When secular and Qur’anic worldviews encounter: Educational experiences in conventional schools and Madrasahs in Hong Kong

This paper explores teaching and learning experiences concerning young Pakistani Muslims in Hong Kong, who are found simultaneously immersed in two divergent systems of education - first, the conventional daytime schools where students are educated formally with general knowledge, and second, the madrasahs (Islamic learning institutes) where student recite Qur’an and receive religious teachings every day after school. Based on the ongoing ethnographic fieldwork (with methods including participant observation and interviews) in both local conventional schools and madrasahs in Hong Kong, this paper reveals that the three parties involved, namely the Chinese-speaking educators from conventional schools, the Qur’anic teachers from madrasahs (along with the students’ parents, who are often supporters of madrasah education), and the ethnic Muslim students, might have different understanding and expectations on education. This paper further argues that such difference could be a result of contrary worldviews and meanings of life to the two groups of educators, as well as limited communication between the two sides of educational institutes.