamic education. The Straits Times. Retrieved February 28, 2010, from Factiva database.
The information in this article is valid as at 2010 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the Library for further reading materials on the topic.
