210212P - RESEARCH PRIORITIES IN IOK

Presented at an online workshop on writing research proposals for East and Southeast Asia on 22^nd February 2021 by Professor Omar Hasan Kasule Sr MB ChB (MUK), MPH (Harvard), DrPH (Harvard)

 

PRACTICAL STEPS / TASKS OF THE REFORM PROCESS:

• The first step is a good grounding in Islamic methodological sciences of usul al fiqh, ‘uluum al Qur’an, ulum al hadith, and 'uluum al llughat.
• This is followed by reading the Qur’an and sunnat with an understanding of the changing time-space dimensions.
• This is followed by clarification of basic epistemological issues and relations: wahy and aql, ghaib and shahada, ‘ilm and iman.
• This is followed by an Islamic critique of basic paradigms, basic assumptions, and basic concepts of various disciplines using criteria of Islamic methodology and Islamic epistemology.
• Islamic reviews of existing textbooks and teaching materials are then undertaken to identify deviations from the tauhidi episteme and the Islamic methodology.

OUTPUT OF THE IOK PROCESS

• The initial output of the Islamization process will be Islamic introductions to disciplines, muqaddimat al ‘uluum, establishing basic Islamic principles and paradigms that determine and regulate the methodology, content, and teaching of disciplines.
• Parallels Ibn Khaldun’s Introduction to History, muqaddimat presented generalizing and methodological concepts on historical events.
• Publication of papers on specific aspects of the disciplines
• Publication and testing of new textbooks and other teaching materials is a necessary step towards reform by putting them into the hands of teachers and students reformed material.
• Developing applied knowledge in science and technology from basic knowledge will be the last stage of the reform process. This is because, in the end, it is science and technology that actually lead to changes in society.

ISLAMIC CRITIQUE OF THE DISCIPLINES

• Islamic critique of basic paradigms of various disciplines involves a critical review of the basic assumptions and concepts in the methodology of each discipline using criteria of Islamic methodology and Islamic epistemology.
• The critique should be balanced pointing out the strengths and weaknesses. It should address the core conceptual issues and avoid being trapped in detailed and sometimes peripheral issues. 
• A good critique should set out with Islamic paradigms as a benchmark and then work systematically to analyze the discipline.
• The critique should not be undertaken in a cultural or civilizational vacuum. It should be appreciated that modern disciplines developed in a judeo-christian and greco-roman European environment which is the source of many background unstated assumptions in each discipline.

REVIEW OF TEACHING MATERIALS

• Islamic reviews of existing textbooks and teaching materials are undertaken to identify deviations from the tauhidi episteme and the Islamic methodology. This will guide the process of reform by focusing only on areas in the discipline that are not in conformity with the Islamic paradigms. The review is useful in assessing the scale of the task ahead.
• Many enthusiasts of reform were discouraged as soon as they saw that textbooks and other teaching materials were so many and so voluminous that the task of educational reform can not be achieved in a short time.

PREPARING INTRODUCTIONS TO DISCIPLINES, MUQADDIMAT AL ‘ULUUM

• The first and logical step in the Islamization of a discipline is to write an Islamic introduction to it. This should establish basic Islamic principles and paradigms that determine and regulate the methodology, content, and teaching of a particular discipline.
• The introduction should set out the major epistemological and methodological issues of the discipline to guide research, teaching, and practical application.
• Students of the discipline will study the introduction first before embarking on studying the discipline.
• The student will in this way have an Islamic orientation to the discipline that will enable him or her to deal with the discipline in a critical way.
• The student will be able to recognize aspects of the discipline that agree with the Islamic framework and separate them from those that do not.
• The student is set on the road to new creative thinking that helps him make original contributions to the discipline from the Islamic perspective.
• The Introduction to the discipline can therefore be looked at as a tool to transform a student from an uncritical consumer of knowledge to one who is critically selective.

IBN KHULDUN’S MUQADDIMAT:

• A parallel can be drawn with Ibn Khaldun’s Introduction to History, muqaddimat, which was the first book of his universal History, kitaab al ‘Ibar.
• Ibn Khaldun’s work is rightfully called the philosophy of History because it presents generalizing and methodological concepts that make sense out of the narration of historical events.
• We can, in other words, say that the muqaddimat enables a student to understand the study of History.
• Ibn Khaldun presented a rational/logical, analytical, and encyclopaedic approach to History. He was original in his thinking and developed new terminology to convey his ideas.
• He explained how the physical environment affects the growth of human society from the most primitive to the most sophisticated urban centers.
• He explained the determinants of leadership and the political system. He explained the relation between group feeling, ‘asabiyyat, on one hand, and the rise and fall of political dynasties on the other.
• He explained the rise and fall of civilizations and the factors that regulate economic and social conditions.
• The conclusions presented in the muqaddimat were based on Ibn Khaldun’s wide experience in practical politics as well as his extensive travels in the then-known Muslim world. Ibn Khaldun was a Muslim scholar and many of his ideas were influenced by Islamic precepts.

RESEARCH THEMES

• Definition and classification
• Historical development
• Basic Principles and Paradigms
• Main Research Methods
• Critique of the disciplines in terms of using the 2 sources of knowledge: transmission (naql) and reason (aql)
• Publications on the discipline from the Islamic perspective: paper, book, or teaching materials.