The Background and Rationale for the Emergence of the AIMA®
Abstract: This Paper articulates the principal concerns and conditions that inspired the conceptualization of the AIMA® and from which it emerged, to include the sociopolitical circumstances and the academic/educational environment prevailing within the United States at the time of its inception.
The Background and Rationale for the Emergence of the AIMA
The AIMA was launched to support the preservation of Islam, to promote its values and ethics, and to protect it from appropriation by persons of malicious intent, as well as organizations bent on its corruption, as a means to nefarious ends. There is an acute need for unified advocacy from credible sources – sources that are wholly dedicated to the transmission of accurate, independent information about Islam – its values, teachings, and adherents. Furthermore, there is need for a “re-frame” for those in the United States and around the world, who don’t understand Islam and whose only conception of it is based on its perversion, as displayed in the media-amplified barbarism of entities like ISIS and Al Qaeda.
An educational organization anchored in scholarship and research is an ideal source from which to promote and advance this purpose. Academia, as an inquiry-driven pursuit, naturally appeals to the intellectually curious – arguably the most logical and forward-thinking members of a society. In addition, educational endeavors, particularly those that are heavily scholarship/research-based, tend to exist in a connotatively neutral space, and as such, are not tainted by skepticism, or hampered by bias and distortion to the degree that exclusively faith-based efforts are often subject.
The Challenge [and the Need for Strategized Engagement]
Despite the innumerable and impactful efforts of erudite Muslim leaders within the Muslim community, the world remains largely unversed relative to the virtues of Islam. For this reason, we must strive, through other means, to support the advances of those who champion the cause. We must engage the world in ways that can complement and extend their work. The AIMA is a strategic effort to do just that. It presents an oblique, and yet potent approach – through education – that effectively circumvents the resistance so often attendant to engagement with those who are uninformed or misinformed about Islam. Most importantly, the focus of the AIMA is the cultivation of educators who, by virtue of their profession, are endowed with a profound power for influence.
The Education of Children
This is a critical moment for Islam in the United States. We are at risk of losing an entire generation of Muslim youth – second and third generation Muslim Americans, adolescents who find themselves immersed in Western society and in the commercialism and materialism of Western culture. They stand upon a bridge between two worlds….and the trappings of the West are seductive. Absent the benefit of an Islamic foundation early in life, these youth are ill-equipped to navigate the tides and the tempests that confront them; and they are confronted every day. There is no template for negotiating this divide between the lives and lifestyles of parents from “the old country” and the world in which their American-born children and grandchildren are living. This is the struggle of intergenerational assimilation. Parents struggle, children struggle, society struggles; and the future of Islam hangs in the balance. These are unsettled times.
The need for a strong foundation in Islamic education cannot be overstated, and the earliest years of life are most pivotal in developing the hearts and minds of our children. We must attend to the critical need for well-qualified educators in our schools; we must attend to the critical need for well-qualified Islamic schools. To meaningfully and effectively address these concerns requires intention, focus – and the application of standards.
Summary
The development of excellent teachers and exemplary schools is not only necessary, but absolutely essential to the preservation of Islam in the United States. We must develop and attract teachers who are exceptionally proficient, having demonstrated expertise in their fields of study, who are credentialed, and who are comprehensively versed in the teachings and virtues of Islam. Furthermore, we must develop exacting standards for our schools to insure they are capable of attracting, supporting, and retaining high-achieving educators. The AIMA advances the dual approach of credentialing educators and accrediting educational institutions, in an effort to promote a dynamic environment that has the capacity to ignite and catalyze enthusiasm for intellectual pursuit that will inspire our youth to achieve greatness for the benefit of humankind.
Dr. Jaime Dodd specializes in the research and application of Montessori theory and practice in early childhood educational settings. She is a member of the executive leadership team for a nonprofit, educational and research institution in St. Louis, Missouri where she has invested the greater part of her professional career. Dr. Dodd serves on the board of various St. Louis area non-profit entities, focused primarily on educational, humanitarian and/or healthcare concerns. Dr. Dodd’s passion is manifest in her work with the American Islamic Montessori Association (AIMA), a professional membership organization to advance Islamic Montessori Education (IME) as a bridge to foster understanding, promote education and expand peace across the U.S. and around the globe.