Students taught tolerance
through Islamic discussion
By Scott Mitchell Johnson
PRESQUE ISLE – While New York City is a cultural melting pot, it’s safe to say that Presque Isle isn’t; therefore, many local kids are unfamiliar with things like the Islamic religion.
However, Presque Isle Middle School seventh-grade social studies/English teacher Elaine Hendrickson is hoping to open her students’ eyes to the vast differences between people of all walks of life.
KEVIN CASEY, pictured on screen, is a PhD student at the University of Toronto studying Middle Eastern and Islamic studies. He is currently working in Baghdad, Iraq. His future mother-in-law, Elaine Hendrickson, is a seventh-grade social studies/English teacher at Presque Isle Middle School. Last Tuesday, Casey and Hendrickson’s students were able to converse through Skype where he discussed the Islamic religion, as well as Muslim customs. Hendrickson said she has been talking about discrimination, prejudice and tolerance with her class and thought using religions as a focal point would be a good idea since “so many times people are very prejudiced against others that do not practice the same religion.”
“We’ve been talking about discrimination, prejudice and tolerance and I’m doing that by using religions because we find that so many times people are very prejudiced against others that do not practice the same religion,” she said. “We have such a closed community here and we’re not exposed to a lot of different religions and races. This is an attempt to expose students to different things.
“Islam seems to be the religion that we are most upset about currently because of the terrorist attacks [in New York] and those people belong to Jihad which is a small group of radicals that feel that the United States is attacking them,” she said.
Hendrickson wanted her students to learn about Islam from someone who knows more about the subject, namely her future son-in-law, Kevin Casey. Presently working in Iraq, Casey is a PhD student at the University of Toronto studying Middle Eastern and Islamic studies.
Last Tuesday, Casey and the seventh-graders were able to converse through Skype, a computer application that allows users to make voice calls over the Internet from and to anywhere in the world.
“I was talking to my daughter on the phone one night and we came up with the idea to do the Skype interview and to interview Kevin right from Baghdad,” said Hendrickson.
Casey explained that Islam is an Arabic word meaning “submission.”
“Submission is one of the most important values in the religion of Islam,” he said. “A person who believes in Islam tries to submit to God’s will in everything that they do. Every time Muslims pray, they bend down and touch their forehead to the ground. This is a symbol of their submission before God.”
Recognizing that many people confuse Arabs and Muslims, Casey told the students that Arabs are an ethnic group like Russians or Chinese and can be of any religion, while a Muslim is person who practices Islam.
Islam originated in the Middle East about 1,400 years ago.
“The Middle East is a very harsh environment to live in; it’s very dry,” Casey said. “In July, the temperatures rose to 130 degrees, but at night it would cool down to 95 degrees.”
Casey discussed with the students the five pillars of Islam, which include Zakat, or charity, fasting during Ramadan, and the Hajj, which is a mandatory pilgrimage to the city of Mecca where Muhammad was born.
“Muslims are obliged to give away 2.5 percent of their money every year to the poor and needy. This is a tradition that Muhammad started in his time because he wanted to create equality within the Muslim community,” said Casey. “He didn’t want one group of people to be really rich and other people to be poor. This is still practiced today among Muslims.
“During one month out of the year, Muslims fast and refrain from eating between the time of sun up and sun down. It’s usually from 7 or 8 a.m. until 8 or 9 p.m. They do this as a sacrifice to show their devotion to God,” he said. “Far from being a sad and mournful time, it’s actually a very festive and joyous time in Muslim countries because after the sun goes down, everyone gets together in huge groups and eat into the very early hours of the morning. They stay up late with their families telling stories, having fun and eating. They even have McDonald’s and Burger King over here.”
Casey told Hendrickson’s class about some of the Muslim customs.
“Muslims live their life according to the Qur’an, or holy book, and to the example of Muhammad. Muslims are generally very family-centered. One of the peculiar customs of Islam is the segregation of men and women in public spaces. In mosques, men and women will not pray together. Men are on one side, women are on the other. This is often the case in public spaces like offices and hospitals,” he said.
“Islam suggests very modest dress for men and women. Women are encouraged in Islamic law to cover their hair as a sign of modesty. Some people interpret this very strictly and actually cover themselves completely; while others interpret it a little more loosely,” said Casey. “There are also dietary customs. Muslims are forbidden from eating certain foods … the most important of which is pork, so no bacon or sausage for Muslims.”
The students were interested to learn about the Islamic culture.
“I thought it was a pretty cool presentation,” said student Connor Murchison. “I didn’t know much about Islam before the presentation. I learned that some churches can hold thousands of people; some mosques are really huge.
“I also learned that their customs are much different than ours. For example, the girls have to wear hoods so they don’t show their hair because of modesty. Now if I see a lady walk down the street with her hair covered, I would understand it more.”
Mandy Graham said she’s glad she’s a student in the United States.
“I learned that girls can’t go to school in Iraq,” she said. “I’m glad I don’t live there. I also learned that they pray five times a day, and the guys and the girls have to pray separately; they can’t pray together.
“I also thought it was interesting that they have to turn the power off in the office that Mr. Casey works in so they can fill the generator with gas,” said Graham. “I learned a lot of different things that I didn’t know before. It was fun.”
Casey said in an e-mail that it’s important for middle-schoolers to learn about Islam.
“I think there’s a lot of misinformation out there today about Islam. People seem to know a lot about Jihad and terrorism, and they think this is what Islam is about. But they don’t know the first thing about how Islam actually began, what the majority of Muslims believe or how they practice their faith,” he said. “In order to have a basic understanding of Islam, you need to know these basic things, and this makes it easier to make informed decisions.
“I think it’s important for seventh-graders simply because there is so much in the media today about Islam, whether it be in the news or television or films, and I think it’s important for them to have a basic frame of reference in which to understand Islam and all of this information about it,” Casey said.
Noting that it’s “challenging” teaching through a computer connection, Casey was pleased with how well it went.
“The students asked some great questions,” he said. “It’s challenging as it’s difficult to ‘read the room,’ but I think they enjoyed the presentation. I hope they realized that Islam today is a diverse religion with a rich history and tradition that can be compatible with America and American values.”
