[Event is Rescheduled- New Date to be Announced Soon] Curricular Experiences of Islam: Cases from High-School Classrooms

Event Description

Dr. Merchant will discuss the curricular experiences of Islam in high-school classrooms based on her research with teachers as well as Muslim girls from minority communities of interpretation. Dr. Merchant’s talk begins with the curiosity: What happens when you learn about yourself as a subject, but don’t recognize yourself in what is being taught? She explores this question through case study research of Shia and Ahmadiyya high-school girls’ experiences with curricula on Islam. The insights from these students open-up areas of inquiry into teacher practice which Dr. Merchant will share to conclude her presentation.

About the Speaker 

Dr. Natasha Hakimali Merchant is an interdisciplinary scholar with research interests in the fields of critical pedagogy, feminist theory, Muslim studies, and social studies education. To date, her research agenda has focused on the ways in which Islam and Muslims are taught about and understood (by teachers and Muslim students) in U.S. public high-school classrooms.  Her current project analyzes the pedagogical practices of ‘justice-oriented’, white, high-school teachers as they plan, teach, and reflect on lessons about Islam and Muslims.

Moderator

Professor Shenila Khoja-Moolji is the Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani Associate Professor of Muslim Societies at Georgetown University. She researches and writes about the interplay of gender, race, religion, and power in transnational contexts, and explores this theme particularly in relation to Muslim populations in South Asia and in the North American diaspora. Professor Khoja-Moolji’s latest book, Rebuilding Community: Displaced Women and the Making of a Shia Ismaili Muslim Sociality (Oxford University Press) is available for preorder here.