Potential reproduction and renewal in a weekend mosque school in Canada: Educators' perspectives of learning and development

Grounded in sociocultural theory, this paper describes and discusses three themes from a qualitative study that examined Muslim educators' perspectives on learning and developing in a Sunni mosque school in Canada. First, the educators described the objectives of Islamic education and human development as converging in a life-long trajectory. Teaching and learning Islamic principles and practices were intended for specific forms of Islamic development. Second, the educators engaged children in social practices, composed of unique pedagogies and cultural tools, to mediate their interpretations of Islam in relation to the surrounding non-Muslim cultural context. Third, the educators used pedagogies flexibly and emphasized relationships with students. Together with students, these Muslim educators constructed teaching and learning as processes of potential reproduction and renewal. This research contributes to the scant literature on learning and developing within sites of Islamic education in multicultural Canada by highlighting the current critiques around pedagogy and suggesting potential paths for future research.