Reaching for the Crescent: Aspirations of Singapore Islamic Studies Graduates and the Challenges

Reaching for the Crescent: Aspirations of Singapore Islamic Studies Graduates and the Challenges

Jul 01, 2021

  • Politics and Social Science
  • This Month's Highlight
Islamic religious teachers (asatizah) and scholars (ulama) play a significant role in providing spiritual leadership for the Singapore Malay/Muslim community. Lately, the group has been cast under the spotlight over a range of issues, from underperformance in the national examination, their ability to integrate into the broader society, exposure to radical and conservative ideas such as Salafism from the Middle East, and unemployment. This book examines a growing segment within the group, namely Islamic studies graduates, who obtained their degrees from universities in the Middle East and neighbouring Malaysia and Indonesia and calls for a rethinking of a prevailing discourse of Arabization of Sinagpore Muslims and academic approaches that focus on madrasah education and Islam through the security lens.

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