Teacher Training Course

Fouz teachers come from a variety of backgrounds, from graduates of Islamic seminaries, to university graduates and those with other backgrounds in Islamic studies. For some it may also be a venture into a new type of career. Training is essential for teachers of all backgrounds in order to optimise the use of the teaching time and performance of the students. After all, for supplementary schools, time is the most limited asset for all that are involved.

Teacher training ensures that essential skills such as subject mastery as well as the ability to teach the subject are both in place. Teachers need to be guided through training concerning learning theories, instructional design, managing the classroom, student welfare, engaging parents,  reporting and how to inspire and motivate learning in order to effectively deliver the Fouz curriculum. With real time experience in the presence of veteran teachers, trainees get a chance to apply theory to practice. For Fouz, the professionalism of our teachers is a reflection of Islam in minds of our children. Since ‘Islamic’ experiences are in constant competition with popular culture our presentation is increasingly important.

The task of Islamic nurture is a great responsibility and it is what the Prophets (upon them be peace) were tasked to do. Contrary to common belief, the skills and mindset required for imparting Islamic nurture in the most effective way, often do not come from an imitation of our own experiences, especially for those who have been exposed to a non-ideal experience. The instinctive recourse for teachers in early settling Muslim communities was to mimic the traditional approach from the Indian subcontinent and the  around the Muslim world. Being a heavily instructional and authoritarian, teacher centred education. After all this is what they knew, and ostensibly, it worked. The problem lies in that it has become increasingly evident that these approaches have had a diminishing influence on our children over the years. A large reason for this being the context difference of the traditional approach to their modern-western context and the culture that they are surrounded with. Inadequate approaches to preparing children for living a faithful Islamic life in the modern world, have resulted in adverse effects and our communities continue to feel the repercussions. The absence of an engaging, student centred learning experience that they can relate to has been a large contributor to identity crises prevalent in today’s Muslim youth.

Aside from this, modern educational strategies are not geared towards the nurture and character development of learners, much less in a faithful context. The implementation of a new philosophy of education is required which specifically accounts for how character, faith and identity are cultivated through Islamic nurture.

Fouz would like to develop it’s teachers to be effective and efficient practitioners at the forefront of modern educational strategies but alongside this to have an appreciation of equally important Islamic educational pedagogy and philosophy.  Fouz’s teacher training undergoes continuous development as training needs continue to grow and change. We endeavour to maintain close links to the development of Muslim teacher training and Islamic educational research around the world with the aim that it continues to bring us closer to our vision of creating a talented teaching team which is composed of reflective practitioners and whose work is informed by the latest research. The ‘Islamic’ orientation of Fouz’s training programme also leads to a positive impact on things such as workplace ethics, teamwork and leadership styles too. Thus creating a wholesome and uplifting environment for everyone.

• Develop outstanding teachers with universal and specialised skills to deliver an outstanding Fouz education.
• Mentoring and supporting  teachers to make their work easier for them and to help get them closer to delivering outstanding lessons.
• Monitoring the quality and standards of Fouz’s educational delivery for our end beneficiaries; the children and the community.
• To provide a framework for ongoing opportunities of development for teaching professionals and the sharing of experience and expertise between old and new generation teachers.

• An Individualised teacher profile and development strategy provides structure and enables an ongoing plan for every teachers professional development.

Scheduling

• Each year teachers will attend up to 5 full days of pre-booked inset training
• Mentoring and feedback will be provided through the course of the year
• In further years experienced teachers will be challenged with more advanced training

Formats

• Online courses
• Classroom based
• One on one
• Conference style

• Contemporary Understandings of Education and Schooling, Religious Communities, and Visions of Education
• Islamic Pedagogy, Defining and Understanding the Relevance of Islamic Pedagogy
• Islamic Worldview and Pedagogy
• Aims and Objectives of Education
• Vision — Enactment of Purpose and Worldview in Schools
• Content — Curriculum Change and Contemporary Challenges
• Method — Instruction and Learning in the Classroom
• Implementing Islamic Pedagogy
• The Roots of Current Trends in Teaching Instruction
• The Role Model Teacher; Prophet Muhammad ﷺ
• Establishing a Framework — What is Permissible and Not Permissible when Teaching
• Teaching as a Trust — The Responsibilities of the Teacher
• Emphasizing Approaches that Empower God-Consciousness
• Developing an Islamic ethos
• Learning with Purpose — The Responsibilities of the Student
• Effective Classroom Management
• Behaviour management. Discipline with Dignity — Nurturing (Not Managing) Classrooms

• Assessment for Learning – Using data and evidence to improve performance
• Report Writing, diaries, End of year parent’s meetings
• Interventions: Escalation process, parent’s, Head teacher

• Effective team
• Coaching & Mentoring
• Leadership training
• School evaluation systems

• Preparing & Delivering Lessons
• What makes an outstanding lesson?
• Delivering a creative curriculum
• Unleashing potential, Fixed mindset vs Growth mindset
• Active learning – student centred learning
  
  • Learning strategies – collaborative learning, cooperative learning, flipped classroom.
• Critical thinking, blooms taxonomy, using dialogic principles to develop thinking in the primary classroom
  
  • Encouraging Independent Thinking — Do Faith-Based Schools Allow Students to Disagree?
  • Balancing Between Rote and Experiential Education — Instructional Strategies Embedded in the Islamic tradition
• Inclusion – Recognising Difference — Learning Styles and Differentiated Instruction Embedded in the Islamic Tradition

• Centring the Teaching of Comparative Religions and Other Worldviews
• Defining Terms of Reference
• Contextualising general Science – Physics, Biology, and Chemistry, Social Studies, Language Arts.
• Character Education, Health Education, and Fine Arts Identity formation – psychosocial development, cognitive development

• Mastery – getting the basics right in practice and creed
• Qur’an homework guidance for parents
• Teaching strategies for Tajwid
• Fouz’s APP system for tracking Qur’an progress
• Teaching strategies for memorisation of Qur’an and duas
• Parental Involvement in Islamic Schools
• Early years development

• Safeguarding
• Health and safety at school
• First aid for children
• Rules and Policies