Muslim women’s literacy rate increases
GHAZALA Tasneem’s dream has come true with her selection for the Bihar Judicial Services Competitive Examination.
She can now aspire to be a judge. “It was difficult, but thanks to Allah, due to the continuous support and motivation from my husband and other family members, I have achieved what I deserved,” says Tasneem, a housewife and mother of two from the Katihar district of Bihar.
There is a general perception that Muslim women rarely pursue higher education or go for competitive examinations. And the social odds are stacked even higher once they get married and have children.
But women like Tasneem are challenging such stereotypes.
India has the largest Muslim population after Indonesia, which is about 14.2% of its 1.34-billion population, and the 2011 census shows that about half of the population of Muslim women are illiterate.
Tasneem thinks the situation is changing fast.
“In areas like law and the judiciary, still the number of Muslim girls is less. But in general, the situation is changing now and there are many more Muslim girls going to school,” she says.
Zebun Nisa Khan, an associate professor at the Department of Education in Aligarh Muslim University, says the situation has already changed.
“The trend is not changing, but it has already changed. For the last few years, the number of Muslim girls in schools has increased massively.”
Muslim women’s literacy rate is on the increase in Uttar Pradesh, but in states like Bihar and West Bengal it needs to improve.
Moonisa Bushra Abidi, who teaches physics at Maharashtra College of Arts, Science and Commerce in Mumbai, also thinks educating girls is an increasing trend among Muslims and an increasing number of Muslims girls – encouraged by their parents, particularly mothers – are going for higher education.
“One can see a larger number of girls with hijab in many institutions now,” Abidi says.
“In the early 1990s, when I was pursuing my MSc from the University of Mumbai, I was the only girl in the entire university with a hijab.”
She says that during her days in the same college at the intermediate level there was one division of girls against four of boys. Now there are four divisions of girls against one for boys.
Khan lists poverty and the lack of awareness as some of the major problems in the path of education for girls.
“The major obstacles are poverty and lack of awareness. Many Muslim families are below the poverty line and are unable to educate girls.”
There is another misconception, she says.
Some people think educating girls, especially in modern education, is against religious norms, but she believes getting an education is a religious duty.
“The very first revelation on Prophet Muhammad was the word ‘iqra’ which means ‘you read’, and such words are mentioned in many places in the Holy Qur’an. It is general guidance for both males and females.” – IANS