Halaqah

The Halaqah Curriculum is designed to encourage learning and Shakhsiyah development through dialogue. As one of the Principles of Shakhsiyah Education is Halaqah, we are committed to a Prophetic form of learning in our Schools. Our intention is to develop and nurture our learners to be thinking reflective committed Muslims who consciously choose to embrace the Islamic way of life and embody ‘Shakhsiyah Islamiyah’. The Halaqah Curriculum incorporates elements of Citizenship, PSHE, History and Religious Education. All learners take part in Halaqah daily; the sessions are child-centred and sometimes child-led. Halaqah is designed to enable learners to learn about Islam in the context of living as Muslims in British society, contributing positively to society and facing the challenges of the contemporary world. The traditional Islamic practice of Halaqah is oral, reflective, dialogic and transformative.

Islam: Students learn about Aqeedah, Qur’an and Sunnah, Seerah, Ibadah, Ahkaam Shariah, Seeking Knowledge, Hifdh, Adaab and Akhlaaq, Taadib un Nafs and Tazkiyat ul Qalb.

History: Through Halaqah, learners experience a rich tapestry of Islamic, local, British and global History in line with the themes outlined in our holistic curriculum; This is taught within an enquiry based, collaborative, learning environment that encourages pupils to become resourceful in their approach, to ask perceptive questions, think critically, weigh evidence, sift arguments and develop perspective and judgment. learners develop an understanding of key historical concepts such as continuity and change, cause and consequence, similarity, difference and significance and use these in their own personal historical enquiries. learners develop historical skills such as how to frame a historical question, how to justify a historical claim, bias in historical sources and other forms of evidence and how sources and other forms of evidence are used by historians. learners are provided with opportunities to deal with a range of stimulating resources including visitors to the school, visits to local and national museums and public institutions, as well as written and oral sources, including an increasing number found on the internet.

Religious Education: Religious Education is not taught as a separate subject in its own right. Rather Religious Education (relating to religions other than Islam) can be found in the Tarbiyah: Contextualising Islam section of the Halaqah Curriculum which includes a section on ‘Other Religions, Beliefs and Cultures’.

Personal Social Health and Economic Education: PSHE is not taught as a separate subject in its own right. Rather strands of PSHE education can be identified in the T’alim: Developing the ‘Aqliyah and Taadib: Disciplining the Nafs and Inspiring the Qalb section of the Halaqah.

Citizenship (including British Values): As with PSHE, Citizenship and ‘British Values’ are not taught as a separate subject in Halaqah or as a standalone section. Rather they can be found in the Tarbiyah: Contextualising Islam section of the Halaqah Curriculum which covers, Muslims in Britain, Other Religions, Beliefs and Cultures and History.

Since 2014 Schools in England are required to ‘actively promote’ fundamental British values. Shakhsiyah schools perceive British values as overlapping with Islamic values. We therefore meet the requirement to promote them in a number of ways including through Halaqah.