The World Federation of KSIMC

• Phoenix (USA) - IEFAZ Sunday School 
• Winnipeg (Canada) - Ithna Asheri Heritage Learning Institute 
• Edmonton (Canada) - Al Mahdi Madressah 
• Minneapolis (USA) - Az Zahra Madrasah 
• Birmingham (UK) – Muhammadi Madrasah
• Karachi (Pakistan)– Al Murtaza Madressa

During our last Exco held in November/December 2018 we were grateful to have received pledges of more than $139,000 to go towards MCE. This will allow us to continue the support we are providing to madaris and the continued adoption of the curriculum. 

Stay tuned on our website for progress updates.

MCE has already produced over 50 storybooks. Each storybook consists of the following sections:

1. Story Time
2. Hadith, lessons from the Ahlul Bayt
3. Wow Wonderful Whys
4. Dua's
5. Rhyme Time
6. Power Parenting

Every storybook has gone through vigorous checking stages for content, design, touch and feel which also includes:

• Each book has been reviewed extensively by Islamic Scholars
• More than half the books have been translated into French
• Storybooks are created to enable children to become highly motivated learners
• Each illustration provides a creative and artistic learning environment 
• A storybook provides a child-centred atmosphere where abstract concepts are represented within the text and images 

All storybooks are accommodated with a workbook which encourages the child to start thinking creatively on what they have just learned. For students above 7 years, the key features in the integrated, learner-centred lessons are:

• Every lesson starts with a Qur’anic verse
• Keywords
• Faith in Action
• Reflection
• Storytime
• Did you know?
• Test Yourself

n its seventh year of existence, the Madrasah Centre of Excellence (MCE) has continued to progress in the four main areas:

Tarbiyah Curriculum

Developing a robust and evolving global curriculum that encapsulates regional variation, modern methodologies, support material for students, teachers and parents whilst retaining core knowledge and spiritual ethos.

Teacher Development

Facilitating the provision of training to meet the training needs of the madrasah teachers. It would also create a body that represents Madrasah teachers globally, providing support and a forum for teachers to interact, share valuable experiences and learn from.

Resources

To create or revamp resources which can be used by students, teachers and parents and to provide a comprehensive resource centre where resources can be shared globally encouraging the development of new ideas and innovation.

Assessment

Developing a process for assessment of madaris. It would create a learning environment for all where the students, teachers and institutions are assessed with a view to share good practices and continually improve.

The MCE heavily focuses on teacher training workshops which consist of Teachers Skills Programme (TSP) and Neuropsychology in Learning Programme (NPL). A third programme has been recently developed – Spiritual Development Programme (SDP). It has already been piloted with 20 teachers and rolled in the UK. MCE will be rolling this out globally from July 2019.

Teacher Skills Programme (TSP)
The overall aim of the programme is to increase the skills of madrasah teachers and to shift their attitudes and behaviours so that they may be better able to support the learning of the students in the madrasah.
 
By the end of the programme, participants will be able to:

• Recognise their role as teachers and that they are role models for the students
• Explain how they are agents of change in ensuring a learner-centered in Madrasah
• Reflect on their own practice
• Recognise that learners have different learning styles
• Keep accurate records of their teaching and the learning of their students
• Perform different methods of assessment to identify the needs of the learners

Neuropsychology of Learning Programme (NPL)
This programme focuses on two main areas:

• Self-assessment of Temperament (“why” we do what we do) and Interaction Style Energy (“how” we engage with others to get our core needs met)
• How we use this knowledge in increasing learning effectiveness with our students

In the training programme, teachers will review in detail the learning needs, energies and thinking approach for different students. They will also be able to identify the inherent strengths and challenges that they might face based on their own needs, energy and thinking approaches.
 
Spiritual Development Programme (SDP)
The Spiritual Development Programme (SDP) combines modern interactive teaching methods with classical Islamic scholarship to offer madrasah teachers practical advice on how they can enhance their spirituality and have a more positive impact on the children they teach. The programme is based on the teachings of the Qur’an and the Ahl al-Bayt (A), and many parts of it can be found in the works of leading scholars of Islamic Ethics.
The course is not intended to be a purely cognitive exercise but rather a catalyst for self – improvement through action.

The aims of this programme include:

• To present manageable strategies for spiritual growth
• To inspire continuous seeking of spiritual development
• To help introduce deeper levels of spirituality into the classroom

As part of the work for madrasah assessment, MCE has signed up for EduCare’s safeguarding and duty of care e-learning programmes. These are:

1. Fire Safety in Education
2. Health and Safety
3. Preventing Bullying behaviour
4. Safeguarding Children