Sir Muhammad Iqbal widely known as AllamaIqbal, was a poet, philosopher, and politician, as well as an academic, barrister and scholar. He has inspired Pakistan Movement. He is called the "Spiritual father of Pakistan". He is considered one of the most important figures in Urdu and Persian literature. His philosophy is recognized around the globe and is being taught all over the world. Iqbal emphasized much on the education and educational system. For Iqbal, education is the only way through which nations can be successful.
The K.G Saiyidain has examined the educational implications of the philosophical ideas of AllamaIqbal in the book “Iqbal’s educational Philosophy”.
For, Iqbal, individuality, and “Khudi” are the most important. According to Iqbal, an educationist should first know about the individual and his nature before making any educational program. His concept of “Khudi” was different from many other philosophers. According to Iqbal, system of education should lead to the development of individuality and it can be achieved only if child is treated with affection and love. For, Iqbal, dynamic and concrete environment is essential for the development of an active individuality. Similarly, a person should be open to all kinds of challenging experiences for the development of “Khudi”. Therefore, the highest aim of education should be to strengthen the individuality of persons so that they may realize their full potentials and possibilities. For Iqbal, the development of individuality is a creative process and individual must play an active role for it. Furthermore, freedom is also essential for the development of individuality and creativity. Therefore, children should be allowed to gain first hand experiences by experimenting with their environment. An educational system should emphasize on awakening & cultivation of intelligence and schools must provide exploration opportunities to students. Iqbal put emphasis on experimental method and encouraged to boldly explore new domains of knowledge.
According to Iqbal, the knowledge of truth is obtained initially through the senses and then through direct realization. Its ultimate stages cannot be comprehended within consciousness. Knowledge which is the final stage of truth and which cannot be constrained within consciousness is also called intuition or love. Iqbal said that intellect separated from love is a rebel (like Satan) while intellect linked to love has divine attributes.
Iqbal recommended that it is necessary for every educational system to determine its philosophy in order to define clearly the type of human being which it aims at producing. According to Iqbal’s educational philosophy; firstly, the good life must be a life of active effort and struggle. The activity must be creative and original because creativity is the most valuable and distinctive gift of man. A person should have close contact with his environment and he should constantly reshape it to suit his purposes. Secondly, the good man must learn to apply his intelligence through intellect so that he can take command of nature. Intellect does give us power but this power can be utilized constructively for the good of humanity only if it is guided and controlled by love.
Iqbal is of the view that there are three qualities which should be cultivated by education. These qualities are:
i. Courage,
ii. Tolerance and
iii. Faqr.
Iqbal believed that education should cultivate among individuals the attitude of courage. Education should eliminate all types of fear among individuals. Tolerance is the second essential constituent of good character. Iqbal said that, “the principle of the ego sustained deed is respect for the ego in myself as well as in others. It clearly implies that unless education strengthens in us a sense of respect for the other’s individuality their opinions and belief their thoughts and behavior, our own will remain distorted and incomplete”. The third quality is Faqr or Istighna. It is a kind of emotional and intellectual self-discipline. It is the selfless service for some great purpose.
According to Iqbal, various forces influence upon the development of a child such as natural and cultural. Individuals should not only critically appreciate the cultural achievements of the community but must also adhere to the highest cultural value and traditions. According to Iqbal, the educational system of a country should reflect its culture. Therefore, culture of community is very important for the education. Throughout his life, Iqbal preached the social values of Islam since they constitute the strongest protection against nationalism and racialism and provide the assurance and hope for a society based upon the principles of social justice, equality, and human brotherhood. Iqbal realized that due to neglect of science, Muslim community has been declined, their intellectual growth has been detained, and their economic and political position has been weakened. Therefore, he emphasized the study of scientific disciplines.
Iqbal said that education should be creative and dynamic which would help to inculcate the creative spirit in individuals and arouse an interest in Muslims to conquer new realms of arts and science, knowledge and power. Science has a significant place because it helps individuals to control over nature. Moreover, using scientific methods, individual can consciously reconstruct this world. Giving importance to science should not mean neglecting religious education.
According to Iqbal, objective of education should be the development of individuality therefore; education should bring the human being toward life of action. Iqbal viewed that education must be conducted in the most liberal and broadminded spirit so as to develop in youth an all-embracing humanism.
Another objective of Iqbal’s philosophy is to harmonize individual’s spiritual progress with his accomplishment in the material sphere. Afterwards, it sets a definite purpose to man’s achievements in science and technology. These objectives of education develop new desires as an important factor in the development of a person’s individuality.
Teacher, curriculum and academic atmosphere play an important role in carrying the ideals of any educational system to its logical conclusion. Iqbal also worked as a teacher and he was well familiar with the psychology of the learner and instructional techniques. Iqbal views the role of teacher as a producer of men’s vision who perceives the reality of things and cultivates nation’s progress and prosperity. He wishes a teacher to understand and aware of an ideal education, which he is going to transmit to the students mainly through his ideal character.
Iqbal did not recommend stereotyped methods of teaching because it provides no space for thinking. Iqbal preferred methods of learning by doing and self activity which provide new situations & problems to students so that they can work purposefully and learn to overcome their difficulties themselves. The objective of intellectual education should be the awakening of critical and questioning attitude among students. Moreover, individuals should not merely rely on intellectual thoughts but they should also perform some actions. This is the only way through which knowledge can be transformed into power and individuals can use it for the reconstruction of their environment.
According to Iqbal, for the teaching morality, school environment should provide situations and opportunities where individuals would learn it through social life & experiences. Therefore, if education is focused for the preparation for life, it must be provide opportunities for active participation in life. Iqbal emphasized that school should try to draw out, the intellectual, aesthetic & moral significance of the ordinary occupations & interests of life and to find the growing part of the mind in its effort to handle the everyday concrete problems.
According to Iqbal, the short-sighted approach of teacher has damaged the very objective of education. In this situation, the students cannot explore their hidden potentialities and become passive agent of the society. Iqbal declares it as a criminal negligence on the part of teacher. With this irresponsible and non-ideal, the child starts to learn merely ordinary tasks. The teacher’s role has important implications for the development of integrated personality of learner. Iqbal stated that the role of teacher is challenging as well as important, because all round development of a student depends on teacher. Iqbal relates the teacher as an architect of nation, custodian of society and above all spiritual mentor of a student.
Iqbal emphasized that one should know principles of educating children and help them to discover their potentialities, thus, formulating their education and training according to their aptitudes. Therefore, teacher has key role in shaping the total personality of child. Iqbal has formulated eleven principles of psychology to be kept in view while imparting education.
1. A child is keen for activity. His surplus energy must get outlet. This must be utilized.
2. Children cannot attend to a thing for long. He wants variety in activity. This trait of children can be taken as advantage of by the educator, who should divide his lessons into units in order to sustain the attention of the children.
3. Children take interest in observing and touching things. He wants to possess everything that he sees. The education can develop his power of observation and train his senses by bringing him in contact with actual objects.
4. Children are attracted to bright colours. The educator should therefore develop his colour sense.
5. Children imitate elders and learn things from their parents. They are interested to do mono acting and wish to play the role of a teacher or a shopkeeper or a hawker. The teacher should always present a good model so that they may imitate good things.
6. The power of imagination and thinking in the Children is highly pronounced as is clear from the fact that they begin to pester their grannies to tell them tales and fables. The teacher should take full advantage of this trait of the children.
7. Children’s natural habit of being sympathetic can be utilized by the teacher in calculating moral education among the Children.
8. Children have wonderful memory for vocabulary and remembering things. The teacher should always try to encourage them to remember verses and poems.
9. Since their power of judgment and discrimination is not highly developed at this stage, the teacher should present different objects and sharpen their power of judgment by giving them comparative view of these objects.
10. Their power of logic is not very strong; they should be given exercises which create this characteristic in them.
11. Given them comparative situation and their power of discrimination would sharpen.
12. With a view to teach them morality the teacher should create situations of morality in the activities, from the very beginning. They should be taught how to be sympathetic, how to attentive to their lessons. The psychic development as well as the biological development should take place simultaneously.
Iqbal emphasized realistic curriculum that is related to the demands and needs of developing individual and reflecting the values, norms and aspirations of society. He wanted subjects which should help the students to have all round development: spiritual, moral, physical, cultural, social and economical. He also emphasized the study of history in curriculum. According to Iqbal, the Quran declares three sources of knowledge. History is one among them. It has great significance in our educational process. History is mirror of communities and nations and reflects a complete record of individuals and nations as a whole.
Iqbal stresses to incorporate technical education in the curriculum for the economic uplift of under developed societies. In the educational institutions, up to intermediate level, Iqbal recommends philosophy, mathematics, science, and economics. At university level he suggests literature, Muslim art, history, and architecture. Iqbal strongly favours the interest and capability of the student for the selection of subjects.
Iqbalwas very much concerned for the preparation of text books for students. With the help of learned scholars, he had compiled text books for middle class students. Iqbal has presented following principles for a purposeful curriculum:
1. Prescribed text books should be a combination of ancient and modern contentions of thought.
2. Novel experiences, information and latest tendencies in different spheres of life must be incorporated in the text books, in relation to the cultural heritage, so that students do not snap their ties with past.
3. To make students aware of new changes and experiences in language and their usage.
4. To develop literary taste among the students; it could faster broad vision and nourish their integrated thinking.
5. Text book material should be genuine, illuminating its purposes with insight. Art not for the sake of art, but for the sake of a full or abundant life.
6. The total content of study material should be life affirming preparing the student to confront each and every challenge of life with courage, confidence and self-reliant manner.
7. Morality is the true essence of ideal life. While compiling the text books, moral instances of ideal personalities should be cited in the lessons. It should be explained in a way, so that the child could follow the path of piousness and bravery, instead of becoming weak and coward.
8. To develop genuine patriotism; it is necessary because foreign rulers through their system of education distorted our past in order to fulfill their imperialistic designs. So the sense of patriotism would strengthen individuality of the student and stimulate his originality.
9. To develop academic interest in the pupil study material of text books should be thoughtful as well as harmonious in nature.
Iqbal consistently criticized the traditional educational system and its ways of imparting education. According to Iqbal, without teacher’s development, individuality cannot be promoted. The teacher, as a dynamic personality cans promote intellectual, moral and emotional dimensions of human. The personality of teacher is main source of student’s creative activity. Iqbal criticized the stereotype role of teacher. According to Iqbal, an ideal teacher has to reconstruct the very foundations of the society. Iqbal recommended only those methods for teaching which include learning by doing, self-activity and methods which confront the student in new situations and with new problems.
Undoubtedly, Iqbal’s educational perspective is Islamic in nature. Iqbal’s ideal educational environment creates a society which is to be founded in secure ground; its basis must be spiritual and too deep rooted to be affected by any adverse influences. According to Iqbal, the objective of education is to achieve a dynamic personality with strong sense of ego-hood. This can be developed in a new social order created through an ideal system of education. Iqbal’s educational philosophy combines knowledge, reason, sense perception, and intuition in an integrated form. For Iqbal, the cultivation of Khudi is the highest goal of educational effort. Moreover, the social consciousness of individual becomes the important aim of the education.
In a comprehensive education system, discipline acquires a pivotal position. In the opinion of Iqbal, an ideal educational situation is prerequisite for the development of an ideal character. According to Iqbal, without character formation, various negative disorders in the society cannot controlled.
Iqbal emphasized the sake of making future generations creative and hardworking; the teachers should inculcate in them a religious, moral and culture values.
Make a comparison between old and new teaching methodologies.
The K.G Saiyidain has examined the educational implications of the philosophical ideas of AllamaIqbal in the book “Iqbal’s educational Philosophy”.
For, Iqbal, individuality, and “Khudi” are the most important. According to Iqbal, an educationist should first know about the individual and his nature before making any educational program. His concept of “Khudi” was different from many other philosophers. According to Iqbal, system of education should lead to the development of individuality and it can be achieved only if child is treated with affection and love. For, Iqbal, dynamic and concrete environment is essential for the development of an active individuality. Similarly, a person should be open to all kinds of challenging experiences for the development of “Khudi”. Therefore, the highest aim of education should be to strengthen the individuality of persons so that they may realize their full potentials and possibilities. For Iqbal, the development of individuality is a creative process and individual must play an active role for it. Furthermore, freedom is also essential for the development of individuality and creativity. Therefore, children should be allowed to gain first hand experiences by experimenting with their environment. An educational system should emphasize on awakening & cultivation of intelligence and schools must provide exploration opportunities to students. Iqbal put emphasis on experimental method and encouraged to boldly explore new domains of knowledge.
According to Iqbal, the knowledge of truth is obtained initially through the senses and then through direct realization. Its ultimate stages cannot be comprehended within consciousness. Knowledge which is the final stage of truth and which cannot be constrained within consciousness is also called intuition or love. Iqbal said that intellect separated from love is a rebel (like Satan) while intellect linked to love has divine attributes.
Iqbal recommended that it is necessary for every educational system to determine its philosophy in order to define clearly the type of human being which it aims at producing. According to Iqbal’s educational philosophy; firstly, the good life must be a life of active effort and struggle. The activity must be creative and original because creativity is the most valuable and distinctive gift of man. A person should have close contact with his environment and he should constantly reshape it to suit his purposes. Secondly, the good man must learn to apply his intelligence through intellect so that he can take command of nature. Intellect does give us power but this power can be utilized constructively for the good of humanity only if it is guided and controlled by love.
Iqbal is of the view that there are three qualities which should be cultivated by education. These qualities are:
i. Courage,
ii. Tolerance and
iii. Faqr.
Iqbal believed that education should cultivate among individuals the attitude of courage. Education should eliminate all types of fear among individuals. Tolerance is the second essential constituent of good character. Iqbal said that, “the principle of the ego sustained deed is respect for the ego in myself as well as in others. It clearly implies that unless education strengthens in us a sense of respect for the other’s individuality their opinions and belief their thoughts and behavior, our own will remain distorted and incomplete”. The third quality is Faqr or Istighna. It is a kind of emotional and intellectual self-discipline. It is the selfless service for some great purpose.
According to Iqbal, various forces influence upon the development of a child such as natural and cultural. Individuals should not only critically appreciate the cultural achievements of the community but must also adhere to the highest cultural value and traditions. According to Iqbal, the educational system of a country should reflect its culture. Therefore, culture of community is very important for the education. Throughout his life, Iqbal preached the social values of Islam since they constitute the strongest protection against nationalism and racialism and provide the assurance and hope for a society based upon the principles of social justice, equality, and human brotherhood. Iqbal realized that due to neglect of science, Muslim community has been declined, their intellectual growth has been detained, and their economic and political position has been weakened. Therefore, he emphasized the study of scientific disciplines.
Iqbal said that education should be creative and dynamic which would help to inculcate the creative spirit in individuals and arouse an interest in Muslims to conquer new realms of arts and science, knowledge and power. Science has a significant place because it helps individuals to control over nature. Moreover, using scientific methods, individual can consciously reconstruct this world. Giving importance to science should not mean neglecting religious education.
According to Iqbal, objective of education should be the development of individuality therefore; education should bring the human being toward life of action. Iqbal viewed that education must be conducted in the most liberal and broadminded spirit so as to develop in youth an all-embracing humanism.
Another objective of Iqbal’s philosophy is to harmonize individual’s spiritual progress with his accomplishment in the material sphere. Afterwards, it sets a definite purpose to man’s achievements in science and technology. These objectives of education develop new desires as an important factor in the development of a person’s individuality.
Teacher, curriculum and academic atmosphere play an important role in carrying the ideals of any educational system to its logical conclusion. Iqbal also worked as a teacher and he was well familiar with the psychology of the learner and instructional techniques. Iqbal views the role of teacher as a producer of men’s vision who perceives the reality of things and cultivates nation’s progress and prosperity. He wishes a teacher to understand and aware of an ideal education, which he is going to transmit to the students mainly through his ideal character.
Iqbal did not recommend stereotyped methods of teaching because it provides no space for thinking. Iqbal preferred methods of learning by doing and self activity which provide new situations & problems to students so that they can work purposefully and learn to overcome their difficulties themselves. The objective of intellectual education should be the awakening of critical and questioning attitude among students. Moreover, individuals should not merely rely on intellectual thoughts but they should also perform some actions. This is the only way through which knowledge can be transformed into power and individuals can use it for the reconstruction of their environment.
According to Iqbal, for the teaching morality, school environment should provide situations and opportunities where individuals would learn it through social life & experiences. Therefore, if education is focused for the preparation for life, it must be provide opportunities for active participation in life. Iqbal emphasized that school should try to draw out, the intellectual, aesthetic & moral significance of the ordinary occupations & interests of life and to find the growing part of the mind in its effort to handle the everyday concrete problems.
According to Iqbal, the short-sighted approach of teacher has damaged the very objective of education. In this situation, the students cannot explore their hidden potentialities and become passive agent of the society. Iqbal declares it as a criminal negligence on the part of teacher. With this irresponsible and non-ideal, the child starts to learn merely ordinary tasks. The teacher’s role has important implications for the development of integrated personality of learner. Iqbal stated that the role of teacher is challenging as well as important, because all round development of a student depends on teacher. Iqbal relates the teacher as an architect of nation, custodian of society and above all spiritual mentor of a student.
Iqbal emphasized that one should know principles of educating children and help them to discover their potentialities, thus, formulating their education and training according to their aptitudes. Therefore, teacher has key role in shaping the total personality of child. Iqbal has formulated eleven principles of psychology to be kept in view while imparting education.
1. A child is keen for activity. His surplus energy must get outlet. This must be utilized.
2. Children cannot attend to a thing for long. He wants variety in activity. This trait of children can be taken as advantage of by the educator, who should divide his lessons into units in order to sustain the attention of the children.
3. Children take interest in observing and touching things. He wants to possess everything that he sees. The education can develop his power of observation and train his senses by bringing him in contact with actual objects.
4. Children are attracted to bright colours. The educator should therefore develop his colour sense.
5. Children imitate elders and learn things from their parents. They are interested to do mono acting and wish to play the role of a teacher or a shopkeeper or a hawker. The teacher should always present a good model so that they may imitate good things.
6. The power of imagination and thinking in the Children is highly pronounced as is clear from the fact that they begin to pester their grannies to tell them tales and fables. The teacher should take full advantage of this trait of the children.
7. Children’s natural habit of being sympathetic can be utilized by the teacher in calculating moral education among the Children.
8. Children have wonderful memory for vocabulary and remembering things. The teacher should always try to encourage them to remember verses and poems.
9. Since their power of judgment and discrimination is not highly developed at this stage, the teacher should present different objects and sharpen their power of judgment by giving them comparative view of these objects.
10. Their power of logic is not very strong; they should be given exercises which create this characteristic in them.
11. Given them comparative situation and their power of discrimination would sharpen.
12. With a view to teach them morality the teacher should create situations of morality in the activities, from the very beginning. They should be taught how to be sympathetic, how to attentive to their lessons. The psychic development as well as the biological development should take place simultaneously.
Iqbal emphasized realistic curriculum that is related to the demands and needs of developing individual and reflecting the values, norms and aspirations of society. He wanted subjects which should help the students to have all round development: spiritual, moral, physical, cultural, social and economical. He also emphasized the study of history in curriculum. According to Iqbal, the Quran declares three sources of knowledge. History is one among them. It has great significance in our educational process. History is mirror of communities and nations and reflects a complete record of individuals and nations as a whole.
Iqbal stresses to incorporate technical education in the curriculum for the economic uplift of under developed societies. In the educational institutions, up to intermediate level, Iqbal recommends philosophy, mathematics, science, and economics. At university level he suggests literature, Muslim art, history, and architecture. Iqbal strongly favours the interest and capability of the student for the selection of subjects.
Iqbalwas very much concerned for the preparation of text books for students. With the help of learned scholars, he had compiled text books for middle class students. Iqbal has presented following principles for a purposeful curriculum:
1. Prescribed text books should be a combination of ancient and modern contentions of thought.
2. Novel experiences, information and latest tendencies in different spheres of life must be incorporated in the text books, in relation to the cultural heritage, so that students do not snap their ties with past.
3. To make students aware of new changes and experiences in language and their usage.
4. To develop literary taste among the students; it could faster broad vision and nourish their integrated thinking.
5. Text book material should be genuine, illuminating its purposes with insight. Art not for the sake of art, but for the sake of a full or abundant life.
6. The total content of study material should be life affirming preparing the student to confront each and every challenge of life with courage, confidence and self-reliant manner.
7. Morality is the true essence of ideal life. While compiling the text books, moral instances of ideal personalities should be cited in the lessons. It should be explained in a way, so that the child could follow the path of piousness and bravery, instead of becoming weak and coward.
8. To develop genuine patriotism; it is necessary because foreign rulers through their system of education distorted our past in order to fulfill their imperialistic designs. So the sense of patriotism would strengthen individuality of the student and stimulate his originality.
9. To develop academic interest in the pupil study material of text books should be thoughtful as well as harmonious in nature.
Iqbal consistently criticized the traditional educational system and its ways of imparting education. According to Iqbal, without teacher’s development, individuality cannot be promoted. The teacher, as a dynamic personality cans promote intellectual, moral and emotional dimensions of human. The personality of teacher is main source of student’s creative activity. Iqbal criticized the stereotype role of teacher. According to Iqbal, an ideal teacher has to reconstruct the very foundations of the society. Iqbal recommended only those methods for teaching which include learning by doing, self-activity and methods which confront the student in new situations and with new problems.
Undoubtedly, Iqbal’s educational perspective is Islamic in nature. Iqbal’s ideal educational environment creates a society which is to be founded in secure ground; its basis must be spiritual and too deep rooted to be affected by any adverse influences. According to Iqbal, the objective of education is to achieve a dynamic personality with strong sense of ego-hood. This can be developed in a new social order created through an ideal system of education. Iqbal’s educational philosophy combines knowledge, reason, sense perception, and intuition in an integrated form. For Iqbal, the cultivation of Khudi is the highest goal of educational effort. Moreover, the social consciousness of individual becomes the important aim of the education.
In a comprehensive education system, discipline acquires a pivotal position. In the opinion of Iqbal, an ideal educational situation is prerequisite for the development of an ideal character. According to Iqbal, without character formation, various negative disorders in the society cannot controlled.
Iqbal emphasized the sake of making future generations creative and hardworking; the teachers should inculcate in them a religious, moral and culture values.
Make a comparison between old and new teaching methodologies.
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