27.09.2011
According to Ahmet Toprak, Professor for Educational Sciences at the University of Applied Sciences and Art in Dortmund, and Aladin El-Mafaalani, Ruhr University Bochum, many German teachers have insufficient knowledge about young Muslims and the values and ways of thinking of parents from more traditional Turkish or Arabic backgrounds. While many teachers may think Muslim parents are not interested in their children’s education, what seems like a lack of interest is, in fact, based on a fundamentally different understanding of education. Based on a research collaboration on Muslim youth in Germany funded by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, Toprak and El-Mafaalani have recently presented a guide (“Muslim children and youth in Germany”), which addresses this lack of knowledge about Muslim students and is meant to help teachers and educators to better understand their social worlds and backgrounds.
The publication is available from the Konrad Adenauer Foundation.
