Arabic and Islamic Studies

The Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MoEHE) announced changes at the end of the previous academic year for all schools in Qatar which impacted on how the department was run. It became mandatory for all Qatari pupils and Arab passport holders to study Arabic as a First Language and Islamic Studies in Arabic whilst all Muslim pupils, regardless of nationality, needed to study Islamic Studies in Arabic or English.

In Key Stage three pupils studying Arabic and Islamic Studies as a First Language continued with the MoEHE course, developing their language skills and further understanding the foundations of their religion. Pupils learning Arabic as a second language developed their speaking, writing, listening and reading skills with more of an emphasis on the speaking component of the course. In Islamic Studies for English pupils studied from the Isyllabus for School’s workbooks, which concentrate on a deep understanding of Islam (pillars of faith), Imaan (pillars of belief) and Ihsan (perfection of religion). Our i/GCSE and AS pupils have worked extremely hard to prepare for their examinations this year. We hope that they get the results that their hard work merits, inshaAllah.

The school had a QNSA inspection during the first term of school, where much of the focus is on the running of the three compulsory subjects; Arabic, Islamic Studies and Qatari History. The inspectors were impressed with the way the department was run and the provision the school makes for all the learners of different backgrounds. The first term ended up with Qatar National Day celebrations. Pupils were still under COVID-19 restrictions but managed to get involved in traditional Qatari games and an interactive quiz.

During Ramadan the department lead the with the Ramadan Charity Project. Pupils donated items that were distributed to approximately 100 local workers that work in the proximity of the school. Well done to everyone who participated in the Qur’an competition which took place in the second week of Ramadan. Special mention must be made of Maryam and Khadija Ghaly who have memorised the entire Qur’an and both coming in at joint first position. Khalid Al-Asfar and Nouran Shehata also came first in a different category for memorisation. Well done to all those who participated.

COVID-19 restrictions have made it a testing time for us all. Things are beginning to settle down and we look forward to going back to normal learning environments. With the upcoming World Cup, it promises to be a much more positive academic year insahAllah!

Mr Rahman Head of Arabic & Islamic Studies

It has been a year of transition in Qatar History and Citizenship as the curriculum has been greatly changed. History is now only a small part of the syllabus as over 90% of the course is now focused on Citizenship, perhaps in response to the challenges Qatar has faced since 2017.

Pupils learnt about topics such as Rights and Duties, Democracy in Qatar and building tolerance and coexistence within the country. For the first time pupils were also tested and it was pleasing to see over 95% of pupils achieved a passing mark. Unfortunately, due to COVID we have been unable to take pupils on any trips, but we hope this will change next year as Qatar opens up.