Assalamoaleikum Warahmatullah-i-Wabarakatuhu,
On behalf of the SCIL staff and faculty, I would like to welcome you to our school web page. Insha’Allah this website will be an effective means of communication between the school and the community in general, and the parent body in particular. We will try to keep it updated so that vital information regarding the school is always available to you.
The foundation of SCIL was laid in 2003 when a group of progressive, far-thinking individuals realized that the education that children were receiving in most high profile, expensive institutions was not doing much to nurture the kind of person they were desirous of seeing in the future leaders of the Muslim Ummah.
My association with SCIL often prompts friends and associates to ask me what an “Islamic” school signifies – as compared with a “regular” school. Allow me to respond by first saying that knowledge, per se, is neither Islamic nor non-Islamic; Eastern or Western – it is universal! Just as all basic facts are universal.
The difference lies in the perspective from which these facts are viewed. Islamic education differs from all secular education, in that its focal point (from which it stems and to which it must revert) is that all pervading truth-the concept of Tawheed or the unity of Allah (SWT). This inherent knowledge is embedded in the hearts of all human beings who come into this world. The Prophet of Islam (SAW) said “Every child is born in original purity (fitrah). It is his parents who make him a Jew, a Christian or an idol worshipper (Bukhari)”. The term “parents” used in the above Hadith can logically be extended to the general environment i.e. family, friends, teachers, etc. It is very unfortunate that our age-long indifference and neglect in all contemporary disciplines has made us entirely dependent on occidental sources of learning, where spiritual, ethical and religious values are considered obsolete – a thing of the past.
Therefore, the need for educational reconstruction to strengthen the foundation of faith is felt as never before in an Islamic society. In Islam, education is a holistic process leading to the enlightenment of the heart and soul, with divine wisdom, thus molding a wholesome personality worthy of being the vicegerent of Allah on earth.
The foremost principle of formal education is that it be a harmonious, coordinated and comprehensive experience, as a result of collective vision guided by shared objectives. In a society which is lending itself more and more to a materialistic philosophy, a paradigm shift was considered necessary to break away from it, especially for people for whom religion is still a thing to be valued and practiced in its entirely.
As SCIL, we consider the training of the personality, character building (tarbiyyah) a most important aspect of all roundsteaching as it not only gives vent to the creative potential of students but also enables him / her to function as a productive and socially responsible individual. In this we aim to distinguish between education and mere literacy. The cultivation of a moral attitude, an appreciation of virtues and a striving for spiritual growth – based on the injunctions of the Quran and Sunnah is made possible in school, through providing students an environment where they can rediscover and develop their Islamic identity without threat, intimidation or apology.
Our Deen emphasizes the studying of the universe in all its aspect-it enjoins us to reflect, ponder, discover-in other words, to educate ourselves! Islam stands not for the denial of life, but for its fulfillment. May Allah (SWT) guide us, in His Infinite Mercy to realize the high achievement goals we have set for our students, not only in becoming good, practicing Muslims, but also in becoming proficient in all modern disciplines required to become the leaders of tomorrow (In Sha Allah).
Zakira Yousaf