Trajectories of public education in Muslim families of the Republic of Bashkortostan

Nadyrshin Timur Maratovich Junior Scientific Associate, R. G. Kuzeev Institute of Ethnological Studies of Ufa Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences 450077, Russia, respublika Bashkortostan, g. Ufa, ul. Karla Marksa, 6 timurimp@mail.ru Other publications by this author

The article is carried out within the framework of the topic of the state task of the IEI UFIC RAS for 2021 "Traditional religions and new religious movements in the Southern Urals and the Urals: issues of functioning, state-confessional and interfaith relations"

 Introduction

       Education is a form of cultural transmission. For religious communities, the problem of preserving and transmitting their culture is significant. Muslims are no exception either. The educational path of children born in Muslim families in a multicultural society can both coincide and differ from the path of their peers. In our previous work, we considered the trajectories of additional education of children in Muslim families ^[4]. In this article, we will look at what trajectories of general education exist in the Muslim community. In the context of this work, by "Muslims" we will mean believers whose daily life is closely connected with the adoption of religiously motivated decisions, that is, those believers who observe prayer practice, keep fasting, adhere to the canons of clothing, etc.

                This topic is important for a number of reasons. Firstly, the motives for choosing the educational trajectory of Muslims differ from the choice of other parents, whose daily life is not so closely connected with religious experience. Secondly, the economic structure of the Muslim family has a number of serious restrictions in nutrition and behavior, and the state education system cannot guarantee compliance with these principles for the children of believers in a number of parameters. Thirdly, religious communities strive on the one hand to isolate themselves, and on the other to spread their worldview, and the educational factor in this context will play its role. Thus, given the reasons, it will be important to say that the topic is of interest to the humanities.

                Russian humanities has already sought to conduct research on this topic. The study of the integration of the young generation of Muslim believers into the religious life of the community is presented only in official forms in the form of mektabs and faculty courses. As Z.N. Fatkullina notes, maktab is a place of development of the jamaat. The integration of believers is possible due to a positive image of religion, joint actions of all interested parties, and pressure on Muslims only leads to the hardening of the religious community and the consolidation of believers ^[6] Tibetan courses on K.I. Nasibullov are the most common and decisive form of religious education for integration into the life of the community. An important factor of integration is the narration of Muslim summer camps for children, which today are the most popular form of integration of young people into the active life of the community. However, the publication does not reflect this type of activity in detail and is not represented by empirical observations and oral narratives of community members ^[5].

The interaction of believers with the state education system is conducted only in the context of discussing the topic of hijab at school. Religious norms of relations with the opposite sex, as well as endless disputes in science and the media regarding the norms of clothing can serve as an illustration here ^{[2, 3]}. In this regard, social problems may occur, for example, as Zayn notes, in Canada in the early 2000s, the aspirations regarding the studies of Muslim children, especially girls, are not taken seriously (If a student skipped school, they do not check. If they do not study, do not criticize or are indifferent) . Another problem is the "Split Personality Syndrome" in which a young person is forced to develop one type of personality to cope with stressful pressure at school, and another type to meet the cultural requirements of the home and community.^[1].

However, the actual trajectories of Muslims in the general education system are little represented. This research lacuna is of interest for modern Islamic studies.

In this article, we will answer the question of how believers who observe religious practice implement a general education program in the context of the city of Ufa. The purpose of the study is to analyze the forms of general education in the Muslim community of the city. Before the work there is an analysis of the following forms of education:

1.       General education along with the rest of the students.

2.       Family education with learning at home

3.       Family education with the acquisition of knowledge in a private school

This research is conducted in the context of the anthropology of education, a subdiscipline studying the mutual influence of culture and education. In the context of this approach, education is seen as a cultural universal that is characteristic of all groups. At the same time, Muslim education means not only the study of religion, but also those forms in which Muslims act as subjects of educational activity. The novelty of the research lies in the introduction into scientific circulation of a number of data from a survey of Muslim parents of the Republic of Bashkortostan, a superficial review of Muslim educational projects

The Muslim community, which is heterogeneous in its content, also sets itself the task of transmitting (transmitting) culture. In this regard, the processes of socialization, inculturation and indoctrination appear in a single hypostasis. The extremely heterogeneous Muslim community of Russia in general and the Republic of Bashkortostan in particular require the use of ethnographic research methods.

The novelty of the study lies in the conclusions of the study, which indicate that the Muslim educational space, on the one hand, strives for integration, and on the other, for isolation. At the moment, the state secondary school cannot provide comfortable conditions for the children of believers to receive education. The socio-demographic and economic conditions of a Muslim family often cannot provide the children of believers with decent educational prospects. In the future, this may become the basis for the marginalization of a certain proportion of the Muslim community. In addition, the novelty lies in the introduction into scientific circulation of a part of the survey of believing Muslim parents in Ufa.

Methods

The work uses traditional research methods for social sciences: survey, interviewing, questioning, observation. In particular, in 2021, 90 Muslim parents observing Muslim prayer practice were interviewed in the Google Forms system. This survey revealed the following problems: the forms of nutrition at school, as well as the level of discomfort at school due to religious identity.

Results

 General education along with the rest of the students. Judging by observations, most believers send their children to public schools. Nevertheless, even in this context there is a certain desire for unification. For example, it is preferable for parents to include their children in national schools. These are, for example, Bashkir and Tatar gymnasiums.

Ufa is not a city where halal nutrition is implemented at school. Thanks to the activities of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of the Republic of Bashkortostan, halal nutrition has been implemented in nine districts of the Republic since the new academic year ^[7]. This issue is the main stumbling block for believers. Of course, there are families in which parents send students to school with lunch boxes. However, in this case, the student is separated from the team. He does not eat with everyone and this leads him to isolation from the rest of his classmates.

The results of a survey among Muslim parents showed that 21.6% of parents can only partially provide children with halal food, 2.3% eat at school on an equal basis with other children.

Along with this issue, the differences in appearance are fundamental. This problem concerns primarily girls. However, a significant proportion of Bashkiria believers do not require girls to comply with the dress code at a young age.

The parents were asked a question: Has your child/children experienced discomfort due to their religious affiliation in an educational institution? 38.2% of parents replied that there were no such problems. 

These are compromises that most believers make, but there is a large proportion of those Muslims who have chosen other strategies for their children to receive general education.

Family education with the acquisition of knowledge at home. The second form, which is also common, is staying on family education. In this case, the children are at home, and the parents themselves provide them with the necessary amount of knowledge. 10.3% of parents answered that their children receive a family form of education. This is quite a large number, since in the whole country the statistics of family-educated students are significantly lower than 1 percent. There are families that invite tutors in the most important subjects, and there are families that attach students to an online school. Such online schools provide an opportunity to gain knowledge on Russian programs, for example, "School of Russia" and even attach to some Moscow school for certification.

Family education with the acquisition of knowledge in a private school. In the third case, believers, in order to provide their children with a team and the realities of a normal school, organize the education of their children in a private school. There are several projects in Ufa that implement an environment in which Muslim children study. These projects do not publicly announce themselves as Muslim schools, but these projects are characterized by a high percentage of religious teachers, halal nutrition and a number of other criteria that are important for Muslims. However, these projects do not have accreditation, and they work within the framework of additional education, which reduces their competitive opportunities in the educational market.
At the request of the respondents, we will not mention the names of schools here. The first of the cases is attached to one teacher, whose school is 1 large office. Here the teacher conducts all the lessons. Classes are provided only for elementary school students. Lessons are held in 2 shifts three times a week for each class. Sunday is a day off. The tuition fee is less than 10 thousand rubles per month. The second case is a private school for grades 1-5, subject-based education is implemented here. That is, there is no one teacher for primary classes, and students, depending on the lesson, move from office to office. The school has its own small sports hall, a recreation room, a meal room and several classrooms. The second project is supported not only by tuition fees, but also by donations from religious businessmen. The tuition fee is about 20 thousand rubles per month with meals.

It should be noted that the presented educational projects are available only to a well-off share of the Muslim community. The results presented below relate to additional education, but they partly demonstrate educational opportunities. According to the survey, 31% are ready to provide children with only free forms of supplements.education. 36.9% are ready to invest no more than 5 thousand rubles per month in additional education. 21.4% are ready to invest no more than 10 thousand rubles per month in additional education.

Conclusion

    In subsequent works, it is planned to conduct in-depth case studies of examples of each of the presented groups of educational projects. The Muslim educational space, on the one hand, strives for integration, and on the other hand, for isolation. Projects for children will be built around these two contradictory processes. In recent years, the emergence of a class of wealthy Muslim elite contributes to the fact that projects are being discussed to create an elite educational institution for the children of believers. The demand for quality, coupled with the value qualification in the field of education, are basic for a significant proportion of believers. However, there are also constraints. The large number of children in Muslim families, the refusal of women from careers, the lack of their own housing due to the mortgage interest rate do not allow a large proportion of believers to provide Muslim children with a decent educational trajectory ^[4]. In the long term, this may become the basis for the marginalization of a certain proportion of the Muslim community of Ufa. Unfortunately, the state school at the moment cannot provide the children of believers with a comfortable educational environment.