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In This Episode

For Educators

Interpreting Women in Islam – Procedures For Teachers

In This Lesson

Prep — Preparing for the lesson
Steps — Conducting the lesson
Extension — Additional Activities


Prep

Media Components

Computer Resources:

  • Modem: 56.6 Kbps or faster.
  • Browser: Netscape Navigator 4.0 or above or Internet Explorer 4.0 or above.
  • Personal computer (Pentium II 350 MHz or Celeron 600 MHz) running Windows® 95 or higher and at least 32 MB of RAM.
    Macintosh computer: System 8.1 or above and at least 32 MB of RAM.
  • RealPlayer
  • Adobe Acrobat Reader 4.0 or higher. Download the free Adobe Acrobat reader here:
    http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html.

Bookmarked sites:

Before teaching this lesson, bookmark all of the Web sites used in the lesson on each computer in your classroom, create a word-processing document with all of the Web sites listed as hyperlinks and email to each student (or type out the URL’s and print), or upload all links to an online bookmarking utility such as www.portaportal.com, so that students can access the information on these sites. Make sure that your computer has necessary media players, like RealPlayer, to show streaming clips (if applicable).

Preview all of the sites and videos before presenting them to your class.

RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY Web sites:

Other sites:

Materials:

Teachers will need the following supplies:

  • Board and/or chart paper
  • Ideally, a screen on which to project the video clips
  • Handouts of Web resources if computers are not available in the classroom.
  • Copies of the Student Organizer
  • Print transcripts of RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY episode number 521, “The Role of Women in Islam”.

Students will need the following supplies:

  • Computers with the capacities indicated above
  • Notebook or journal
  • Pens/pencils

Steps

Introductory Activities:

  1. Begin a discussion by asking students about their perceptions of women in Islam allowing, of course, any practicing Muslim in the classroom to share her/his views. Ask the students:
    • What is the image you often see of Islamic women? What media sources do you usually see these images in?
    • How do you think modern Western society views women’s role in Islam?
  2. Hand out the Student Organizer. Give the students a few minutes to jot down their ideas about question #1:
    • Do you think that among Muslims there is more than one interpretation of religious customs and laws?
    • Make a prediction on what you think these different interpretations might be. For example do you think there are different interpretations made by some Muslims on how women should dress?

    After the students have had some time to write down their thoughts ask several students to share what they wrote.

  3. For background on different interpretations of Islam, ask students to read a set of interviews from the PBS Frontline episode “Muslims” and an interview with religious writer Karen Armstrong in the article “Fundamental Problems“.
  4. Ask students about their perception of women’s roles in other religions. For example, discuss the fact that women are not allowed to be priests in the Catholic faith, but they are allowed to be church leaders in the Protestant faith.
  5. Instruct your students to form small groups and go to The Islam Project and review the four maps that give population statistics circa 2000. If the students do not have Internet access, print the map out ahead of time and hand it to the groups. Allow the students to study the maps to give them a sense of Islam’s wide global reach. Ask them if they are surprised at how far-reaching Islam is. What they have learned by studying the maps?
  6. Before proceeding to the next part of the lesson, pre-teach the following terms. Students can work in their groups to research the terms, or you can assign them for homework. (The following definitions are from The Council on Islamic Education)
    • Hijab — Commonly, the term hijab is used to denote the scarf or other type of headcovering worn by Muslim women throughout the world. However, the broader definition of the term refers to a state of modesty and covering that encompasses a woman’s entire body, excluding hands and face.
    • Islam — Islam is an Arabic word derived from the three-letter root s-l-m. Its meaning encompasses the concepts of peace, greeting, surrender, and commitment, and refers commonly to an individual’s surrender and commitment to God the Creator through adherence to the religion by the same name.
    • Muslim — Literally (and in the broadest sense), the term means “one who submits to God.” More commonly, the term describes any person who accepts the creed and the teachings of Islam. The word “Muhammadan” is a pejorative and offensive misnomer, as it violates Muslims’ most basic understanding of their creed — Muslims do not worship Muhammad, nor do they view him as the founder of the religion. The word “Moslem” is also incorrect, since it is a corruption of the word “Muslim.”
    • Koran or Qur’an — The word Qur’an means “the recitation” or “the reading”, and refers to the divinely revealed scripture of Islam. It consists of 114 surahs (chapters) revealed by God to Muhammad over a period of twenty-three years. The Qur’an continues to be recited by Muslims throughout the world in the language of its revelation, Arabic, exactly as it was recited by Prophet Muhammad nearly fourteen hundred years ago. The Qur’an is viewed as the authoritative guide for human beings, along with the Sunnah of Muhammad. Translations of the Qur’an are considered explanations of the meaning of the Qur’an, but not the Qur’an itself. The spelling “Koran” is phonetically incorrect; the more accurate Qur’an should be used.
    • Hadith or Ha-deeth — Unlike the verses contained in the Qur’an, Hadith are the sayings and traditions of Prophet Muhammad himself, and form part of the record of the Prophet’s Sunnah (way of life and example). The Hadith record the words and deeds, explanations, and interpretations of the Prophet concerning all aspects of life. Hadith are found in various collections compiled by Muslim scholars in the early centuries of the Muslim civilization. Six such collections are considered most authentic.
    • Mosque or Masjid — A term meaning “place of prostration”, masjid designates a building where Muslims congregate for communal worship. The term comes from the same Arabic root as the word sujud, designating the important worship position in which Muslims touch their forehead to the ground. Often, the French word mosque is used interchangeably with masjid, though the latter term is preferred by Muslims. The masjid also serves various social, educational, and religious purposes. There are three sacred masjids in the world which Muslims hope to visit and pray within: Masjid al-Haram in Makkah; Masjid an-Nabawi in Madinah; and Masjid al-Aqsa in Jerusalem.
    • Burqa — A burqa is one way of honoring hijab and is used in certain Muslim cultures and regions. A burqa can be a kind of veil with an opening for the eyes. A full burqa, also called a chador, is a garment that covers the entire body and face. (This definition was adapted from several Internet resources).

Learning Activities:

Activity 1

  1. Hand out transcripts of the RELIGION AND ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY segment “The Role of Women in Islam“, that portrays the views of various Muslim women living in the U.S. and ask the students to read it.NOTE: An alternative activity is to ask six students to volunteer to do some acting. Assign each student to one of the characters in the transcript. Have each student read her/his part aloud in class. The student assigned to reporter Deryl Davis’ role will act as the narrator/moderator exactly as it appears in the transcript. The following roles should be assigned:
    • Deryl Davis: Religion and Ethics Newsweekly Reporter
    • Belquis Babi: Afghan woman living in the U.S.
    • Riffat Hassan: Muslim scholar, University of Louisville
    • Nermeen Slip: Social Services, Islamic Foundation of America
    • Sharifa Alkhateeb: President, North American Council for Muslim Women
    • Dr. Azar Nafisi: Professor, Johns Hopkins University
  2. After the students have read the transcript, ask the following questions:
    • How do the women’s views differ?
    • Do you view a burqa as respecting or disrespecting women’s rights?
    • How might one view hijab as liberating? How might one view it as restrictive?
  3. Hand out copies of the article “They hate women, don’t they?” This piece was published in The Guardian newspaper of London in June 2002. It critiques the Western view and media representation of Islamic Women.
  4. Hand out the articles “Islam, Culture and Women.” and “They hate women, don’t they?“. Ask students to compare/contrast the articles. Chart their responses. You can use the following questions as a guide:
    • What does the author of “They hate women, don’t they?” want you to take away from her essay?
    • What does the author of “Islam, Culture and Women” want you to take away from her essay?
    • What are the perceptions vs. the realities presented in each article?
    • In what ways do the articles represent similar viewpoints?
    • In what ways do the articles represent opposing viewpoints?
    • According to either article what do you think has been the Taliban’s impact on the world’s view of women and Islam?

Activity 2 — Images of Women

  1. Begin a discussion of how women are represented in media. As in the introductory activity, ask the students to think of how images of Muslim and Western women are represented in the media, and ask them to compare and contrast these images.
  2. Explain that the students will look at and display images of Muslim and Non-Muslim women. You can provide images for the students or you can ask the students to find the images. If you decide to have the students create the displays it is recommended that you assign them to groups with each one creating a display. The images should be of Muslim women in various states of hijab and of women from U.S. fashion magazines. The following are options for how you or your students can display the images:
    • PowerPoint slideshow
    • Project images from the Internet, or create a Web site
    • Poster collages
  3. Once the displays are ready have the class review them and discuss the various ways these images might be interpreted. Use the following questions as a guide:
    • Choose an author or person you read about in this lesson and explain how they would interpret these images. Use examples from the articles.
    • Do you think Muslim women are being objectified? Why or why not?
    • Do you think the women in the U.S. fashion magazines are being objectified? Why or why not?
    • Can you think of some benefits of observing hijab? Can you think of some disadvantages?
    • What are your thoughts about how the media portrays women in general? Do you think it is fair? Do you think the media is fair to Muslim women?

Activity 3: Women in the mosque

  1. Explain that now the students will learn about one woman and her feelings about women’s place in the mosque. Show the students the following RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY video segment. You can stream the video from a computer or you can print out the show’s transcript from the Web site.
    • COVER STORY: Women in Mosques
      (November 12, 2004 Episode no. 811)
      https://pbs-wnet-preprod.digi-producers.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/week811/cover.html

      This video explores the ways in which some American Muslims are trying to change the role of women within mosques. Show the entire episode and instruct the students to take notes on the Student Organizer, question #2 as they watch the video segment. Additionally, ask your students to pay attention to the reasons the men and women in the video segment give for praying separately in mosques.

  2. After they’ve watched the clip, ask the students the following:
    • What are some of the reasons why males don’t want to pray together with women in mosques?
    • What are some of the reasons why females prefer to pray separately from men?
  3. Hand out the article. “Muslim Author Creates Conflict by Taking a Stand for Women” about Asra Nomani’s attempts to desegregate American Mosques. (Note: This Web site requires free registration). Additional articles related to Asra Nomani’s push for female leadership in the mosque are:
  4. After the students have read these articles and any others hold a class discussion. Use the following questions as a guide:
    • What does Asra Nomani wish to accomplish?
    • What has the reaction been to Nomani’s effort for fewer restrictions on women in mosques?
    • How do Hafeeza Bell and Asra Nomani differ in their view of women’s role in the mosque?

Culminating activity:

  1. Ask the students if they can think of a theme present in all of the activities that they have engaged in over the past several days. Explain that each activity focused on various interpretations of the role of Muslim women and that most of the activities included the voice of Muslims who have interpreted the role of women in Islam in different ways. Explain that the students will now look at passages from Islamic texts to see how different interpretations can occur.
  2. Hand out “A Collection of References from the Qur’an and Hadeeth about the Rights of Women guaranteed by Islam“. This is an English Translation of the Qur’an and Hadeeth and you should explain to your students that translations may vary. You can also ask them to recall the definition of the Qur’an and what it said about translations.
  3. Divide the students into teams of 4 or 5 and ask them to pair a passage in the Koran, as provided in this article, with a statement from a person they’ve either heard or read about in this lesson. Have the groups find three such examples. The students should explain how each passage/quote either relates to or differs from a viewpoint expressed in this lesson and hand in the assignment on a date you assign.Two examples of matching a Koran passage with a statement in the lesson are:
    • The believing men and women, are associates and helpers of each other. They (collaborate) to promote all that is beneficial and discourage all that is evil; to establish prayers and give alms, and to obey Allah and his Messenger. Those are the people whom Allah would grant mercy. Indeed Allah is Mighty and Wise. (Al-Taubah 9:71).The statement by Ms. Slim in the Religion and Ethics Newsweekly story “The Role of Women in Islam” reiterates the above passage when she says: “There is ‘al-qa’aed’ in Arabic, which is the leader. You know, like leadership in the family should be for the husband. If he’s a just true Muslim, he’ll be a fair leader. He’ll have ‘shura’ consultation with his wife”.
    • Ibn Umar reported: The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: Do not deprive women of their share of the mosques, when they seek permission from you. Bilal said: By Allah, we would certainly prevent them. Abdullah said: I say that the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said it and you say: We would certainly prevent them! (Sahih Muslim Book 004, Number 0891).The statement by Imam Farruuq in the Religion and Ethics Newsweekly story “Women in Mosques” supports the above passage when he says “When men pray with men, they are not attracted to the opposite sex; when women pray with women, they are not attracted to the opposite sex. I am living a tradition that is 1,400 years old; nothing is going to change.” Farruuq is using a similar argument as Bilal by noting that he is living with tradition.

Extension Activities:

  • Take another religion and use similar activities as those described in this lesson to determine a women’s role in that particular religion.
  • Ask the students to read the article “Islam and Democracy” from the Religion and Ethics Newsweekly Viewer’s Guide 2004 located at https://pbs-wnet-preprod.digi-producers.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/pdfs/religionguide2004.pdf. Use the discussion questions at the end of the article with your students.
  • Use a Web site like the Girls, Women and Media Project and conduct further activities to help students learn about how women are portrayed in the media.
  • Organize a trip to a local mosque or ask a mosque leader to come to your classroom. Make sure that both the Imam and your students know that the goal of this activity is to experience the mosque and learn about the religion first-hand; not to stoke a debate on women and Islam. Students should be prepared to ask the Imam questions about the prayer routine, the rules, Islamic education and culture, etc., and not just questions about the role of women.
  • Have students interview a Muslim woman. Use the Interviewing Tips on the Religion and Ethics NewsWeekly Web site to help your students prepare for their interview. Additionally you may want the students to research and create additional guidelines to help an interviewee be sensitive to certain Islamic beliefs and traditions.

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