ITMD Madrasa leaders at Capitol Hill
The International Center for Religion & Diplomacy ICRD has been working for the past three years with leaders of Pakistan’s madrasas, conducting teacher training workshops and other initiatives to promote religious tolerance, human rights, and peace education, as well as greater understanding of America, in madrasa education. ICRD is hosting the leaders of Pakistan’s top Madrasa Oversight Board—the Ittihad Tanzeemat Madaris Deenia (ITMD)—and the Pakistani government’s Secretary for Religious Affairs in Washington, DC for a US study/exchange visit this month. The ITMD Board oversees the individual madrasa boards belonging to each of the five sects that sponsor madrasas in Pakistan and wields enormous influence over the curriculums and teaching methodologies of the madrasas. The ITMD visit to America, which has come about solely due to ICRD's concerted engagement with the madrasas over the past three years, will be a unique opportunity for Pakistan’s highest madrasa officials to be introduced to religious education in America; meet with American educational, political, and religious leaders, as well as members of the NGO community who are working in the areas of religion and peacebuilding; and raise awareness in America of the complex realities of the madrasa situation in Pakistan, while gaining greater knowledge of America and its values. In this section we spoke to 4 of the 6 Madrasa leaders about their American experience.
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http://s135.photobucket.com/albums/q141/imransiddiqui/?action=view¤t=UlemasatCapitolhill.flv
Watch the complete discussion
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6741989783794597039&hl=en
ICRD International center for religion and diplomacy together with ITMD Madrasa leaders at Georgetown University
The International Center for Religion & Diplomacy ICRD has invited the top religious Madrasa leaders to the US for a weeklong dialogue and discussion events where the Madrasa leaders will be visiting different Universities and college campuses to participate in various discussions, in order to have a first hand look at how the education system, education leaders, scholars and education organizations function in the US. The initiative was taken to share and impart various educational methodologies and techniques used in the US. This piece takes a look at how the madrasa leaders spent an afternoon at Georgetown University engaging in dialogue with different representatives of the university, teachers, scholars and Christian leaders. The vice president of ICRD and the Pakistani secretary for religious affairs also spoke at the event.
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http://s135.photobucket.com/albums/q141/imransiddiqui/?action=view¤t=UlemasatGeorgetown.flv