The Relationship Between Students` Perception of Their Islamic Practices and the Perceived Achievements of the Iium Mission

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN STUDENTS` PERCEPTION OF THEIR ISLAMIC PRACTICES AND THE PERCEIVED ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE IIUM MISSION

BUSARI KAZEEM ADETUNJI

A dissertation submitted in fulfillment of requirement for the degree of Master of Education (Educational Administration and Leadership Management)

Institute of Education International Islamic University Malaysia

NOVEMBER, 2012 ABSTRACT

The main purpose of the study was to investigate the students’ perceptions of Islamic practices and how it influences in perceived mission achievement of International Islamic University Malaysia’s (IIUM).The study employed quantitative research method specifically, a survey that used questionnaires as a method of the collection. A sample of 357 students was selected using stratified random sampling from the Institute of Education (INSTED) and the Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences (IRKHS). Various statistical tools were employed such as descriptive statistics, factor analysis, t-test and correlation. The findings from the descriptive statistics showed that, majority of the respondents believed that they have strongly positive perceptions of their Islamic practice towards achieving the mission of IIUM. Further, factor analysis also indicated that six factors were extracted namely Management Mission, Articles of Faith, Pillars of Islam, Knowledge Culture, Islamic Principles and Islamic Culture/ Identity. The t-tests indicated that there was statistically significant difference between the local and international student`s perception of their Islamic practice however, in term of gender, the male students perceived their Islamic practice slightly higher compared to their female counterparts, Although, the difference between male and female was not statistically significant. The findings from Pearson product moment showed a normal positive correlation between the student`s perception of their Islamic practice (independent variables) and the IIUM perceived mission achievement (dependent variable).The implication from the study is that, the school management, educators, parents as well as the government need to collaborate, particularly in creating a favourable environment for the inculcation of Islamic practices. Based on the findings of the study, it is recommended that, institutionalization of programmes that will enhance clear understanding of Islam by students will help students in their willingness to internalize the Islamic practices. Future and in depth studies with regard to the Islamic practices in higher learning institutions are also recommended.

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iii

APPROVAL PAGE

I certify that I have supervised and read this study and that in my opinion, it conforms to acceptable standards of scholarly presentation and fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Education.

.…………………...... Hairuddin Mohd Ali Supervisor

I certify that I have read this study and that in my opinion, it conforms to acceptable standards of scholarly presentation and fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Education.

.....………………………….…… Rosnani Hashim Examiner

This dissertation was submitted to the Institute of Education and is accepted as a fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Education.

…………….…………….…...… Rosnani Hashim Dean, Institute of Education

DECLARATION

I hereby declare that this dissertation is the result of my own investigations, except where otherwise stated. I also declare that it has not been previously or concurrently submitted as a whole for any other degrees at IIUM or other institutions.

BusariKazeemAdetunji

Signature ………………………………. Date …………………………

INTERNATION ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY MALAYSIA

DECLARATION OF COPYRIGHT AND AFFIRMATION OF FAIR USE OF UNPUBLISHED RESEARCH

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE STUDENTS PERCEPTION OF THEIR ISLAMIC PRACTICES AND THE PERCEIVED ACHIEVEMENTS OF IIUM`S MISSION

I hereby affirm that The International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) holds all the rights in the copyright of this Work and henceforth any reproduction or use in any form or by means whatsoever is prohibited without the written consent of IIUM. No part of this unpublished research may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without prior written permission of the copyright holder.

Affirmed by Busari Kazeem Adetunji

…………………….. …………………….. Signature Date

DEDICATION

This research is dedicated to Almighty Allah who has made it possible for me to see the end of this course and to my late father, Imam Mustapha Adebayo Busari, for his sacrifice, endeavor and his dream for me which come to reality after his death. (May

Almighty Allah grant him Al-jannah firdous).Also to the Muslim Ummah as my

contribution to the development of Muslim Ummah resources which is of utmost

significance in Islam.

vii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Praise is to Allah (SWT), the Cherisher, and the Sustained of all beings. I thank Allah (SWT) for being the spiritual and emotional foundation during the process of this degree and every day of my life. May Allah’s benediction be upon His Noble messenger Muhammad (SAW), his household, companions and those who follow his path till the Day of Judgment.

This study would not have been completed without the intellectual contribution of my supervisor, Assoc. Professor Dr. Hairuddin Mohd Ali, who through his persistent confidence, guidance understanding and detail critiques in guided me through this academic journey. In fact his personal knowledge and expertise are definitely very helpful and invaluable in my study. May Allah (SWT) reward you in abundant. I am highly indebted to the incumbent Director in person of Prof. Dr. Rosnani and other lecturers who have guided me throughout this programme while studying at the Institute of Education (INSTED), International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM). My appreciation also goes to Assoc. Prof. Dr. Abdul Kabir of IRKHS, IIUM, as well as Dr.Adnan A.R for taking their time to read over my questionnaire for validation.

My sincere thanks also go to the administrative staff of both Centers for Postgraduate Studies and Admission and Records Unit of International Islamic University Malaysia, Gombak Campus, for their help and support in providing me with the necessary data. Similar appreciations goes to other lecturers for giving me chance of collecting the appropriate data like Dr. Burhan of INSTEAD, (IIUM), DrAbass and others from KIRKHS.

My sincere appreciation and gratitude to our father in Islam, Dr. Y.K.Juma`h, Alh.Hammed Yusuf(Director, MOE, Ilorin), and Mr.Alade, (Adult Education Unit, Ilorin) for their fatherly support and encouragement. May Allah (SWT) spear their lives on the cause for the uplift of theUmmah.

Many thanks go to Dr. Ahmad Fousy Ogunbado, bro. Daud Balogun, broAbass Alade, bro. Said Olorunnisola and bro. Sobur Alim for their relentless effort to see the positive end of this course. May Allah see you all through your course and dreams? Also, my warmest appreciation due to my sisters, Shakirat Ajetunmobi, Rahmat Afini and all my beloved friends including Akorede and others, for standing by my families throughout the course of my study abroad. May Allah be with you all in all your endeavours.

Above all, I would like to express my profound gratitude and appreciations to my wife, children, my aged mother, and family members especially the elderly member in person of Mr. Busari Ganiyu Adebayo and my bro. (Alh. Ukasha), who were always there for me. I really appreciate your presence, kindness, patient, support as well as prayer and encouragement. May Allah (SWT) continue to shower His blessing on you and reward you with His aboundance blessings and Al-jannah.

viii TABLE OF CONTENTS

Abstract ...... ii Abstract in Arabic ...... iii Approval page ...... iv Declaration ...... v Copyright page ...... vi Dedication ...... vii Acknowledgement ...... viii Table of Contents………………………………………………………………….ix List of Tables ...... x List of Figures ...... xi

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ...... 1 1.1 Background of the study ...... 1 1.2 Statement of the problem ...... 2 1.4 Research Objective ...... 5 1.5 Research Questions ...... 5 1.6 Research Hypothesis ...... 6 1.7 Significance of the Study ...... 6 1.8 Limitations of the Study ...... 7 1.9 Definition of Terms ...... 7

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE ...... 9 2.1 Introduction ...... 9 2.2 Overview of the Inception of Islamic Universities in the Muslim world ...... 10 2.2.1 Establishment of Islamic Universities ...... 11 2.3 General Conception of Value System and Practice ...... 14 2.4 Islamic Conception of Value System ...... 17 2.5 The Role of Islamization of Knowledge In Promoting Islamic Practice ...... 20 2.6 Relationship between Islamic Practice and Leadership ...... 24 2.7 Islamic Practice and Leadership Theory in Education...... 26 2.8 Past Studies on Islamic Practices ...... 28 2.9 Recent Studies on Islamic Practice by Students of Higher Learning ...... 29 2.10 Underlining Factors of Ilium Student’s Islamic Practice ...... 30 2.10.1 IlUM’s Mission ...... 36 2.10.2 Theoretical Framework of the Study...... 38

CHAPTERTHREE: METHODOLOGY ...... 41 3.1 Introduction ...... 41

ix 3.2 Research Design ...... 41 3.3 Population of the Study Sampling ...... 42 3.4 Sample Size and Sampling Procedure ...... 42 3.5 Instrumentation ...... 48 3.6 Validity and Reliability of Instrument ...... 49 3.7 Report of Pilot Study...... 50 3.8 Administration of the Survey Questionnaire ...... 52 3.9 Data Handling ...... 54 3.10 Data Analysis ...... 54 3.11 Conclusion ...... 57

CHAPTER FOUR: ANALYSIS AND RESULT & DISCUSSION ...... 59 4.1 Introduction ...... 59 4.2 Demographic Characteristics of Respondents ...... 59 4.3 Findings of the Study ...... 61 4.3.1 Research Question 1 ...... 61 4.3.2 Research Question2 ...... 68 4.3.3 Research Question 3 ...... 77 4.3.4 Research Question 4 ...... 81 4.3.5 Discussion ...... 82 4.3.6 Conclusion ...... 85

CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY, IMPLICATION, RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSION ...... 87 5.1 Introduction ...... 87 5.2 Summary ...... 87 5.3 Theoretical Implication ...... 90 5.3.1 Practical Implication ...... 91 5.4 Recommendations ...... 92 5.4.1 Recommendations from the Present Study ...... 92 5.4.2 Recommendations for Further Study ...... 93 5.5 Conclusion ...... 93

BIBLIOGRAPHY ...... 95

APPENDIX ...... 102 A Questionnaire ...... 102 B KMOand Bartlett`s Test ...... 105 C Descriptive Statistic Table ...... 107 D Letter of Attestation ...... 111 E Validation`s Feedbacks ......

LIST OF TABLES

Table No. Page No.

3.1 Sample size of the study 45

3.2 Selections of Confidence Interval and Margin Error 48

3.3 General Description and Distribution of sample 49

3.4 Factors and Items to Be Tested In the Study 50

3.5 Summary of reliability for the pilot study 53

3.6 Summaries of data analysis and statistical technique 58

4.1 Summary of demographic analysis 62

4.2 Descriptive Statistic 67

4.3 KMO and Bartlett’s Test 70

4.4 Communality Table 71

4.5 Total Variance Explained 73

4.6 Preliminary Assessment, Factor loading, and Reliability Coefficient 74

4.7 Factor loading based on each item 76

4.8 Independent t-test based on nationality 79

4.9 Independent t-test based on gender 80

4.10 Independent t-test based on program 81

4.11 Pearson product moment correlation result of IP and MM

LIST OF FIGURE

2.1 Theoretical Framework of The Study 39

xii CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND OF STUDY

Islam, as a religion, enjoins on Muslim various practices which are derived from its value system. Generally, value system encompasses good and worthy principles that a particularly society strongly believes in order to achieve its purpose and interest.

Values enable achievement of effective judgment of desirable state of affairs which serve as a guideline for determination of what is useful to individual and society

(Alhabshi & Ghazali, 1994). Major religions, particularly monotheist severally support the promotion and sustenance of value systems in various communities worldwide. Imran, (2011) accentuates that, “Islamic practices, which apparently depreciating through internal and external force among the Muslims, have been the core attention of International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM)”.

As an international and Islamic university, IIUM itself is a unique university in the contemporary Muslim world. This uniqueness is reflected in the philosophy, mission and vision of the university. Specifically, the mission of IIUM is to accomplish ‘Integration, Islamization, Internationalization and Comprehensive

Excellence’ (IIICE) by the staff and students, (http://www.iium.edu.my/gsm/about- us/iium-mission-vision/iium-mission-visio). The process of integration and

Islamization of acquired knowledge was primarily aimed at securing and promoting

Islamic practices as the basis of holistic educational system in Islam. This is the obvious philosophy that IIUM tends to promote and thus, what makes it unique.

1 Various studies on educational administration focused on the issue of values particularly in examining the effectiveness of incorporating values in the school curriculum. An example of such studies is that of UNESCO APNIEVE Sourcebook,

(2002) which notes that:

It is essential to teach children values for a culture of peace in the school and for these to be incorporated in teaching materials.

As such, the influence of Islamic practices on educational leadership practices for instance, among the IIUM students entails the need to conduct in-depth study in this specific area. This is because a thorough study on Islamic practice by the students will be of immense contribution to the glory of the university, and the administration as well as in line with its mission and vision.

Therefore, this study attempts to investigate the relationship between student’s practices of Islamic practices and their perceived achievement of IIUM mission, in order to have a better understanding of factors underlying value in IIUM. This is to enrich the theory and practice of Islamic values under the educational administration body of knowledge. Furthermore, the study will empirically attempt to find out the structure of Islamic practices and how it affect the universally recognized Islamic universities whose moral and ethical values in all human endeavours are expected to be higher compared to others.

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

There has been an attempt to relate educational administration with Islamic practices, particularly the imbibing of these practices by students learning in an atmosphere of a concerned establishment. The rational for this theoretical attempt is that educational administration deals with human resource development. On the other hand, the

2 holistic development of human beings is said to be equivalent to the total amount of effort devoted to the Islamic practices. Development entails commitment to spirituality and Islamic values among many other things in Islam (Khamizuddin &

Muhammad, 2006). As such, Islamic practices in the mid-1980s and 1990s at the

IIUM were integrally implemented and properly promoted. Recently, however, questionable academic behaviors among IIUM students in contrary to the university’s code of conducts have become matters of research concern (Imran, 2010). This serves as a key indicator to the violation of Islamic practices that IIUM has been promoting amongst its students and staff.

This serves as a key indicator to the violation of Islamic practices that IIUM has been promoting amongst its students and staff.

The negligence of Islamic practices in this institution may invariably affect the efficiency of the university’s administration and the fulfillment of the mission and vision of the institution. Thus, there is a need to evaluate the factor affecting Islamic practices among IIUM students and its effect on the mission and vision of IIUM. This is with a view to facilitate a clear understanding of the state of Islamic practices in the setting and the fulfillment of the aims and objectives of the pioneers of the Islamic university project. Furthermore, one of the milestones in the mission and vision of

IIUM is described as the need to:

Produce better quality intellectuals, professionals and scholars by integrating the qualities of faith (iman), knowledge (`ilm), and good character (akhlaq) to serve as agents of comprehensive and balanced progress as well as sustainable development in Malaysia and in the Muslim world (Hawaou, 2011: 25).

In the light of this, the moral quotients of these individuals must be of high standard to nurture complete Muslims in this institution who possess intellectual

3 quotient. Until such is achieved, the aims and objectives of the founding fathers of the institution will be highly challenged.

Moral decline has been identified in various higher institutions of learning worldwide and the traces of this phenomenon are also evident among students of

IIUM. This development is, however, absolutely in contrast to the aims and objectives of the institution (Imran, 2011). More so, by virtue of the name of the institution, the word ‘Islamic’ has shifted the level of moral expectation from the students of the institution to a higher rank than other students in conventional universities in Malaysia particularly and world in general. However, many concerned persons have wondered if the students really understand what Islamic practices are and if they comply with these values behind them.

Islamic practices are actually very broad concerned. A clear understanding of

Islamic practices by the perception of students might help in their willingness to establish these values. On the other hand, the differences in the practice may also arise from differences in perception, which may be due to differences between gender

(male or female), and nationality (local or international) as well as area of specialization as represented by students faculties. Moreover, it is pertinent to note that the perspectives and Islamic practices by students of IIUM need to be evaluated regularly in order to ascertain the fulfillment of the mission and vision of the institution. The factors that will influence the Islamic practices should be related to the enforcement of the divine guidance (Qur'an and Sunnah) at every level of study in the university.

Furthermore, this development would facilitate effective communication between the school authority and the students in all kulliyah in order to enhance the enforcement of the university’s code of conduct. If these are not adequate, then, there

4 should be a cause for further investigation in order to enrich the total implementation of Islamic practices. Consequently, the mission and objectives of the university would be highly respected and be upheld by all students. If this could be achieved in an

Islamic university, the conducts of the students will exemplify true Islamic values nationally and internationally. Therefore, the study will examine students` perception of their practices of how it influences their Islamic practices believes in IIUM.

1.4 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

Specifically, the objectives of the study are to examine:

1. The general perceptions of the IIUM students about their Islamic practice.

2. The underlying factors of Islamic practice among IIUM students.

3. If there are significant differences of IIUM student`s perception of Islamic

practices with respect to; Nationality, Gender, Program

4. If there is a significant relationship between the student`s Islamic practice

and the perceived achievement of IIUM`s vision and mission.

1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS:

Based on the research objectives, the research questions are as follows:-

1. What are the general perceptions of IIUM students about their Islamic

practice?

2. What are the underlying factors of Islamic practice among the IIUM

students?

3. Are there any significant differences in the IIUM student`s perception of

Islamic practices with respect to nationality, gender and programme?

5 4. Is there any significant relationship between the students Islamic practices

and the perceived achievement of IIUM`s missions?

1.6 RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS

Based on the research questions, the hypotheses are as follows:

1. There are no significant differences in the IIUM students’ perception of

Islamic practices with respect to nationality, gender and program.

2. There is no significant relationship between the students’ Islamic practices

and the perceived achievement of IIUM’s mission.

1.7 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

It is expected that a well conducted research in the practice of Islamic practices will go a long way in assisting students and lecturers of Islamic institutions of higher learning. This present study is also important because of the fact that it articulates some paramount trends and thus adds to our knowledge about the factor of Islamic practice in IIUM. Faculty members, university administrators and higher institution educators in general need support from each other in maintaining the good way of establishing Islamic practice among students.

Moreover, it will also assist the authority of IIUM and the students in strengthening the practice of Islam in accordance with Islamic injunctions. Besides, the data generated in this study would assist in sensitizing the students and staff members to adhere strictly to the implementation of the code of ethical conduct, guiding both academic and non-academic staff and students.

Likewise, it is also certain that such an invaluable work will assist educational administrators and policy makers in charting the course of Islamic institutions towards

6 the institutionalization and internationalization of Islamic practice in the academic environment as well as in the larger society. The study will hopefully create awareness on the implication associated with poor Islamic practice according to the code of ethics in their institution and how it is enjoined in the Holy Qur`an and Sunnah of the

Holy Prophet (S A W).

1.7 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

This study draws sample from IIUM`s students only and could be regarded as a major limitation to the findings of the study. Thus, it may not be extensively generalized to all higher institutions of learning in Malaysia and the Muslim world in general.

Besides, the study is limited to information relating to attitudes, feelings and perceptions of the respondents towards the factor of the Islamic practice and its practices in the campus. Also, the researcher could only draw samples from two

Kulliyyah (Kulliyyah Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Science as well as

Institute of Education), from the whole population with the selection of 357 as a sample size. These are unavoidable limitations due to time and financial constraints.

However, they should neither invalidate nor relegate the outcomes of the findings.

1.8 DEFINITION OF TERMS

Practices: According to Homby, (2010: 1148) It is defined as ‘a way of doing, that is the usual or expected way in a particular organization or situation”. However, Practice in the context of the present study is the ability of an individual to perform religious or social responsibilities.

7 Islamic practice: Islamic practices according to Khan, (1962: 221) is the “ability of a person to resists or suppresses an involuntary thought which is an incitement to evil; his reaction is moral and constitutes a good action”. Islamic practices entail the laws of Allah and how it must be handled who claims to be Muslim. The study present sees

Islamic practices as great influence for Muslims the behavior and ultimately serve as divine guidelines in all situations. It is also the ability of individual to fulfill his responsibilities based on the religious obligations and necessity as practiced in the

Sunnah of the holy Prophet (SAW) of Islam

Perception: Is defined as “a particular way of understanding or thinking about something” Macmillan Dictionary, (2006)

In this study, perception refers to the IIUM student’s belief and understanding about the practices of Islam.

Belief or Faith: Belief is defined as assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. (Ditzel, (2009).The Practicability of faith depends on the degree of every individual belief couple with ability to carry out sincererity not only about his religion but also towards his neither creator since there is neither supervisor who will evaluate nor measurement to measure the degree of the perfectness belief.

Islamic Identity: Islamic Identity is all the signs and symbols ideal to the belief and commandment by the Qur`an and sunna as maintained in the individual Muslims e.g. prayer, dressing etc.

8 CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 INTRODUCTION

The researcher examines relevant literature, in this chapter, on value practice in general and on Islamic practice in particular. The review covers an overview of

Islamic universities in Muslim countries, the contributions of Muslim intellectuals in the actualization of Islamic universities and the role of Islamization of knowledge on the promotion of Islamic values. The chapter also presents an overview of literature on leadership theories in relation to Islamic value on the one hand and Islamic practice on the other. In other words, theories within the scientific model will discuss classical theories which include scientific management, classical organizational theory and bureaucracy theory. On the other hand, human relation and human resources model will discuss behavioral management theory

2.2 OVERVIEW OF THE INCEPTION OF ISLAMIC UNIVERSITIES IN

MUSLIM WORLD

Universities are recognized as centers of excellence, where knowledge is acquired, and disseminated mostly from the older to the younger generation. They are formal institutions set up by the society to be the centers of learning, and places for the generation of ideas. In order words, knowledge production is the focus of universities and that the production of knowledge has always focused on teaching and research.

Benjamin (2001) asserts that universities are ivory towers, where instructions are given and received without harassment and undue influence from the outside

9 world. Hence, the total idea of the university is a community of scholars, free to pursue knowledge without undue interference from any quarters (Banjo, 2001).

However, in spite of the laudable goals and objectives, which universities are expected to perform as enumerated above, this is not widely obtainable in most of the universities, even in the Muslim world.

2.2.1 Establishment of Islamic Universities

The Islamic practices occupy a paramount position in the establishment and sustainability of Islam all over the world. They were highly promoted particularly when Prophet Muhammad (SAW) and his rightly guided caliphs led the Muslim

Ummah.

The decline of Islamic practices and the increase of indecencies has been the focus of attention by contemporary Muslim intellectuals in the last few decades.

Specifically, the First World Conference on Muslim Education held in Makkah in

1977 was a practical step in addressing the stagnation of Muslims. There are multifarious challenges to the safe-guard of Islamic values in most Muslim countries.

It is apparent that the importation of foreign cultures which are predominantly non-

Islamic and valueless with respect to Islamic points of view became wide spread as a result of colonialism (AbuSulayman, 1999).

This has been a contending challenge to contemporary Muslim communities and nations. Common indices to both Muslim and non-Muslim nations is the education of the future generations. Thus, the education traverses from the cradle to the university. The Muslim nations are currently under the challenge of infusing the western education system and the Islamic system without imbibing the western culture which is widely held as anti-Islamic from the Islamic point of view. In other words, it

10 has been argued that the integration of Islamic and western education is the best alternative for Muslims to get rid of challenges of colonialism which affected Islamic values among the Muslims (Hashim & Langgulung, 2008).

However, the platform on which Muslims could address these anti-Islamic practices, norms and culture is education, since it is one of the formidable instruments through which the colonial masters indoctrinated the Muslim Ummah with various practices that are vehemently consider as their un-Islamic, by the majority of the

Muslims. In the past recent centuries, Muslims in various parts of the world had stepped up campaigns on the establishment of schools primarily for the spread of

Islamic knowledge and its values (Brohi, 1988). Furthermore, various learning centers were established solely for Islamic education, to soften the adverse impact of the western values. Soon, some of these centers grew in number, capacities as well as capabilities and that various stages of academia (primary, secondary and tertiary), appeared in the Muslim world.

Despite the number of Islamic educational centers that have been established with the purpose of instilling the role of religion in education and education in religion, however, it has been observed that the Islamic practice which is the core function of Islamic education is depreciating even among the Muslim youths

(Offenhauer, 2005). The modern society is full of vices which can be attributed to the disappearance of the appropriate teaching of moral value in educational institutions.

Misdemeanors such as indecency, fornication and examination malpractices are on the rise on the part of the students, while corruption and other related vices are also fast becoming the orders of the day among the political leaders, administrators, and others.

However, one of the crucial objectives of Islamic education is the inculcation of Islamic values into the students who are the leaders of tomorrow. This is done

11 especially through Islamic universities located in some Arab countries even before any conventional universities in the world. The universities include Al-Qarawiyyin, al-Azhari and Nizamiyya Universities.

Al-Qairwiyyin University located in Fez, Morocco is considered the oldest continuously–operating degree granting university in the world. It was initially founded as a mosque in 859 by a woman whose name was Fatimi al-Fihri. It developed into one of the leading universities that contributed to in the cultural and academic relations between the Islamic world and Europe in the Middle Ages.

The university has since produced numerous scholars who are in the forefront in knowledge acquisition and are intellectually influential in the history of the Muslim world. Such scholars include Al-Karaouine, in the medieval times, which played a leading role in the cultural exchange and transfer of knowledge between Muslims and

Europeans. Pioneer scholars such as Ibn Maimun (Maimonides) (1135–1204), Al-

Idrissi (d.1166 AD), Ibn al-Arabi (1165-1240 AD), Ibn Khaldun (1332-1395 AD), Ibn al-Khatib, Al-Bitruji (Alpetragius), Ibn Hirzihim, and Al-Wazzan and others were all related to the University either as students or lecturers. Belgian Nicolas Cleynaerts and the Dutchman Golius were among the Christian scholars visiting Al-Karaouine

(Uzma Anzar, 2003).

Al-Azhar University, located in Cairo, Egypt, has been recognized as the second oldest surviving degree granting university in the Muslim world. It was built purposely as a mosque to serve the Muslim Ummah in observing the daily prayer just like Qarawiyyin. According to Uzma Anzar (2003), the Halaqah (tutorial circle) was later formed, where Islamic jurisprudence of Ismail-Shiite was taught in this mosque in 975. He stresses further that, in the year 998, al-Azhar moved further to become an

Islamic university. The proposal was approved by Yaqub ibn Kils, the then trusted