Conclusiones sobre Características y Resultados

In this section, two main terms, education and educational system, are presented, whilst other important terms, including philosophy, philosophy of education and Islamic philosophy of education, are discussed in detail in Chapter Two.

1.8.1 Education

Education is ‘the process of successful learning knowledge, skills and attitudes, where what is learned is worthwhile to the learner, where it is learned in such a way that the learner can express his own individuality through what he learns and can subsequently apply it and adapt it flexibly, to situations and problems other than those he considered in learning it. Also, ‘education’ is used to refer to the product of the above process and to the academic DISCIPLINE studying the nature of the process and its outcomes’ (Rowntree, 1981, p. 75). Rowntree’s definition on education highlights that the term education can refer to three meanings: process of learning, product of learning and the discipline of studying the process and outcomes of learning. There are three important elements in the process of learning; “knowledge”, “skills” and “attitudes”. In his view, these three elements should be successfully transferred to the learner so that the learner is able to apply his/her knowledge to different situations and problems. Through education, one’s personality can be developed, since education can also be defined as ‘the transmission of knowledge and understanding, and the development of the individual personality, by teaching or example’ (The Pop-up Oxford World Encyclopaedia (CD Rom), 2002). The process of education takes place through a teacher or role model, involving a “teacher” and a “learner”, or a “more mature” and a “less mature” person. Butler (1957), defines education as ‘an activity or endeavour in which the more mature of human society deal with the less mature, in order to achieve a

greater maturity in them and contribute thereby to the improvement of human life’ (Butler, 1957, p. 12).

Ibn Khaldun viewed that learning and education can only flourish in a civilized society through the capacity of human reasoning as he stated that;

‘...education is a social phenomenon and teaching is one of the social crafts. Man is a social animal and his prosecution of learning is conditioned by the nature of the material, intellectual and spiritual forces of the civilisation in which he lives’.

(Cited in Tibawi, 1972, p. 42).

Ibn Khaldun also indicated that the process of learning must be upon divine guidance. This is in line with Tibawi (1972) idea that education’...like everything in the social order, was divinely ordained, and like the society it served education had the definite purpose of conducing to approved conduct and happiness in this world and eternal bliss in the next’ (Tibawi, 1972, p. 23). He specifically states that Muslim

education is rooted to the Holy al-Qur

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sayings and the practice of Muhammad.

Syed Ali Ashraf (1985) referred education as ‘...purposeful activity directed to the full development of the individual’ (Ashraf, 1985, p.3). Therefore education must produce a balanced vicegerent through guided

According to Langgulung, the word education originally comes from the Latin “educere” meaning to instil something. In Arabic language there are several concepts that refer practically to the meaning of education: ta’lim, tarbiyyah and ta’dib (Langgulung,

1997, p. 5). These concepts are states in the verses of the Holy Qurān and Sunnah Muhammad S.A.W. Among the verses that states the ta’lim is in the Sūrah: Al-Baqarah verse: 31

‘And he who taught (‘Allama) the names of the things, then he placed them before the angels, and said: ‘tell me the names of these if you are right’.

The tarbiyyah also can be found in sūrah Al- Isra’, verse: 24

‘And. Out of kindness, lower to them the wing of humility, and say; My Lord! Bestow on them thy Mercy even as they Cherished (Rabbayāni) me in childhood’.

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‘My Lord, educated (addaba) me and made my education (ta’dībī) most excellent’. (Langgulung, 1997, p. 5).

Edward William Lane (1984) specifically gives the meaning of tad’dīb as

‘...he taught him well, or much, the discipline of the mind, and the acquisition of good qualities and attributes of the mind or soul: he discipline him, chastised him, corrected him, or punished him, for his evil conduct; because discipline, or chastised him, is a means of inviting a person to what is properly termed “al-adab”’.

(Lane, 1997, p.24)

The word also refers to ‘good discipline of mind and manners i.e well disciplined, well-educated, well bred or well-mannered, polite, instructed in polite accomplishment’ (Lane, 1984, p.24).

Then Ta’lim according to Edward (1997) means ‘he taught him knowledge or science’ (Lane, 1984, p. 2139) whilst tarbiyyah he defines as ‘I reared him, or brought him up’. This word according to him namely used for a child for example; ‘I fed or nourished him’. The word also used for earth, soil plants and tree for example; I reared or cultivated plants or trees (Lane, 1984, p. 1023).

Although the three concepts ta’lim, tarbiyyah and tad’dīb can refer to the meaning of education, Al-Attas is of the view that the ta’lim refer to the meaning of teaching (delivering knowledge), only one component of education, whilst tarbiyyah is more general and covers the scope of teaching or nurturing animals and plants. He suggested that the Ta’dib is more appropriate to the meaning of education, because this concept only refers to humans, involving the processes of teaching, nurturing, instilling of good morals, in order to produce a “good man” (see Langgulung, 1997, p. 5).

1.8.2 Educational System

Janne defined an educational system as ‘...all the procedures and methods, with their instrumental apparatus, whereby a society gives its members organized and controlled education in the various fields of human activity for the purpose of the maintenance (functional and technical aspects) and acceptance (ethical aspects) of the social structures and the values which justify them. The expression is sometimes more loosely used in a formal sense, e.g., as an equivalent of ‘school system’’ (Cited in Page & Thomas with Marshall, 1977, p. 115).