Two former PGCE students, now serving teachers, returned to Edge Hill to talk about life as a Muslim in 21st Century England.
Sabrina Hussain completed her PGCE RE in 2008 and teaches RE at Oasis Academy in Oldham. Arsalan Aslam completed his PGCE RE in 2009 and now leads the teaching of RE at Al Jamiah Al Islamiyyah Darul Uloom in Bolton, a Muslim boys’ day and boarding school.
After a brief introduction where our two guests shared a little of their life stories, students had the opportunity to ask questions on a range of topics related to Islamic beliefs and practices in readiness both for their upcoming assignments and also for when they teach Islam in schools.
It was fascinating to have two Muslims who practise their faith in different ways and see that in Islam, as with all religions is internally contested and fuzzy edged (Jackson, 1997). Students came away from the session ready to wite their assignments and looking forward to being able to teach about Islam as a real living religion during their placements.