Last two months, on the 23rd of April, World Book Day was celebrated globally. The annual celebration had been designated by UNESCO since 1995, inspired by the Catalonian custom el dia del llibre, a festival when lovers and their beloved exchange books as gifts. (Half the yearly sales of books in Catalonia are made on…
Moral Check against Dishonesty by Dr Mohd Sani Badron Senior Fellow / Director, Centre for Economics and Social Studies, IKIM When invited recently to deliberate on the future direction of curriculum development, I began my deliberations by admitting the complexity of the theme. To quote T. S. Eliot, “education is a subject which cannot be…
The solution to present-day Muslim nations’ predicaments lies in a strategic vision aimed at building “human development”. To provide Muslim response to global challenges, we need to build a “knowledge-society” in which real and true knowledge (al-hikmah) is the governing principle of all human activity. As far as the educational infrastructure is concerned, it is…
Mahu atau tidak mahu, hidup wajib dihayati. Apakah cara yang “baik” untuk menggunakan masa hidup? Ini soal yang cukup penting kerana kita hidup hanyalah sekali; hidup bukanlah latihan yang boleh diulang dicuba berkali-kali. “None of us gets a second chance at making a good life for ourselves,” ujar faylasuf Mortimer Adler dalam karyanya The Time…
In this column on the 6th of November 2007, we have narrated the Prophet Muhammad’s statement that, the major portion of Religion (al-Din) is defined by “sincere conduct” (al-nasihah) towards Allah, His Book, His Messenger, leaders of Muslims, and Muslims in general. We had the opportunity, then, to discuss only the first three fundamental dimensions…
We are now in the last month of the Muslim calendar, the month of dhu al-hajjah, loosely translated as the month of the pilgrimage. According to the twelfth century metaphysician al-Ghazzali, unlike other actions the hajj comprises the salient feature “exclusive worship (al-tajarrud li-‘ibÄdatillah)” which reflects “perfect servitude and obedience to Allah (kamÄl al-riqq wa…
KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 4 (Bernama) — A Malay maxim says, “melentur buluh biarlah dari rebungnya” (Literal translation: Bend a bamboo when it is still a shoot). Idiomatically, the saying suggests the upbringing and education of a child from young age. Like a bamboo stalk, a child is easier to guide in the early years. The early years…
Pujangga Melayu pernah berpesan, “melentur buluh biarlah dari rebungnya” yang masih muda dan lembut. Pokok buluh tua yang sudah keras akan patah kalau dilenturkan. Pengajaran bagi kita adalah, zaman kanak-kanak dan muda-remaja adalah tahap penting dalam membentuk budi-pekerti, akhlaq, perangai, watak dan minda. Akhlaq dan perangai watak yang telah terakam semenjak zaman kanak-kanak dan muda-remaja sukar untuk…
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 20 (Bernama) — The digital revolution has unleashed a myriad of choices through new and old media, from terrestrial and satellite television and Internet, to the iPod, films, mobile phones, video games and the list goes on. It is education that teaches us how to pick the right choice, and tune the…
KUALA LUMPUR, 20 Nov (Bernama) — Revolusi digital sejagat telah melambakkan pilihan berlimpah-ruah melalui pelbagai media baru dan lama, daripada televisyen-darat dan televisyen-satelit serta Internet, membawa kepada media iPod, wayang gambar, telefon mudah-alih, dan permainan video dan banyak lagi. Pendidikanlah yang memupuk kita supaya bersikap bijaksana, dan supaya kita penuh dengan budi-bicara dalam memilih karya,…
