International Teacher’s Day, religious inspirations in relation to teaching and learning

World Teachers’ Day is an international day held annually on 5 October to celebrate the work of teachers. Established in 1994, it commemorates the signing of recommendation by the International Labour Organization and the UNESCO.

In spite of the many successes that Muslims achieved in the early centuries, in recent decades, neither the learning of science is as popular as it was in the past among Muslims, nor the teacher and professor enjoy a befitting position like the past among Islamic societies.

The first verses that were revealed to the Holy Prophet are the best testament to the special place of teaching and learning in Islam.

From the Islamic point of view, learning knowledge is a necessity that is recommended to all people, not limited by time or place. The very famous hadith of the Holy Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, says: Learning knowledge is an obligation upon every Muslim man and woman.

Islam has recommended traveling to the farthest lands, even China, for the purpose of learning science if necessary.

Over many centuries, Muslims laid the basic foundations of Islamic civilization, and in later periods, they seriously engaged in its development and evolution, such that they assumed the intellectual leadership of the whole world for nearly eight centuries.

During this long period, Muslims were able to achieve great success on two fronts. First, by transferring the valuable works of past civilizations to the Islamic world, they not only saved them from the danger of destruction and oblivion, but also perfected the notions of many past sciences by translating, correcting and completing them.

Also, Muslims succeeded in founding some new sciences (such as experimental chemistry, new physics, algebra, trigonometry, geology, biology, and sociology), to the point that some became the fathers of chemistry, sociology, and medicine. The brilliant advancements of the civilization of Islam influenced Europe and other regions and led them to wake up from the dark ages.

But in spite of all these honors gained by Muslims, neither the learning of science is flourishing among the Muslims, nor the teacher and professor, as in the past, enjoy the honor and dignity among the Muslim communities over the past several decades.

These days, teachers in some countries do not enjoy decent working conditions, and face many obstacles in carrying out their educational activities. Lack of appreciation and other problems caused by governments and other centers means that many teachers are struggling in their professional and private lives.

Today, in some Islamic countries, teachers are considered to be among the least privileged and perhaps the poorest classes of the society, facing many problems in order to meet the basic needs of their lives. Sometimes, they are forced to work in a second or third job in addition to their teaching profession.

Undoubtedly, the circumstances of teachers, in addition to the sharp drop in the level of education in educational centers, such as schools and universities, will cause students observing the life conditions and livelihood of teachers, to be disappointed at continuation of their educational paths. This has seriously affected the quality of their education, and their levels of motivation.