Promoting Tolerance and Social Cohesion through the Study of the Sīrah in Universities: An Analytical Study

Abstract

This research article examines the impact of the curriculum of the Biography of the Prophet (PBUH) taught in universities in Pakistan. Instead of traditional survey and quantitative methods, this study specifically examines how the study of the Biography is promoting tolerance, effective social harmony and social cohesion among students from the perspective of Social and Educational Psychology.

This paper is based on the assumption that presenting the Sīrah as a practical moral model following the injunctions of the Holy Quran, rather than just historical or religious information, is an indispensable educational need to deal with the challenges of intolerance, sectarianism, and extremism in today's era.

This research was conducted to answer some important questions such as to what extent the curriculum content of Sīrah courses in Pakistani universities, especially the Islamia University of Bahawalpur comprehensively and actively incorporates the aspects of tolerance and interfaith respect inherent in the teachings of Sīrah and what theoretical reforms are needed to make the study of Sīrah more effective by using the principles of educational psychology; such as case study and discussion method so that the course can be further improved.

This research adopts a purely qualitative and theoretical approach. A major part of the research is based on an in-depth analysis of the curricula, course outlines, and recommended teaching materials of Sīrah courses in selected universities in Pakistan, in which it has been seen to what extent the principles of tolerance and harmony are highlighted.

I myself have been working on the curriculum of the Holy Qur’ān and Sīrah in universities for a long time and through discussions with other curriculum experts and religious scholars, I have understood the challenges and opportunities of effectively integrating the teachings of Sīrah in the light of pedagogical philosophy, the effectiveness of the current curriculum, and social psychology, and have gathered results accordingly.